Hi Friends,
Today we listen to a chapter from the Strange Case of Origami Yoda, by Tom Angleberger:
"The greatest teacher, failure is" ~Yoda, an ancient master of the Jedi Order
1. The kids in the book look to Origami Yoda for advice with their troubles. What kind of advice do you give to your friends? To yourself? Think about good advice, like what would you tell a new kid coming to your school or someone who is about to get a new puppy...Grab a pen & paper, write some advice down, like this:
"Use your left hand to open doors, that way your right hand is always clean enough to pick your nose"
"If you don't know what to do, just act like you do. Most people can't tell the difference."
Now, switch the words around, in the style of Master Yoda, like this:
"Pick your nose with the right hand, always open doors with your left hand you must."
"Tell the difference, most people cannot. Act like you know what you are doing, you must, even if you do not."
2. Everyone feels stress, anxiety, fear at times. The story gives us a window into how the character Mike learns to deal with his feelings in a new way. What kinds of things do you do to deal with these kinds of feelings? Have you learned some self-regulation skills? From the Child Mind Institute "Self-regulation is the ability to manage your emotions and behavior in accordance with the demands of the situation. It includes being able to resist highly emotional reactions to upsetting stimuli, to calm yourself down when you get upset, to adjust to a change in expectations, and to handle frustration without an outburst. It is a set of skills that enables children, as they mature, to direct their own behavior towards a goal, despite the unpredictability of the world and our own feelings."
Here are some suggestions, because we all struggle to deal from time to time:
Try the Breathe, Think, Do app from Sesame Street & PBS.
Play the Stop Light Game or Belly Breathing exercises.
Try yoga or practice mindfulness.
Talk to someone! Friends, family, teachers, coaches, even you dog want to give you support!
3. There are lots of characters in the Origami Yoda story. The author cleverly uses these characters to introduce the reader to a bunch of different points of view within the one book. Take a look at the photographs below:
(These images come from the Free to Use & Reuse Sets from the Library of Congress.)
Pick one that you find interesting. Spend some time, mapping out who this character could be in a story. What is their age, where do they come from, what are their likes & dislikes, are they a hero or villian, main character or sidekick. Do they fit into history or fantasy storytelling? Give them a name. If you feel ready, make up a story about the character. You could even try to work all 6 photographs into a single story!
Righty then, we can round out our time together with some origami folding:
Toodleloo, Kangaroos
Today's book was: The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger. Read all about the author, the series & more on the Origami Yoda website. Watch an interview with the author or watch Soapy the Monkey answer questions from Superfolders in 2020. If you've got 15 minutes to spare, dive into this creative writing course with the author.
The Titles of the Library of Congress photos (in order):
Nyssa, Oregon. 1942. Library of Congress
Children with Ice Cream. 1938. Library of Congress
Shine 'em Up. 1920. Library of Congress
Two Girls in a Park. 1942. Library of Congress
Billlie Holiday & Mr. Downbeat. 1946. Library of Congress
Frank Stanton & Prince of Princeton. 1921. Library of Congress
Thanks to Pexels contributers for providing awesome video clips.
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