Saturday, March 10, 2018

CHOOSE KIND


The negativity of bullying made an impression with theater audiences making WONDER one of the hit movies of 2017.  The film starring Owen Wilson, Julia Roberts and Jacob Tremblay tells the story of a boy with a facial deformity who enters middle school after being home-schooled up to that point.  Unfortunately, things don't go smoothly for the boy named Auggie who is bullied and ostracized by the rest of the student body.  Eventually though, he makes some friends, wins the acceptance of his classmates, and overcomes the bullies harassing him.



Hoping to keep the heart-warming message and the goodwill from the movie alive, Random House Kids, the publisher of the #1 New York Times bestselling middle-grade novel WONDER by R.J. Palacio that inspired the film, has licensed a line of WONDER products to inspire kids to CHOOSE KIND throughout 2018.  A 365 day journal is sprinkled with quotes from Palacio's WONDER novel and it features prompts to encourage children to practice kindness everyday.  A daily affirmation calendar as well as WONDER themed stationary and school supplies are also available.  There is also a WONDER anti-bullying kit available from GEDDES that is meant to promote kindness, empathy, and courage in classrooms.  Visit wonderthebook.com/shop to take a look at all these items.

If you have an iPhone or iPad check out the FREE "Daily Wonder" app that is available exclusively for iOS devices.  The app provides an inspirational precept for each day of the year with messages pulled from popular songs, fortune cookies, and words of wisdom from noteworthy people such as Anne Frank and Martin Luther King Jr., and even everyday kids who can submit their own words of wisdom for potential inclusion into the app.  To submit a quote to be included in the "Daily Wonder" app, visit choosekind.tumblr.com/contact.  Teachers can also access free lesson plans and educational resources that promote CHOOSE KIND in their classrooms by visiting wonderthebook.com/for-teachers.



Fans of WONDER should also check out the other tie-in books by R.J. Palacio; Auggie & Me365 Days of Wonder, and We're All Wonders. Auggie & Me:  Three Wonder Stories is another middle grade reading book written for children between third and sixth grade in mind which provides a glimpse of a  Auggie's life through the eyes of other characters from the original story. 365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Browne's Book of Precepts are a collection of sayings collected by Palacio she believes Auggie's memorable English teacher, Mr. Browne, would have shared with his students for their ability to celebrate the goodness of human beings and the strength of people's hearts. This book is great for tweens and teens. We're All Wonders is a picture book meant to share the positive message of Auggie's story to young children.

Make 2018 a year of WONDER! For more information about anti-bullying tips, please visit StopBullying.gov, the PACER's National Bullying Prevention Center and RachelsChallenge.org.   CHOOSE KIND!


1 comment:

  1. Love your piece! This movie, book and product has such fantastic lessons, and I'm so glad you are bringing a spotlight to them!

    ReplyDelete