How to Tame a Bully

 

Richards, Nancy Wilcox, and Drazen Kozjan. How to Tame a Bully. Scholastic, 2009.

Genre: Fiction, Chapter book

Lexile: 470L

More info: https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/how-to-tame-a-bully-by-nancy-wilcox-richards/

Summary: Lauren is so excited to start third grade with her favorite teacher and her best friend. She is hopeful for a fun year...until she starts to get bullied by a new girl named Bethany. Lauren learns throughout this chapter book how to stand up for herself, be brave, be kind and laugh through the tough times. 

Target Audience: This book is meant for 2nd or 3rd grade. It is a great introduction to a chapter book for younger students. I think 2nd and 3rd graders would relate well to the story and the events happening in it.

Evaluation: I think this is a great book for elementary aged students. The writing and the storyline of this book are both good. I think the overall theme, standing up to bullies, would be a great book for young students to read. I like that the main characters are both girls. It shows that girls can deal with bullying too and that they are strong enough to stick up for themselves and br brave. I would say this book meets the criteria for high quality literature. It is also very relatable and a great beginner chapter book.

Reader Response: After my students read this book I would have a group discussion with them and talk about bullying and how we would handle it. I think this would be a good time to have a large group discussion about what bullying looks like and sounds like and how we can handle it in our classrooms.