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As a classroom teacher since 1987, I know the value of a good children’s book to teach important life lessons. As adults, we can tell young children about right from wrong, but many times they need more concrete lessons.
This is where a good book comes in handy.
Instead of tuning us out and hearing nothing, a great children’s book can give a young child the lesson we want to give delivered with colorful pictures, empathy and humor.
What Children Tend to Hear When We Lecture
The hedgehog is one of the Girl Scout cookie incentives that girls could earn this year. If your Daisy troop still needs to earn the yellow Daisy petal, Friendly and Helpful, here are some cute children’s picture books to start off your meeting.
Hodge the Hedgehog
Nobody likes to hang around a person (or hedgehog) who is a hog. In this story, Hodge does not share the hedge and chases away anyone who comes near. All of this grumpiness is exhausting, and Hodge eventually falls asleep.
Instead of pulling a prank or a trick on Hodge to get back at his selfishness, Mouse believes that he acts this way because he is lonely. Other animals join Mouse and together they make Hodge’s hedge all nice and pretty. Upon awakening, Hodge sees what others have done for him and he decided to share his hedge with the others.
To follow up on this book, you can have the girls do a cooperative project (or projects if your troop is large). Before the meeting, collect items that can be recycled (margarine tubs, egg cartons, small cartons, etc). Have glue, paint, tape, markers, construction paper and other items ready for use.
In groups, girls have to work together (be friendly and helpful) to build something together, the way the animals cooperated in the book to make Hodge’s hedge nicer.
There is another fun hedgehog book entitled The Very Helpful Hedgehog that can also help you earn the yellow Daisy petal. I have a full lesson plan laid out for leaders on my Daisy Girl Scout blog.
