Sadly, students often feel pressured to be perfect from a young age. They think they can never make a mistake. Therefore, they place so much stress on their minds and bodies to avoid making mistakes. Thus, they often feel anxious about answering a question wrong and stay up too late to prepare for a test. As students grow up, their perfectionist beliefs often become stronger as they try more activities. However, students have to learn that it is okay to make mistakes! Thankfully, this book review on The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes will show students that everyone makes mistakes. Then, the activities from The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes will remind students to focus on doing their best. They need to know that growth occurs when we take the time to learn and challenge ourselves.
Mark Pett and Gary Rubinstein developed the perfect book to teach students about a growth mindset.
Beatrice Bottomwell is a nine-year-old girl who has never made a mistake. For instance, she has never forgotten her homework or worn mismatched clothing. She strives for perfection no matter what she does. As a result, she wins the talent show every year and is known around town as The Girl Who Never Makes Mistakes.
Beatrice is under so much pressure never to do anything wrong. She doesn’t want to let her entire town down. Thus, she often avoids activities that she might not be perfect at. Instead, she sticks to a talent show so she can ensure her act is perfect before showing it to everyone. This year, Beatrice decides to perform a juggling act with the help of her hamster. However, Beatrice does what she has spent the past nine years avoiding: she makes a mistake! She accidentally uses pepper instead of salt in her routine, making her hamster sneeze. This causes a water balloon to pop.
The audience is speechless over this mistake, but Beatrice cannot stop laughing! Thankfully, this also helps the audience laugh. Readers learn that life is better when you are happy!
Students must understand the importance of a growth mindset. Thankfully, there are plenty of great activities to embed this importance with academics.
This resource offers many options for fun instruction on making mistakes from a growth-mindset perspective versus a fixed-mindset perspective. Specifically, there are discussion questions, compare-and-contrast activities, quote posters, and a look at famous people who have made mistakes. Additionally, there are activities to teach students about a growth mindset and steps to handle anxious feelings. Furthermore, students will brainstorm about mistakes and reflect on pressure. Honestly, students will learn how important it is to understand that mistakes are a part of learning.
This book is full of ways to focus on grammar standards. For instance, students can work on the regular and irregular past tense. Additionally, students can work on transition words and how they help the story progress. If you do the creative writing activity below, this is the perfect way for students to apply this skill.
Depending on the students’ ages, they may be able to work on storytelling. For instance, they can brainstorm a story about a character who makes a mistake. Then, they can explain how the character handles the mistake. This is a great way to work on the plot diagram with students!
This story contains some incredible metaphors! Thus, students can identify metaphors and explain their meanings. After reading, students can even create their own metaphors for the story. Since figurative language has been part of language arts standards for many years, it is always helpful for students to practice.
Often, students may feel ashamed or embarrassed by their mistakes. However, they need to understand that everyone makes them! For this activity, allow students to reflect on a mistake they’ve made. Importantly, they can focus on what they learned from their mistake. They can do this by writing sentences or drawing pictures. They can share with a partner or the class. This is a great way for students to see how mistakes show progress towards a goal or learning something new.
When selecting books for the classroom, it is essential to choose those that convey a meaningful message. This book review of The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes makes it easy to see how profound and relatable Beatrice is. Thankfully, The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes activities will help teach students the importance of a growth mindset and positive self-talk.
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I am Kirsten Tulsian, an elementary educator with 18 years of experience as a teacher and counselor. My passion lies in empowering students to discover their inherent brilliance through the use of engaging, rigorous, and meaningful activities. I look forward to connecting with you!
