Wemberly Worried written by Kevin Henkes

Wemberly Worried is written and illustrated by Kevin Henkes. This story is about a young mouse who has a lot of anxiety. She is nervous about everything but the thought of school creates many different worries for Wemberly. When she gets to school, she notices another mouse who looks anxious about the first day of school. Wemberly decides to introduce her stuffed animal to the girl (Jewel) and Jewel introduces her stuffed animal. They decide to play together and have a great day at school.

 
I love reading Wemberly Worried to my students on the first day of school. So many students have the same worries as Wemberly. This is a great way to understand your students. The book helps students discuss how they are feeling at that particular moment. You can see how many students are worried about the first day of school. They can also see that they aren't the only ones feeling nervous.  

After you read Wemberly Worried to your class, have a discussion of what everyone is afraid of. You can create a chart and compare the worries of Wemberly and the worries of everyone in the class. The students will be able to see if they have the same worries of Wemberly. It's also a great way for students to talk about what they are afraid of. It helps children deal with their every day anxieties.

If you have young students, or you have young children, you can also do a fun craft to go along with the book. This is a Wemberly puppet. Many young children love to be able to play with the crafts that they make. Having a puppet can be beneficial to young children. They can act out what happens in the story, or they can act out their fears with their puppet.

I really enjoy this writing activity. There's two parts to it. One part is the art portion where students make their own Wemberly. The second part of the activity is the writing portion. Students write what Wemberly worries about on one line. The second line the students write what they are worried about. If you have older students, you can have them write more without the writing prompts. This one shown is mostly for younger students where they don't have to write as much. This writing lesson helps students express their fears. Sometimes it helps when you write down what you worry about.

If you have children or students who seem to have anxiety, please visit:

https://www.psycom.net/kids-coping-skills-anxiety

This link provides nine strategies for children to cope with anxiety. Any parent, teacher, and babysitter can find this website very helpful. It's important for an adult to understand what the child is going through, and it's their responsibility to help these children cope with their anxiety. I really hope you and your students enjoy this book! It is a great story to have in your library!
 
                                                             HAPPY READINGS! 

                                                                        Jenna