No matter what Alexander does, he CANNOT seem to have a good day. He gets gum in his hair, trips on his skateboard, drops his sweater in the sink, has no prize in his cereal box, has to sit in the middle seat, is called out for misbehaving in school, argues with friends, has no dessert in his lunch, has a cavity, hurts his foot, knocks things over, gets soap in his eyes, and bit his tongue. The worst part is that no one seems to be listening to him, not his parents, teacher, or brothers. Despite his terrible day, his mom assures him that some days are going to be terrible days. Everybody has terrible days, and that tomorrow will be better.
This is a great book to introduce to students at the beginning of the year. You should let students know that sometimes they are going to have bad days, and sometimes everything can go wrong at school. Let them understand that tomorrow will be a better day and that they should be optimistic and keep a positive attitude. You can let the students write about a day when everything went wrong, and reflect on how they felt. Together as a class, you can talk about some ways to make yourself feel better on those no good, terrible days, and write them on a piece of chart paper to display in the classroom. Encourage them to talk to a friend or the teacher, or read one of their favorite books during Independent Reading. Even doing small things can make your day a little better.
