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Reviewed by: Taylor Coonelly, Elementary School Librarian Title: We Need Everyone
Author: Michael Redhead Champagne
Illustrator: Tiff Bartel
Publisher: Highwater Press
Year: 2024 Good for Grades: K-3 Genre/Type of Book: Inspirational
Content Warnings, or things that other School Librarians should be aware of: N/A
Recommended for a school library: Yes Reason(s) for choosing the book:
Nominated for the CYBILS award for Elementary and Middle Grade Nonfiction
If you were tasked by the publisher with writing a short quote for the back cover of this book, what would it be:
Everyone has a gift, and and this book teaches that using our gifts can create a better community for everyone around us.
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Review:
Everyone has a gift, and and this book teaches that using our gifts can create a better community for everyone around us. This fun elementary picture book focuses on the idea of 'gifts' - skills/talents/things that someone is good at and can be shared with others. The book goes through 3 steps in finding out what a person's gift could be; making a list of what you like doing, choosing something from the list that you are good at, and practicing/sharing your gift in a way that makes you comfortable. The book also discusses how a child might have a hard time figuring out their own gift, but can talk to those around them to help them better understand. The book notes several different kinds of gifts, like cooking, gaming, speaking, and that everyone's gift is unique and has something positive to contribute to our world. The author's main message is that everyone has a gift, and then using those gifts together builds stronger and more positive communities. I really enjoyed this book, and the positive message it shares about how kids can build a stronger community with the things they love/are good at. I think that is perfectly suited for an elementary audience, both in the text and the fun and vibrant illustrations. I appreciated how diverse the cast of illustrated characters are, and how the 'gifts' featured were wide ranging for kids. This book is supposedly a nonfiction book, but I don't know if I would fully agree with that ranking, and I will note that the book sounds a little like a speech from an adult (not a bad thing, but something to note). I could absolutely see this being used as a beginning of the year book where elementary students could think about their own gifts and how they can use them to contribute to the class or school community.
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Find this book trailer and other resources for We Need Everyone on TeachingBooks
For more information about this book, see the Publisher's Website