Born to Stand Out

Old Hat

Written and illustrated by: Emily Gravett

Published by: Simon & Schuster, 2018

32 pages

International

 

   Harbet loves the hat his grandmother knitted for him... until his friends laugh at him and call it an old hat. So he goes on a mission to find the hat that fits in with the newest fad. However, he stays one step behind every time. Until he decides to just be himself and go without a hat, showing off his colorful and trendy hairstyle. 
   Gravett, who is an author-illustrator from the UK, illustrates in a colorful and fun way that encourages children to turn the page to see what kind of hat Harbet will choose next. I love how she chose to paint beautiful feathers on top of the character’s head. It shows children that you should never cover up your “flaws” to fit in because what you hide might be what makes you beautiful and unique.  

   Although this book is about the importance of being yourself, it could be turned into a Kindergarten math lesson. Students would draw the hat they liked the best then we would display the drawings in columns based on the hats they chose. Finally, we would determine which groups had more or less than another given group. 

Standard:  Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group, e.g., by using matching and counting strategies. (Include groups with up to ten objects.) [K-CC6]