SEL Read Aloud: The Book of Mistakes by Corinna Luyken
Summary
A girl draws a picture — first of a girl, then of her immediate surroundings, and eventually of her entire world. She reflects on every step along her artistic journey. These include the things that go according to her plan, her mistakes, and even her attempts to correct for those mistakes that always obscure her errors and sometimes even produce “good ideas.” You struggle to see her initial mistakes as her drawing progresses. By the end, you wonder whether any of them were truly mistakes if they served a purpose larger than drawing something perfectly in line with her own expectations.
Discussion Questions
- What makes something a mistake?
- In an area outside of drawing, can you think of a mistake and an attempt to correct it or cover it up?
- How many mistakes from your own life can you remember?
- How does taking a bigger or longer-term perspective change how you see your mistakes?
- How do the size of your goals affect how you see your mistakes?
Read Aloud
Additional Resources
Copyright Notice
The image on this page comes from the book The Book of Mistakesby Corinna Luyken. Copyright © 2017 by Corinna Luyken.
