The Bracelet

This book reminds teachers how they can motivate a student and impact his/her life.

I'm about to purchase my umpteenth copy of this priceless, invaluable lesson in morality, for my Daughter's preschool teacher, who openly cried, along a chorus of other preschool teachers when I read this aloud to them! It's the perfect gift! Here's a wonderful tip for reading this tale to a preschooler so that they will enjoy the story without being traumatized. When addressing the Mother's illness & death, and the Father's subsequent death at the end of the story, substitute the words ill, sick, not feeling well, or went away, etc, for the word died or dead. We did this for my Daughter starting when she was 3 years old (still do at 5 yrs!) and it worked like a charm. If you already use terms like "went away" or "went to heaven/became an angel", then you'll know how to answer your child when they ask where they went, and still manage not to actually talk yet about death. My child accepted that the Mother/Father were just sick, or that they couldn't be at the wedding, and we avoided upsetting her with the concept of death, which she would have had nightmares about. Voila, she LOVES this story! I can't recommend this book highly enough, and I'm a Music Together instructor and former Preschool teacher!

This is a delightfully charming story of how one caring, understanding teacher made all the difference in the world to a sad and misunderstood young boy. My wife, who oversees several early childhood centers, loved it so much that she purchased multiple copies as Christmas gifts for her teachers!

Miss Thompson teaches a 5th grade class. She is a tad judgmental if not very human as we all are. Sometimes, for no specific (or at least legitimate) reason, we find people in life we just don't care for and it's hard to always put on a poker face. Jean Thompson tells her students that she loves them all the same, but her behavior is quite transparent to everyone but herself. She finds one student in particular, Teddy Stallard, unkept, unattractive and frankly unlikable. When Christmas comes along, all the students bring presents to her and Teddy's is the most ugly and tackiest of all - a cheap perfume bottle and a cheesy bracelet with missing rhinestones - and it looks like a monkey wrapped them. Miss Thompson is very professional and politically correct, so when the students laugh at his gifts, she puts on the bracelet and dabs on some perfume. After class, Teddy talks to her about the gifts, revealing the sweet heart of gold beating in this unlikable boy. His revelation to her changes her, humbles her and enables her to be an unforgettable influence on Teddy's future life choices. A boy that could have easily grown up to be a loveless and self-absorbed thug is clearly changed by the attention and affection from his teacher and in the end, they heal each other in ways neither of them, especially Miss Thompson, can ever imagine. The book is short (a bit shorter than this review, I imagine!), but deep. It can be read once in just a couple of minutes, but will be read over and over again by any child. It's sweet, it's moving and it is moral. I can't say enough about how awesome this little book is for all children to have. Teddy's mother suffers a major illness and then dies and is left with an ineffectual father - so for real young children who may suddenly freak out with the possibility of losing a parent, this should be given to a child with discretion - but like all books for youngsters, it's ideal for parents to read the books with their kids and talk about what they think about the story.

I don't remember when I first heard this story, but I remember the significant meaning and it definitely touched my life. The Bracelet is adapted from a story by Elizabeth Ballard and is now illustrated by Miriam de Rosier who is a native of Washington State. She now works as a freelance illustrator and her work has appeared in The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. This is a story about how we often fail to see a person's heart because we are so consumed with how they are living their life. Miss Thompson's student Teddy was a boy who was not well liked and had a poor home situation. Even when Jean Thompson tells her entire class that she loves them all the same, she definitely has favorites. When Christmas arrives, all the children give Miss Thompson presents. Teddy's present is all wrapped in crumpled brown paper and held together with tape. In the package, she finds a rhinestone bracelet and a bottle of cheap perfume. The story continues and soon we find out what a profound effect Miss Thomson has on Teddy's life when she makes the choice to show love instead of disappointment for the gift. This story reminds me of a student I once knew who was an absolute terror in class, but would stand waiting for his ride home and talk to me as if he was an angel in disguise. I realized that the children who acted up the most, needed the most love. This tiny book has a profound message and I can't imagine anyone hearing this story and not remembering it for the rest of their life. ~The Rebecca Review

This book will tear at your heartstrings if you are a teacher. Another teacher read it at a faculty meeting and we all loved it. It would be a great gift for a student teacher or a friend who is a teacher.