Mentor Monday: Perserverance

It is time to link up with Emily from The Reading Tutor/OG for Mentor Monday!  This week's topic is Perseverance.  It is so important to teach kids to be determined and to not give up!   There are many books out there that help teach this important lesson,  For example, we have all heard of "The Little Engine That Could" and Helen Keller.  I chose to highlight a couple of not so traditional books to teach perseverance.     
Thank You, Sarah--A great book for Thanksgiving, but it also teachers about perseverance since the main character writes letter after letter trying to get a president to declare a day of thanks as a National holiday.  She finally succeeds when Abraham Lincoln agrees to make Thanksgiving a holiday!
   I don't know if I love the pictures or the story better in this biography.  Philo Farnsworth was a very creative young man who drew pictures of how steam engines worked as a young child.  He came up with the idea of how a TV would work while plowing a field.  He then continued to draw and create until his vision became a reality!  
 
This book became very popular, especially after the tragedy of 9/11.  Phillipe Petit was a street performer with an amazing skill for walking on thin wires.  The twin towers were just begging him to walk between them!  He finally came up with a plan for a way to "sneak" up to the top and walk between the two towers.  

After reading a book or two about PERSEVERANCE, have your kids write down some of their goals.  Talk about how they can help themselves reach that goal.  What do they need?  What can they do to prepare or practice?   Who might they need to help?  Although it might seem like common sense to many of us, we forget that many kids have never had to work hard at something so they don't know how to do it.  
How do YOU teach perseverance in your classroom?