How Can I Make A Friend?

If only this student learns how to make a friend this academic year, it will be a success.

Just before we were starting our reading time today, a new Japanese-American student who started today came up to me and said, "Mr. Hammerlund, how can I make a friend?"

I told him that was a great question but we were doing reading now. "For now," I said, "could you read with this boy? His name is Jonny."

Jonny is also a Japanese-American boy who started this year.

I saw Jonny sitting by himself so I asked the new boy to go read with him.

A few minutes later the new boy again came to me and asked again how to make a friend. I told him that I wanted to talk to the whole class about how to make a friend and we would do that after recess.

A while later he came back up to me and said, "Mr. Hammerlund, I think I know how the make a friend."

I thought he might.

When the time came, I talked to the whole class about how to make a friend. For first and second graders, they have it. Now they just need to practice it.

Maybe everything they did need to know they learned in kindergarten.