Are you looking for a way to introduce your students to special needs and inclusivity? If so, look no further than Trudy Ludwig’s award-winning children’s book, The Invisible Boy. This heartwarming story follows Brian, an introverted young boy whose efforts to make new friends are often overlooked due to his shyness.
Although written with elementary-aged kids in mind, the lessons behind this endearing tale can be understood by all ages. With this blog post as your guide, you’ll be provided with various activities and resources to help ensure your lesson plan on The Invisible Boy is engaging for parents and students. Read on for more!
The Invisible Boy Storyline
The Invisible Boy is a story about a young boy named Brian who feels invisible within his school. He often sits alone at lunch, and nobody ever talks to or notices him around the classroom. One day, the new kid in class – Justin – makes an effort to get to know Brian, and he soon discovers that Brian is creative and talented in drawing.
When Brian’s drawings become a mural for their playtime area, Justin helps set up an art club with Brian as the head. With Justin’s support, Brian’s confidence grows, and more kids start talking to him and joining the art club. Soon after, however, Justin moves away, and all of Brian’s newfound friends forget about him again.
Filled with sadness and worry that he will once again become invisible, Brian finds strength within himself, and rather than waiting for someone else to notice him again, he takes matters into his own hands and organises a special school assembly showcasing his artwork which brings everyone together in celebration of his talent. In the end, Brian learns that it is ok to be different and that he doesn’t need anyone else’s approval to feel noticed or believed in.
Critical Themes in The Invisible Boy
Isolation
Brian is often isolated from his classmates and feels invisible within his school. He spends lunchtime alone, and no one ever notices him around the classroom. This isolation makes Brian withdrawn, shy, and lacking in confidence.
Friendship
After Justin arrives in Brian’s class, he tries to get to know Brian and soon discovers that he is creative and talented in drawing. Through this friendship, Justin helps set up an art club for the school with Brian as the head. With this support, Brian’s confidence grows, more kids start talking to him, and their art club begins to flourish.
Self-Acceptance
When Justin moves away, and all of Brian’s newfound friends forget about him again, he finds strength within himself rather than waiting for someone else to notice him. He takes matters into his own hands and organises a special school assembly showcasing his artwork, bringing everyone together to celebrate his talent. In the end, Brian learns that it is ok to be different and that he doesn’t need anyone else’s approval to feel noticed or believed in.
Key Characters in The Invisible Boy
Brian
Brian is the main character of The Invisible Boy. He is a young boy who feels invisible within his school and often sits alone at lunch. He experiences low self-esteem and lacks confidence. When Justin arrives in Brian’s class, he tries to get to know him and discovers Brian’s creative talent in drawing. With Justin’s help, the art club flourishes, and Brian finds strength within himself to organise a special school assembly showcasing his artwork, bringing everyone together to celebrate his talent.
Justin
Justin is the new kid at school who tries to get to know Brian and discovers that he is talented in drawing. By supporting him in setting up an art club for their classmates, Justin helps give Brian the confidence he needs to come out of his shell and prove his worth to the other kids.
Friends
Brian’s friends are fellow students that join the Art Club with Justin and Brian’s support. They all enjoy working together on projects and celebrate Brian’s talents as they work through their club activities.
Teaching Opportunities from The Invisible Boy
- Discuss with students the importance of self-acceptance and how to manage isolation.
- Encourage students to look for ways to support each other and help boost one another’s confidence.
- Engage students in conversations about how friendship can open up new possibilities.
- Brainstorm ways to use the art for expression and communication between classmates.
Lesson Plans
Lesson Plan 1 – Self-Acceptance
Objective:
This lesson plan aims to help students explore and understand the importance of self-acceptance.
Introduction:
Begin the lesson by introducing the idea of self-acceptance. Ask the students what it means to accept oneself, and have them share their thoughts on the concept. You can also provide some examples from daily life, such as when a person takes time out to take care of themselves or takes responsibility for their mistakes.
Main Teaching Points:
- Talk about ways to be kind to ourselves even if we struggle to feel like we fit in or have low self-esteem. Provide resources such as books or articles that discuss how being kind to oneself is essential for mental health.
- Discuss with students how Brian’s story offers an example of what it looks like for someone to practice self-acceptance and how this ultimately helps him come out of his shell and gain confidence.
Reflection:
Allow students to reflect on their own experiences with accepting themselves and discuss how they could use these concepts from Brian’s story. Please encourage them to think about ways to support themselves when they feel invisible or unloved by others.
Key Questions:
- What do you think it means to accept yourself?
- How has Brian’s story impacted your understanding of being kind to yourself?
- How can you support yourself even when you feel like no one else is?
Lesson Plan 2 – Supporting Others
Objective:
This lesson plan aims to help students explore the importance of supporting one another and how doing so can open up new possibilities for growth.
Introduction:
Begin the lesson by introducing why it’s essential for people to support each other for everyone in a community (or school) thrive together. Ask questions like why do you think helping each other is essential? What would happen if we didn’t try?
Main Teaching Points:
- Please share with the class Justin’s example from The Invisible Boy on how he recognised Brian’s talent and used his supportiveness as a way of helping him come out of his shell and gain confidence again.
- Use this scenario as an opportunity for class discussion around supporting each other, which includes brainstorming ideas on ways that classmates can encourage each other during struggles or feeling down about their abilities/talents/etc.
- Brainstorm activities that cultivate teamwork, collaboration, compassion etc., for group projects within class activities/programs.
- Have them create pledges together, encouraging each student to build stronger relationships based on mutual respect and understanding through these activities/exercises proposed by themselves!
- Focus discussions not only on purely academic endeavours but also nonacademic ones, such as music classes, art & craft clubs etc., where working together becomes more relevant due to shared interests among peers beyond sole academics!
- Reinforce concepts discussed, like acceptance and motivation through positive reinforcement & positivity, while focusing on shared strengths instead of weaknesses between peers, often overlooked but deeply rooted since childhood!
- Offer resourceful literature via books, articles etc., related to these topics discussed are available should students wish to extend further readings & references elsewhere!
- Showcase documentaries/movies around real-life stories & incidents revolving around similar themes discussed within class sessions about peer support/encouragement amongst young companions/friends!
- Activate role plays/scenarios acting out different situations while employing help-depth discussions effectively using comprehensive vocabulary related to underlying topics under consideration, analysing issues at hand whilst assimilating potential solutions accordingly!
Reflection:
Allow time after the main teaching points have been covered for reflections with the class, focused primarily on emphasising “helping each other” conceptually yet practically speaking to moving forward, connecting emotions & sentiment over physical representation, promoting constructive changes among peers nurturing holistic progress going forth bravely thriving together amidst all odds forming sense belongingness therein resulting greater unity strength alike upon completion class assignments diligently yearning greatness therein!!
Key Questions:
- What does it mean to show support to someone else?
- How did Justin demonstrate support towards Brian’s favour?
- How might our classroom behaviour look if we all practised supporting one another?
- Can making pledges encouraging respect amongst peers contributes to eventual betterment?
Books with Similar Themes
- The Benefits of Being an Octopus by Ann Braden
- Wonder by R.J. Palacio
- Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
- Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper
- A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
- George by Alex Gino
Website Resources
The Children’s Library Lady is a website that offers book reviews and lesson plans related to the award-winning children’s book The Invisible Boy. This page summarises the text and links to other valuable resources for teachers and children, such as audiobooks, activities, and teaching strategies.
The Invisible Boy Read Aloud is a page on Deanna Jump’s website that features an audio version of The Invisible Boy for students to listen to. This website also lists other popular books by author Trudy Ludwig.
The Invisible Boy Lesson Plan provides a detailed lesson plan based on the book The Invisible Boy written by Trudy Ludwig. This resource includes objectives, introductions, main teaching points, reflections, and critical questions that can be used in any classroom environment dealing with self-acceptance and supporting others.
