I Will Never Get a Star on Mrs. Benson's Blackboard

by Jennifer K. Mann

Rose’s teacher gives stars for spelling and neatness and giving the right answer, but Rose can’t manage to do any of those things right. Will she ever get a star from Mrs. Benson?

Rose is a distracted and creative soul. She does her best at school, but sometimes her mind wanders, and she answers the wrong question. Her reading voice is quiet, not strong and loud. And her desk—well, keeping her desk neat is a challenge. When it’s time to make thank-you cards for a class visitor, Rose’s art supplies turn her workspace—and her—into a colorful mess. But her artistic skills shine through in the gorgeous oversize card she creates. Could she possibly get a star after all? A cheerful and empowering picture book for the child whose talents lie in unconventional areas, and those still searching for their strengths.

Genres: Picture Books, School, Childrens, Art, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Juvenile

40 pages, Hardcover

First published June 9, 2015

About the author

Jennifer K. Mann was an architect before turning to children’s books full time. Two Speckled Eggs is the first book that she has written and illustrated. She lives on an island near Seattle with her husband, children, cats, dogs, and chickens.

Reviews

[Donalyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

The whole concept of publicly awarding some kids stars each day is so upsetting to me as a teacher and parent that it colored my impression of the book.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very sweet. We all know a Rose; bless the teachers who recognize the special things about the messy distracted kids too. :)

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I Will Never Get a Star on Mrs. Benson's Blackboard by Jennifer K. Mann is a nominee for the 2017-18 South Carolina Picture Book Award.

Rose really wants a star on Mrs. Benson's blackboard. She tries her best, but she's not the best math student, a loud reader, or all that neat. She wonders if she'll ever get a star.

One day, an artist comes to class, and he inspires Rose's artistic side. When the class makes thank you cards for the artist, Rose uses that at her opportunity to shine. Unfortunately, she also makes a huge mess. Will Mrs. Benson punish her for the mess, or will she see just what a star Rose really is?

While this book does give attention to honoring the unique abilities/talents of students, I wonder about young readers' reactions to Mrs. Benson and her system of rewarding the "good kids." Rose tries her best, but she sees (and so do her classmates) that her teacher is disappointed in her efforts. Rose admits that the thought of being called out for her messy desk gives her a stomachache. Lots of kids will identify with Rose's anxiety and desire to please their teachers. While that could generate some discussions, I doubt that was what the author had in mind with this book.

I do appreciate that Rose was finally honored for her artistic abilities, but I do think that message could be lost given that Mrs. Benson seems to be so judgmental and demanding. Also, I hate the idea of putting kids' names on the board for being one person's idea of "good." How many kids never got to see a star by their names? (Maybe I'm taking this too seriously, but it did bother me.)

[Shayle Duff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: I Will Never Get A Star On Mrs. Benson’s Blackboard by Jennifer Mann is about a little girl named Rose, who believes that she will never get a star on the teacher’s blackboard because she believes she can never do anything worthy enough of receiving a star. She doesn’t read loudly enough, and she isn’t good at math. One day, Mrs. Benson was coming around the room to see if the class’ desks where clean and of course Rose’s wasn’t, but luckily the bell rang right before Mrs. Benson got to her. When the next day came, Rose went to class early to clean her desk, which quickly became a mess once again when Mrs. Benson asked the class to created thank you cards. However, even though Rose’s desk was a mess, Mrs. Benson thought her thank you card was beautiful and gave her a star on the blackboard.

Analysis: I liked this story because it shows that you can be rewarded for things that you didn’t even try to be rewarded for; and that we may not all be good at one thing, but that we are all good at something.

How I Would Use This Story: In psychotherapy, I can use this story to help teach kids that maybe if they helped a little more around the house or cleaned their room, it would relieve stress off the parents and they could be rewarded for doing something that they weren’t asked to do. Also, some kids who are mentally ill tend to believe that they aren’t good at anything, but that is when I would step in and show them a deck of cards, a basketball, a puzzle, etc; to see if they find anything that they click with.

[Jessica Simmons]

Rose has many gifts; she's artistic, brave, and helpful. But no matter how hard she tries, Rose cannot earn a star next to her name on Mrs. Benson's blackboard. In fact, each attempt backfires, making the situation seem worse to Rose than before. Thankfully, Rose and Mrs. Benson both eventually realize that Rose has a valuable part to play in the classroom.

This book has a lot to offer students and teachers. Rose and Mrs. Benson did not have the same priorities, which left both struggling in their relationship. I think just about every student can relate to Rose's fear of being embarrassed in front of the class and disappointing the teacher even if he or she is not artistic. Teachers, too, can be reminded to consider what their actions are communicating with students. This is a thought-provoking book.

I would like to read this book to students and see what they thought. A good reflection question could be, "What are some gifts that each of you bring to the classroom?" I would have prepared for this discussion with a list of something each student contributed to the classroom. We could also do some sort of activity with stars and connect the book with Max Lucado's You Are Special.

[Sails and Scales · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rose wants to get a star of Mrs. Benson’s blackboard more than anything, but she can’t seem to be good enough to make it happen. She’s not good at math, she can’t read loud enough, and her desk isn’t neat. Lucky for Rose, though, the bell rings early enough that her desk doesn’t get inspected and she gets to school early so she can make her desk spic-and-span. When they start making thank you cards for a classroom visitor, however, her desk gets messy again! Mrs. Benson isn’t mad, though—Rose gets a star on the blackboard for her art!

The idea of a teacher rewarding stars for good things and the student being worried that she’s not good enough can be somewhat upsetting, particularly when Rose is so worried about not getting a star that she feels sick. However, Rose’s attitude and how she doesn’t give up to reach her goal is admirable, as is the point where she realizes that she has talent as an artist even if she isn’t the best in other categories. The illustrations are funny and cute, but some of the messages of the story can be upsetting for some people.

[Reagan Busbee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rose is convinced that she just cant do anything right! All she wants is to get a star on Mrs. Benson’s blackboard. She tries to answer questions, read aloud, and pass out snack but she keeps messing up! One day she even goes to school early and cleans up her desk, but by the time Mrs. Benson checks, it is messy all over again! Will Rose get a star on the blackboard? Read the book to find out.

Opinion: This book is sweet and simple, it does not overcomplicate the idea and it doesn't need to. I really enjoyed the ending where Rose gives Mrs. Benson a star as well. I'm not too crazy on the illustrations but they do the trick. Overall I’d give this book around three and a half stars.

Classroom: This book has a lot of application to your classroom, especially surrounding motivation. Even though Rose feels like she will never get a star on the blackboard her teacher still recognizes her talents and worth. When reading this book to a classroom it would be good to ask them questions on if they have ever felt discouraged at something they eventually overcame.

[Riley Cockerham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about young Rose whose only wish is to get a star on her teacher Mrs. Benson's blackboard. Rose is not very good at school and does everything she can to try but still does not do the problems right. When a artist comes to their class to speak Rose is captivated and inspired to paint him a beautiful picture to say thank you. When Mrs. Benson see's her picture and the mess that surrounds it Rose is sure she will never earn a star, but Mrs. Benson surprises her.
This book was really sweet, and I loved how it celebrates each child's unique abilities in the classroom.
You could use this book in the classroom to promote individualism and for the children that are feeling they don't belong just because they are not good at academics.

[Bailey]

I Will Never Get a Star on Mrs. Benson's Blackboard follows Rose through out school as she tries to get a star next to her name. She can never seem to do anything good enough to get a star, but when a painter comes to visit the school, Rose gets the idea to become a painter. That idea just might get her the star she wants.
I enjoyed the story and waiting to see if Rose was going to get a star the blackboard next to her name. The illustrations were messy but so was Rose and I think there is something to learn from that.
This book is good to show perseverance as a lesson in class. But also I think every teacher should read this book and realize that not every student is the same and there are going to be kids in their class who want to think outside the box.

[Kendal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book as a child because it talked about a young girl who struggled in her elementary classes. I remember that for me, elementary was a time that I first began to worry about what others thought of me and what I thought of myslef. As a young child with multiple undisgnosed learning disorders I never was getting awarded for reading and math or really anything to do with academics. This young girl in the story is upset because while all the other students get awarded gold stars by Mrs. Benson, the young girl misses every chance she gets. It reminds me of when I wanted my name on the wall of advanced readers but no matter how hard I worked I never got there. But at the end of the story the young girl does get a star on the wall which inspired me as a young student to not give up.

[Zizzy Pesto · Rating 1 out of 5]

Way too much wrong with this book in my opinion. It was painful to watch a young girl struggle to excel in a school system that awards stars for certain behaviors and to see the emotional effect on a child who is creative and doesn’t fit into a strict reward system. The best thing this book did was illustrate the problems in the American educational system, ignoring individuality and personal skills in favor of a rating system. The joy the girl feels when she does get a star doesn’t give the book a happy ending, but further cements the desperation kids can feel over conforming enough to get a star drawn in the chalkboard. The praise for the teacher at the end was revolting, since she was the perpetrator of the system that anguished the protagonist. Stomach turning.

[Makayla Hurt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was one of my favorites because it shows how everyone is unique in their own way. I would like to read this in my classroom one day because it shows students “to get a star” you do not need to be perfect or get amazing grades. You need to show off your talents, do the things that you enjoy, and do what you are best at. This book shows that talents lie in different areas and everyone has different strengths that need to be seen.

[AMY · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an inspiring book about a little girl who cannot keep a clean desk or fit into the behaviors that the teacher is looking to reward on the board. She is very frustrated she cannot make it up on the board. I loved the twist at the end. All kids and teachers need to read this book. Creative kids definitely will love this one. It would be a great read-aloud book. Highly recommended for Grades 1-5.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I should have read this one ahead of time. It made me sad. I didn't like that this kid is working so hard for public recognition and feels like she will just measure up. In the end, she does get recognized for her talents. I wondered what my students thought about it. It has potential for a great discussion.

[Marfita · Rating 3 out of 5]

No matter how hard she tries, Rose can't seem to win a star for the day in Mrs. Benson's class. She tries math, reading, and even cleaning her desk. In the end, her art wins her a star - on the condition that she clean up the mess at her desk.
And she gives Mrs. Benson her own star.
Cute, primitive drawings.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Jennifer's work. I have all of her books and had them signed and shipped from her independent book store. This book is great for talking with students about different skills. This child is so worried about her messy desk and being a little bit of a day dreamer but she is artistic and is celebrated for that.

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great picture book about a little girl who I identified with deeply. I was very similar to Rose back in the day. Hopefully this book will help other kids who are constantly daydreaming in their own little worlds realize that they are worthy too. <3

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really cute illustrations; story is a little contrived, although the fact that Rose finally triumphs after feeling so nervous, anxious, negative, and having so many unsuccessful tries is heartening at the very end!

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a teacher I don't agree with the idea of publicly rewarding kids with stars on the board or embarrassing them by making them share their desks in front of their classmates, but it was my daughter's book so I let her rate it. She loved it because she liked how the girl was rewarded in the end.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book to show different talents for everyone!

[Julia Bennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

By choosing different that that kids excel at, Mrs. Benson is letting kids know that while they may not be strong in some areas they do very well in other areas.

[Kris Dersch · Rating 2 out of 5]

This felt stodgy and old-fashioned. I hope schools don't still work this way although I have my suspicions.

[Clare D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a wonderful book for the creative child! I will definitely be adding this to our grade school library! We all get stars when we work hard but maybe for different things!

[wildct2003 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story

[SB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good reminder that all kids are different and have different talents.

[Julia N · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think for a child to read this book is helpful. Knowing that you have to work hard to achieve your goals and being \able to set those goals for yourself is something important to read about.

[Martha Burt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the illustrations.

[Erin Good · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked the storyline behind and the happy ending for Rose that she got a star on Mrs. Benson's board that she deserved for all of the hard work she put into it.

[Sarah Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book! It is a bittersweet story that shows the frustration of trying hard but still falling short. It could be a good classroom book to discuss feelings, resilience, and empathy.

[Stephanie Croaning · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picture book, fiction
Interest Level: K-3; Reading Level: 2.3
2 out of 5 stars

This is meant to be an uplifting story about a young girl getting recognized for her unique abilities. Unfortunately, most of the book is a really negative look at publicly shaming students in class and the depressing effect that has upon children.

Rose's teacher rewards students who perform well in class by writing their name on the board and putting a star next to their name. Rose really wants to have her name on the board, but unfortunately she sometimes struggles with math and doesn't read aloud well enough to please Mrs. Benson.

Rose breaks my heart. She really tries her best, and keeps raising her hand in hopes of earning a star, but she keeps falling short. At one point in the story, she gets a tummy ache because she is so worried about failing again.

The story ends with Rose's artistic ability earning her a star on Mrs. Benson's board, but at that point it feels like too little, too late. No child should be publicly shamed as Rose is, especially to the point where it affects her health. Whatever positive message the story's ending is meant to convey is lost in the depression and health problems faced by Rose.

I would not recommend this book to young children as I feel it reinforces the idea that students who fit a normative standard of school behavior are rewarded and students who do not conform should work extra hard to "fit in."