"To squish or not to squish? That is the question students are left with at the end of Hey, Little Ant by Phillip and Hannah Hoose.
Should the ant get squished? Should the ant go free?
It’s up to the kid, not up to me.
They left that kid with a raised-up shoe.
What do you think the kid should do?
Excerpt from the book
Discussions about being tolerant of all living things no matter how different they are was a natural follow up after reading this story. Just the thought of the "kid" stepping on the poor little ant made students gasp and say "Awwww, that's mean!" We talked about being compassionate and treating all living things with respect.
We also discussed how important it is to make decisions for yourself no matter how small they may seem. In the story the kid's friends try to convince him to "squish" the ant, but our students know this is wrong. Before they left the library each student had the opportunity to decide on the ending of this picture book. Not surprisingly, they all chose "not to squish!"
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