Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell

We are all unique, and no one
more so than Molly Lou Melon.
She is short and clumsy, has
a voice like a bullfrog and
has buck teeth so big she
can stack pennies on them.
But she doesn’t mind – her
grandmother always told her
to walk proud, smile big, and
sing loud. Molly puts that
advice into practice as she deals with a bully at her new school. David
Catrow’s illustrations are bright, colorful and funny.

Discussion questions:

  1. How did Molly Lou’s grandmother make her feel special?
  2. What happened when Molly Lou moved to a new town?
  3. How did Molly solve the problem?
  4. How did Ronald Durkin change?
  5. What does “standing tall” mean to you?

Activities:

  1. Whole group: Print hard copies of the sayings Molly’s grandmother told
    her. Ex: “Walk as proudly as you can and the world will look up to you”.
    Display the sayings on the wall or board as you come to them in the
    story. These sayings can be used throughout the school year to remind
    students that they can stand tall, like Molly Lou Melon.
  2. Take a digital photo of each student or ask them to draw self-portraits.
    Encourage everyone to think of at least one positive statement about
    themselves and write it on the drawing or the printed photo. Use these
    to make a bulletin board in the class.
  3. Give each student the story starter “I stand tall by…” Allow time for
    students to share with the class ways in which they stand tall.