Vasilia Graboski
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Psyched Writer

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This blog is a resource for fellow therapists, parents and teachers. I will provide suggestions and reviews of books that I have found especially therapeutic and useful for various social-emotional issues.  And...my favorite part...I will provide accompanying activities related to the book to help with teaching social-emotional skills.

​I would love for you to check it out and give me your feedback. 

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Framed Connections

3/20/2023

2 Comments

 

A Book Review of Argo & Me

Argo & Me
Written By: Chandra Ghosh Ippen
Pictures By: Erich Ippen Jr. 
Published by: Piplo Productions, 2022

Argo & Me is the latest of the many therapeutic books by Piplo Productions and it does not disappoint! It is an incredibly useful book for parents, therapists and teachers, as it covers a lot of ground. The story addresses trauma, loss, foster care, adoption, abuse, neglect, fears, trust, and empathy. It is even a great resource for dealing with rescue dogs and canine feelings and behaviors! This book is an excellent read for kids ages 4 - 8 and their caregivers. 
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Chandra Ghosh Ippen, the author, expertly provides emotional distance of these heavy topics by focusing on the experience of caring for a rescue dog. This makes the story more palatable for the young child. She gently weaves the shared experience of the boy into the story, as follows.

      "People I lived with before had big problems and didn't always take good care of me."

The illustrations, in gray, faded colors, show the reader some of the negative experiences of the boy. This brings the reader to not only feel compassion for the dog, but for the boy also. 


​This book serves as an excellent model for compassion and understanding when dealing with a child or a dog, with a history of traumatic experiences. Child and adult readers alike, will feel their heart plunge into deep empathy when reading this book. Ms. Ippen stresses the importance of gentleness, observation, listening skills and taking time and patience to earn the trust of someone with past hurts. 

       "People had not always been kind. Some people had hurt him, and Argo didn't know
        that we were different." 

Zeze and Paul, the animal shelter staff, represent kind foster parents of Argo. In dealing with Argo's intense fear, they get down at his level and gently wait while playing soft music. This eventually lures Argo to start to trust and move toward them on his own. What great modeling of empathic caregivers!

Argo & Me provides examples of many fears, more common ones like thunderstorms, and  unique ones based on personal experiences, like boots, or in the boy's case, suitcases. Suitcases  reminded the boy of the sad goodbyes and signified to him another move. But with time and repeated positive experiences, the boy learned that suitcases were for fun trips! This illustrates the  hopefulness of being able to change and put some fears to rest when in a positive environment. 
       
Later in the story, the boy becomes angry with Argo for chewing on his stuffed animal. Argo reacts with fear and sadness. The family notices that bad moods may remind Argo of bad days in his past. The boy was able to return to Argo later and repair the situation. This scene is significant in two ways. One is the crucial concept that anger does not have to mean loss of love or connection. This is part of learning to feel safe in a secure environment. The second point is that  there is meaning behind acting out behavior. Reacting with anger is normal, although taking a deep breath and working on understanding the meaning behind it, is a kinder, more effective way to handle these situations. 

Another topic that the book addresses that I value deeply, is keeping past positive relationships as much as possible in the lives of these children. The family ran into Zeze and Paul at the dog park. Argo enjoyed sharing memories with his past family in the company of his current family. Setting up these visits can help the child feel whole by combining parts of their past lives with the present. It can also model positive loss, as shown in the following quote:  

                                  "Even when they're not with us, they live in our hearts."


If you pay close attention, you can surmise that the boy was adopted by a single dad. This is a great message of the possibilities of finding love in non-traditional families. The framed photos on the last spread of the book, displaying the boy's new life with past connections, ends the story on a beautiful note. This leaves the reader with feelings of hopefulness that, even if you had a rough start on life, you can find love and connection in your future. 

The illustrations, by Erich Ippin Jr., reflect the messages and moods of the story. The soft shades of blue add to the feelings of gentleness and compassion. The sad moments are colored in gray and dull hues, while the happy moments are reflected in bright shades. The illustrations are fun and will appeal to young children.

To purchase this book or check out other books from this author, click HERE.

An Activity Idea for Argo & Me

Materials:
-Large Craft Sticks
-Strong glue
-white paper or cardstock
-Markers
-Pencil
-Decorating options (jewels, glitter glue, buttons, small stickers, etc.)
Directions: 
1. Collect photos of the child with past relationships, as well as current ones. This can include birth family (if appropriate), foster parents (if applicable), and any other positive connection that has been built. ​If photos are not available, have child draw them. 

2. Have child  color 4 craft sticks for frame with markers in desired colors. 


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3. Glue colored craft sticks to form a square frame as shown; Let dry







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​4. If the child is going to draw pictures of 
relationships, set frame over white paper and 
trace the inside and outside of the frame onto the white paper; If you have photos, trace only the outside of frame. 













5. Have child draw family member(s) inside traced box; Color







6. Cut paper along outside trace marks; Set aside





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7. Have child decorate frame with various options; Let dry







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8. Glue picture to the back of frame OR glue photo onto paper and glue paper to back of frame.













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9. Repeat with as many frames needed. 

10. Discuss past and present connections and memories with child. 

11. Have parent display in common area of 
home. 


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12. Have fun!












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2 Comments

Cloud of Calm

11/2/2022

0 Comments

 

A Book Review of The Big Worry Day

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This month I teamed up with A Novel Mind website and created a guest post for their blog! It features the amazing book, The Big Worry Day, written by K.A. Reynolds and illustrated by Chloe Dominique. This book presents an insightful and authentic representation of childhood anxiety and is chockfull of coping strategies! As always, I have included an activity to go along with the book. Check it out HERE!
0 Comments

My House Is Like A Sandwich

9/18/2022

6 Comments

 

A Book Review of The Strongest Thing

The Strongest Thing
When Home Feels Hard

Written by: Hallee Adelman
Illustrated by: Rea Zhai 
Published by: Albert Whitman & Co., 2022

The Strongest Thing: When Home Feels Hard
is a picture book for ages 4 - 8, that some of us can relate to and all of us can learn from. The story brings to light the struggles of a child in a household where a parent has anger control issues. The author, Hallee Adelman, skillfully conquers this difficult topic and makes it accessible to young readers. Her use of similes and metaphors throughout the story, pull the reader into the main character's inner experience. This stirs empathy in the reader, a skill crucial to develop in our children. The illustrator, Rea Zhai, adds to the child-focus through her brightly colored illustrations that focus on facial expressions and illustrate difficult situations in a clear, yet age-appropriate manner. 
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The book features a young girl, Sera, who finds her home a hard place to be due to her Dad's problems with anger control. He raises his voice and blames his family for things in which they have no control. At the height of his anger, he leaves the house and slams the door so hard, that the glass breaks. This is scary for Sera and creates anxiety as she anticipates what will happen when he returns. Sera thinks of her dad as "the strongest thing," because his anger seems so big, it fills up the house.  So big, in fact, that, 

"...my house looked too small for me to fit back inside it." 

However, in contrast when approaching her school, Sera describes it as,
" ...a shining castle on the hill, big and bright and cheery." 

The contrast in her description between her house and her school, shows us that Sera experiences her school as a haven. The familiar people and routines are comforting to her, and elevate her mood. The school day distracts her from thinking about the scary things at home. However, when the teacher announces that the school day is half over, Sera's mood takes a nose dive. She becomes angry and those sensations in her body, that she experienced during the incident with her father, return. 

"My shoulders sank like a ship, and my belly squirmed with worry."

Ms. Adelman not only focuses on Sera's feelings, but the specifics of how that feeling affects her body. These sensations are described using similes which provides a clear mental picture for the reader to fully understand what Sera is experiencing. In order to name and recognize our feelings, we need to develop the skill of tuning into our bodies. This allows us to recognize those feelings through the sensations we're experiencing. 

After stomping around with her anger, Sera seemed to be calming herself by painting. A classmate then accidentally slams the door and startles her. It reminds her of the door slam and broken glass at home. When this happens, her painting gets ruined and she begins to act "like the bully at home," -blaming, yelling, pointing, seething. Her feelings were so big, that she felt like "the strongest thing." 

After observing her classmate's emotional reaction to her behavior, she knew exactly how he felt. At that point, Sera realizes that BIG ANGER was NOT the strongest thing. She then apologized, wishing her Dad would do the same for her.

After the incident, she feared the worst from the teacher. However, he responded with kindness and support, which is an excellent model for teachers reading this book. His reaction also served as a model for the students, as they then offered support too. Due to the other's reactions, Sera learned that "the strongest thing" is actually being calm and kind. 

The last page of the book leaves the reader with a powerful message. The teacher and the mother are together in the classroom offering support to Sera. The teacher approached this situation as a team player with the parent.  He did NOT call or send a note home about Sera's poor behavior. He solicited the parent to come in and assist him in supporting Sera. Care and compassion in place of punishment. Beautiful. A great message for teachers, parents and kids. 

There are so many important mental health messages portrayed in this book. However, I'm going to zoom in on the importance of emotional regulation in children AND adults. Adults who cannot regulate their feelings, especially their anger, create cycles of trauma in families. One of the most important things to begin learning as a child and throughout one's life is to regulate your emotions. If this skill is not mastered by adulthood, it will negatively affect a person's relationships, family, jobs, and overall happiness. Then, without the proper modeling and teaching, the cycle continues with their children. 

This is the reason why it is crucial to teach our kids about the different emotions, how they feel in their bodies, what makes them feel that way, and what coping skills work for them. Kids need to be allowed to express their feelings openly when younger, so when they are adults, they will have had much experience at managing them. By doing this, the trauma will not pass on to another generation. 

Both men and women can have problems with emotional regulation, however, anger control issues are more prevalent in boys and men. The reason for this is that traditionally, anger has been the only emotion that boys have been allowed to express. It is the emotion that is considered more "manly." Even now in 2022, some boys are still getting the message, "big boys don't cry," or "you're acting like a girl," when expressing any emotion besides anger. By keeping all of the feelings besides anger inside - sadness, hurt, disappointment, fear, etc.- those feelings get wrapped up in one big package called ANGER and that anger grows exponentially inside them.  

For this reason, we need to teach our boys about ALL OF THE FEELINGS. and ALLOW, AND EVEN ENCOURAGE THEM, TO EXPRESS THEM OPENLY. By doing this, they can practice coping and regulating, so by the time they are adults, they will be experienced emotional regulators. Then, and only then, will they grow up to be men who don't continue the cycle of anger and perpetuate trauma in their families. Instead, they will act as models for their children for dealing with emotions appropriately. That is the cycle we want to perpetuate. 

If, as a society, we understand that expressing and understanding all of the feelings makes us stronger, not weaker, the more homes like Seras' will have plenty of room for love and happiness. 

If you wish to purchase this book, or check out the many other mental health books written by this author, visit Hallee Adelman's website HERE.
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An Activity Idea for The Strongest Thing

MY HOUSE IS LIKE A SANDWICH
Sera describes her house "like the middle of an old sandwich, squished and dark and icky." 
For this month's activity, we're going to use this simile, make a sandwich and have the child fill it with the feelings in their house. 

NOW, LET'S BUILD OUR OWN SANDWICH!

Materials:
-White or beige cardstock or construction paper
-Construction paper in many colors
-pencil
-scissors
-brown and black markers
Directions: 
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1. Fold a piece of the white or beige paper in half; using a pencil, draw the shape of a slice of bread.




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2. Cut out the slice of bread; so you have two
identical pieces. 







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3. Using a brown marker, outline the two slices of bread to look like crust; set aside. 






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4. Make a list of feelings that the child would use to describe his/her house. ie. "What feelings is your house usually filled with?"

5. Have them rate each feeling 1 - 5 with 5 being most of the feelings the house is filled with; and 1 being the least, ie. "Is there a lot of that feeling in your house, a medium
amount or just a little?" OR with little ones, draw a picture of a house and have them draw in how much of that feeling is in the house. 

6. Have the child pick a color of contruction paper to coincide with each feeling.







7. Then, cut the number of pieces of each color (ingredient) that coincides with each feeling; Label them with a black marker.







​8. Talk to the child about what happens in their house that makes them feel that particular feeling; Write it on each of the color ingredients.







9. Where does the child feel that feeling in their body? What does it feel like? Write the answers to these questions on each of the feeling ingredients. 





10. Now it's time to put the sandwich together! 
Put one piece of bread first; pile all of the feeling ingredients onto the bread and talk about how much of each feeling is in their sandwich; You can even pretend the ingredients are pickles, mustard or peanut butter, etc.; Cover with the other piece of bread. 

11. Completed Sandwich! 
Crunch! Munch! Mmmmm! Yummy. 
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12. Use some of the things you learned about the child in this activity for further discussion. "What would make your sandwich taste better?" 

13. Have fun!
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6 Comments

Grandfamilies-Our Journey Together

7/23/2022

12 Comments

 

A Book Review of Ten Beautiful Things

Ten Beautiful Things
Written by: Molly Beth Griffin
Illustrated by: Maribel Lechuga
Published by: Charlesbridge, 2021

When I opened this book, I had no idea I was going to embark on a scenic tour of a child's journey to move in with her grandparent. But once I figured this out, it was a no-brainer to review it on Psyched Writer! In my therapy practice, I have accompanied and supported many families on different parts of this journey. I estimate that, at any given time, about 30-40% of my caseload were grandfamilies. The grandfamily journey is a beautiful one, wrought with grief, guilt, fear, frustration, worry, anger, uncertainty, comfort, security and unconditional love. ​
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Grandparents raising grandchildren is not a new concept. Grandparents have been standing in for parents for centuries. However, the number of grandfamilies has doubled since 1970. An estimated 2.7 million grandparents in the United States are raising their grandchildren. There are many factors that create a situation where the parents are absent. These include alcohol or drug  addiction, incarceration, death, mental illness, abuse and/or neglect, teen pregnancy, developmental disability or military deployment. The most common of these factors is addiction, which can lead to many of the other factors above. The opioid epidemic has certainly increased these numbers in recent years. 
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One thing that all of these families have in common is grief and loss. The child is dealing with grief related to the loss of their parent and the grandparents are dealing with grief related to their child. The feelings are often intense on both sides of this relationship. This situation presents a host of other big emotions for the child and the grandparent. Especially challenging for the grandparents is that they have to witness and address the day to day pain of the child(ren), while at the same time dealing with their own feelings. Sadness, anger, worry and uncertainty, are common on both ends. However, there are many challenges specific to the grandparents. 

This is not what grandparents expected to do with their lives at this stage. The plans they may have had are often upended with this huge responsibility, which is another source of grief. Grandparents lose their "grandparent role" of being in the position to provide treats and fun excursions, when instead they are responsible for discipline, education, and constant caretaking.  Due to the resistance in switching roles, as well as pitying the child for the pain they have endured, many grandparents stuggle to provide appropriate discipline. Guilt for possibly being the cause of their own children's problems can also be a factor. The kids are not happy with the change in the grandparent's role either. Therefore, they often push back on the discipline and yearn for their prior relationship with their grandparent. 

Due to their age, grandparents often have lower energy levels, health issues and limited retirement income. They may have to navigate child welfare systems, educational systems and legal issues. Grandparents often experience loneliness and isolation as their peers are no longer interested in activities with children. And, they don't fit in with other parents who are much younger than themselves. Resources are available for grandfamilies, however, they are difficult to navigate. Often they have to jump through many hoops to access minimal resources.


All of this being said though, grandfamilies are a gift. It usually is the best option for a child who can no longer live with their parents. It can keep the child out of foster care, and with family  whom they already have a relationship. Grandparents provide much stability, consistency and unconditional love which is what children need most when in this situation. Also, despite the heartaches, children provide grandparents with much joy. 

In its own subtle way, Ten Beautiful Things, captures much of the joy and heartache I have mentioned above. Gram and Lily embark on an adventure of the unknown. They are headed on a long drive to Gram's house, which is going to be Lily's new home. The reason for this move is not stated, however, the tone of the story shows the reader that this move is riddled with big feelings. They drive off in the dark with her things piled high on the car. To me, this represents the permanency of the move, along with the emotional baggage that she is taking with her. Leaving in the dark implies the urgency in which they had to leave and possibly the fear attached to it.  

Gram tries to distract Lily from the pain by encouraging her to find ten beautiful things on their route. Lily doubted that she could find anything beautiful, which points to the hopelessness in the beginning of the story. However, looking for ten beautiful things was brilliant, as grandparents often are. It served as a Mindfulness activity. Mindfulness is a meditation exercise in which one focuses on being intensely aware of what is in their surroundings in the moment, whether it be sights, smells, sounds, tastes or touch. It can help calm emotions and regulate the body. This activity was an excellent coping strategy for both of them to address their sadness, grief, and fear of the unknown.

The author, Molly Beth Griffin, did a great job with descriptions to help the reader identify with, understand and experience what Lily was feeling. Sadness was evident throughout the story and much emptiness was described with Lily trying to fill the "hollow spaces" inside of her. The following passage describes a mix of intense feelings that you can't really put your finger on, but ones in which all of us can certainly relate. 

                               "Lily felt the complaints starting in her belly again,
                               coming up her throat and nearly out of her mouth."

The  story culminated in a storm which reflected the current state of Lily and Gram's lives. However, Lily felt much comfort and safety inside the car with Gram, even if their lives outside of that relationship were stormy. Gram was nurturing and thoughtful and not minimizing of Lily's feelings. In the hug, you could feel their mutual pain, as well as their love. This line towards the end of the story told us all we need to know about their lives ahead. 

                                 "None of this was easy, Maybe it would never be easy.
                               But she belonged with Gram now. She belonged here now."

This was an acknowledgement that their situation was not easy and there was no easy fix. However, Lily and Gram had each other and they were going to figure out how to move forward together. This was a realistic and hopeful tone in which to leave the reader.                        
              
The illustrator, Maribel Lechuga, expresses the mood of the story well, through color variations and facial expressions,  Beautiful, detailed landscapes throughout the book take the reader on a mindfulness journey, along with Lily and Gram. 

I highly recommend this book to be read by grandchildren, along with their caregiving grandparents. It is also relevant to those in kinship care, with another relative. Many will relate to the joy, pain and uncertainty in this situation. I have provided an activity below to further explore this topic. 


To purchase this book or check out other books by this author, click HERE.

An activity idea for Ten Beautiful Things

OUR JOURNEY TOGETHER
This activity can help grandparent and granchild connect on feelings they have in common. It will help them better understand each other and feel that they are not alone with their feelingsl. 

Materials: 
-Car coloring page
 www.coloringall.com/coloring-pages/letter-c/simple-car-and-uppercase-c/
​-pencil
-Crayons and/or markers
-Black construction paper; other colors
-Larger piece of cardboard or cardstock
-scissors
-glue
-2 paper fasteners
Directions: 
1. Print out car coloring page




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2. Have child draw their face and grandparent face(s) inside car. 




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3. Have child color car as they wish; not necessary to color wheels




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4. Cut out car






5. Using black construction paper, cut out 2 circles for wheels, 







and 2 smaller circles in child's choice of color for hubcaps.
(you can do this by hand or find a glass
or other round object the sizes you need and trace.)










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6. Glue hubcaps on wheels






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7. Make holes with scissors in center of cut-out
wheels and wheels on the car













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8. Attach wheels onto car using paper fasteners; don't tighten fasteners too much as you want wheels to be able to spin











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9.Write "OUR JOURNEY TOGETHER"  on top
of cardboard with markers. 



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10. Glue car to larger cardboard taking care
​not to glue cut-out wheels, so they can spin






11. Have child dictate or write all the feelings they think are in the car with them as they go through their journey together with their grandparents; Use black marker so it shows up





12. Have a discussion of feelings the child and 
grandparent have in common; 
Discuss things they can do to cope with those feelings and write those ideas outside of the car
Maybe suggest child and grandparent go for a walk or ride and find ten beautiful things as in the book!
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14. Completed project; Enjoy!


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12 Comments

Tackling Trauma

5/20/2022

5 Comments

 

A Book Review of Big Bear Was Not The Same

Big Bear Was Not The Same
Written by: Joanna Rowland
Illustrated by: John Ledda
Published by: Beaming Books, 2021

Many children experience a traumatic event during their childhood and sadly, some children experience many. Trauma is  defined as an event that is perceived by the victim as posing a threat to their life or body integrity. It also includes witnessing an incident that threatens the life or physical integrity of a loved one, especially a caregiver. Children are especially vulnerable as their sense of security is dependent on the safety of their caregivers. The behavioral and mental health sequelae in response to a traumatic event vary from person to person and from incident to incident. Many factors are at play. 
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The main factors that determine the intensity of a child's response are:
1. Severity of the event
2. Proximity to the event
3. Caregivers reactions/response
4. Prior history of trauma
5. Extent of family/community/cultural connections

Focusing on #5 above, supportive relationships and community connections serve as the main buffer to a traumatic incident. Children who have healthy support systems fare much better during a traumatic event and in the aftermath, than do their peers who lack connections. 

As humans (and animals), there is a common response to how we react in moments of intense fear - Flight, Fight or Freeze. These responses are for self-preservation as they force us to act when faced with danger. Joanna Rowland sensitively walks children through this process in her latest creation, 
Big Bear Was Not the Same. This book is useful for all of us, but is especially helpful for kids who have, or know someone who has, experienced trauma. Friendship and empathy are also strong themes in this story.  

Ms. Rowland created loveable and relatable characters in Big Bear and Little Bear, who are best friends. Big Bear experienced a very scary event - a forest fire. After that, Little Bear noticed that Big Bear was not the same. Big Bear had always loved adventure and was so brave. But now, he didn't want to do many things as he thought they were too dangerous. After a scary event, sometimes the Flight, Fight or Freeze response doesn't shut off like it should, which leads to ongoing physical and mental reactons to the past trauma. 

Big Bear started reacting with fight, flight or freeze whenever he experienced a reminder of the fire. His senses triggered a reaction as they reminded him of the scary thing that happened. After he heard a loud noise, he ran away - the flight response. When he saw something that reminded him of the fire, he let out a huge ROAR that scared little bear and the other animals- the fight response. When he smelled a campfire, Big Bear froze - the freeze response. 

His behaviors confused and scared Little Bear as Big Bear was always big and brave. How could he be so scared? Little Bear tried many things to cheer up his friend, but was unsuccessful. Until, Little Bear realized that it was the fire that had changed Big Bear. Once he acknowledged how scary that must have been for his friend, Big Bear was able to talk about it. Little Bear reassured Big Bear that it was okay to be scared sometimes and that he would stay by his side. This connection, acknowledgement of the trauma and  reassurance was exactly what Big Bear needed to start to heal. 

The illustrator, John Ledda, played a big role in making the characters loveable, as they are the perfect mix of realistic and adorable. The earthy, muted colors add a feeling of warmth to the story. The intense feelings of both bears are expressed beautifully through the illustrations and assist the reader in feeling deep empathy for them. 

Also, check out the backmatter at the end of the book about trauma, which is an excellent resource. 

If you wish to purchase this book, or other mental health related selections by this author, check out her website HERE! 

An Activity Idea for Big Bear Was Not the Same

It's very helpful to initiate a discussion after reading the book to assist the child in opening up about their trauma(s). This can also serve to help them understand their own responses and behaviors. 

Have the child draw a picture of a very scary thing that happened to them. Then ask the following questions about the picture: 
1. When did that happen/How old were you?
2. Where were you when that happened?
3. What did you do when it happened? Do you think your responded by Flight, Fight or Freeze? 
4. Was someone there to help you? If so, who?
5. When it happened, what do you remember seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and/or feeling? 
6. Remember that bear kept reacting even after the bad thing was over? Does that ever happen to you? 
7. What helps you feel better when this happens?
8. Always provide much support and acknowledgement by saying "I'm really sorry that happened to you." 
Materials Needed: 
-old pair of socks; can be mix-matched like mine below!
-cotton balls
-elastic band hair ties
​-Small piece of string
-scissors
- colorful ribbon
-fabric or permanent black marker
Directions: 
​1. Stuff a cotton ball in the top corner of the sock by the seam and tie off ears with a hair tie. Depending on the size of your hair tie, you might need to double up the hair tie to make it tight.


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2. Repeat Step 1 on the other side. 







3. If using a sock bigger than an ankle sock, cut off the end to the size of an ankle sock.




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4. Stuff a few handfuls of cotton balls into the rest of the sock for the body, 







5. Tie off the bottom with another hair tie, making a tail in the back. 





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6. Tie the string to make the head shape a little less than half of the way down the body.
Tie it tight enough to make the head shape, but not too tight.

7. Cut off excess sock on the bottom of the body leaving a little nub of fabric..



8. Take the second sock and repeat the process in Step 1 for legs; but this time using 3 cotton balls; Tie off each leg with a hair tie.





9. Put the sock with legs on the bears body like a pair of pants; Pulling the sock over the head.














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10. Reach inside the sock and grab the nub from the first sock tail and tie it off with a hair tie, connecting the fabric of the two socks.






11. Roll the second sock down to the middle of the bears head and trim with scissors.







12. Place 4 cotton balls on each side, making two lumps for the arms. 





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13. Tuck the frayed top of the second sock inside the string used to tie the neck.







14. Tie off the arms with hair tie.








15. Tie the ribbon around the neck to cover the sock overlap; Tie in the back and slide it around to the side and trim to look like a scarf. 





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16. Draw on face with marker.





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17. Completed project! The bear creation can be used to support the child when he is feeling scared, just like Little Bear did for Big Bear. 



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