Abstract

The Adventures of the Little Tin Tortoise is a practical, interactive storybook for building and maintaining self-esteem in children aged seven to nine.

Using the tradition of oral story-telling, Deborah Plummer encourages children to consider the self-esteem issues encountered by a little tin tortoise on a journey to discover who he really is. The various obstacles and helpers he encounters along the way include worries, bullying, making decisions and friendship and children will gain age-appropriate insights from the story depending on their needs and level of understanding. Activity sheets and expansion topics also prompt children to explore the seven key elements of healthy self-esteem - self-knowledge, self and others, self-acceptance, self-reliance, self-expression, self-confidence and self-awareness - through active participation and discussion in pairs or groups.

Teachers, parents, carers and all who support children in the development of healthy self-esteem will find this an essential resource.

`The story provides a colourful and fantastical world through which children can be helped to explore and develop feelings of self-esteem; it does this through drawing on the experiences and emotions of the tortoise, the other characters and their interwoven lives.

The book is intended for interactive use with young children aged from seven to ten by teachers, parents, carers and pro-fessionals working with children.

Plummer provides an extremely practical and accessible way in which to explore and foster the development of self-esteem in children to be applied in a range of contexts, from the classroom to individual therapeutic work with children, and at varying levels of complexity.'

The Journal of critical psychology, counseling & psychotherapy
`This book will facilitate taking a few little tentative steps towards using interactive stories to enlighten, delight and help children between 5-12 year olds. It will aid to raise self-esteem and dealing with troublesome thoughts and feelings.'
National Association of Hospital Play Staff
`The story gives children plenty of opportunities to explore their feelings, and activity sheets and expansion topics also help to prompt children to look at key elements of health self esteem, such a self-acceptance, self expression and self confidence, through active participation and discussion in groups.'
Community Practitioner

Newsletter Autumn 2006

`This is a really good book! It makes it easy for the newcomer to narrative and story telling type therapy to assimilate. The book helps you take a few first tentative steps towards using interactive stories to enlighten, delight and help children with whom you work. This is a useful book for most professionals working with children aged between five and 12 years, because it offers an engaging method for boosting self-esteem, self-awareness and dealing with troublesome thoughts and feelings.

In addition to the adventures of the Little Tin Tortoise the author has also provided a whole series of practical resources. These include activity sheets, guidance notes, a table of expansion topics, drama strategies and not least some pictures to colour in. In combination with the adventures these worksheets really do provide a complete guided package for the facilitator. It is a book that I will enjoy putting into practice and hopefully inspire many of the children that I work with.'

Paediatric Nursing
`This delightful gentle story gives children plenty of opportunities to explore their feelings. This is a useful tool for teachers and others involved in group work as it addresses issues relating to self-esteem in an accepting and non-judgmental atmosphere. The activities are fun and topics such as `false friends' are introduced in an entertaining and lively way. I would recommend these materials to anyone wanting to use self-esteem as a topic in their sessions with children.'
Dorothy Clarke, formerly facilitator for Speech and Language Therapy Services to Education, Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland NHS, Specialist Community Child Health Services
Deborah Plummer is a registered speech and language therapist with over 20 years' experience of working with both children and adults within the NHS. She is also an Imagework practitioner and runs workshops and short courses on the use of imagery and issues of self-esteem. She has extensive experience of facilitating groups and of working individually with children and adults who have low self-esteem. She is the author of Using Interactive Imagework with Children, Helping Children to Build Self-Esteem and Helping Adolescents and Adults to Build Self-Esteem all published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

`It is a story of adventure and discovery; a story about finding your way in the world.'

`A story that will enchant children and the child in every adult. Deborah Plummer is a truly gifted story-teller. Her deep insight into the child's emotion is reflected in her work. The worksheets provide a tool for the story-teller to use in a creative manner and help children with a wide spectrum of emotional needs in different settings.'

Colleen Carpen, Nurse, Croft Children's Unit