My mother used to say, “Pretty is as pretty does.” She would remind me that beauty will be reflected in a person’s behavior. There are some moments she would have really been proud of in my life and I have had my share of not so flattering moments. I have shared this lesson with my kids and I can say that, in general, their behavior is pretty good and that they became experts at monitoring my behavior.

“Princess Penelope’s Parrot” by Helen Lester beautifully illustrates
how wealth, cute clothes, luxurious items, and showy behaviors don’t make you more special or more appealing if you don’t communicate with people with kindness and sincerity. This book drives home the point that behavior is a reflection of one’s inner beauty. When we meet Princess Penelope she is celebrating her birthday in her castle and making a grand effort to ensure that everyone knows she should be revered because of her title. I have read this book to many elementary school children and asked them after hearing the story to describe this little princess. They use words like bossy, mean, selfish, disrespectful, stingy, and greedy. Moreover, the kids have said that she was an impolite girl with bad manners. No matter the age of the kids or their grade level I was always excited to see that the children didn’t talk about the special gifts she received on her special day. They only saw her behavior. What a great story to teach a lesson on good manners and humility! It also emphasized that Mama was a really smart lady! “Pretty is as pretty does!”

“The Little Red Hen” is one of my favorite children’s books of all time. The version I read to my kids and many childen in classrooms I have visited was adapted by Donna R. Parnell and illustrated by Deborah Colvin Borgo. Most folks remember the story about the little red hen who found some wheat and wanted to make some bread. In summary, in order to make the bread, she needed to plant the wheat, cut the wheat, and deliver the wheat to the miller for it to be ground. After the wheat was ground, she received a bag of flour which had to be baked into a loaf of bread. Along the bread making journey, she solicited the help of the cat, the dog, and the pig. Neither of them wanted to help with the labor, but when the loaf was warm and fragrant, they all wanted to help her eat the bread.

Based on this story, I gave life to “the little red hen” complex which refers to all who stand or sit around satisfied watching other folks work to perform all of the tasks necessary to reach the desired end. The folks with “the little red hen” complex like to receive all the benefits with none of the work. This refers to the person who wants to reap and not sow. My kids know what I’m talking about when I say, “You got ‘the little red hen’ complex.” I use this phrase when I have to cook dinner and nobody wants to help, but they all are asking, “What’s for dinner?” or “When is dinner gonna be ready?” I feel like my little bird friend when I spend hours shopping for groceries and I have to peel folks away from whatever they are doing to get the groceries out of the car and put away properly in the kitchen.

This story is timeless and the illustrations in the book are bright and full of detail. When
I read it aloud to kids, their responses are always positive and their faces are painted with smiles. I love to teach through tales. Using the morals of these innocent, child-friendly stories gives me a way to remind my kids and others of their responsibility to sew good seeds and put in the work tending their crop so that they can really be satisfied with the goodies they produce.