Jabari Jumps

Product Information

Mixed-media images in serene muted colors, high-rise buildings above the tree line, and the intriguing addition of faded newsprint accents strengthen the urban feel of the illustrations. Jabari’s story will help assuage the fears kids experience when faced with a new and daunting adventure. A terrific seasonal storytime read-aloud that’s perfect for one-on-one sharing." — School Library Journal (starred review) Jabari decides that he is ready to jump off the high diving board at his local swimming pool in this engaging summertime picture-book from author/illustrator Gaia Cornwall. Having finished his swimming lessons and passed his swim test, the young boy believes he can take that leap. Then he actually confronts the ladder to thet high board, and he finds himself a little intimidated. His loving father is there, however, to talk him through his fears, and help him take a chance... A daunting gaze downward, past Jabari’s toes that curl around the edge of the board, makes the water look incredibly far away, and when seen from behind, he seems as high up as the skyscrapers in the distance. It’s a lovely, knowing account of a big “first” in a child’s life.

Books — Gaia Cornwall

A little boy has finished his swimming lessons and is trying to get up the courage to jump off the diving board in this utterly charming debut picture book with a valuable lesson about conquering your fears from a gifted author-illustrator Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol. Little Jabari had just finished his swimming lessons and passed his swim test. He decided that he was now ready to jump off the diving board and today was the day. He watched all the other children jump off the board and declared it looked easy. However, when he got to the bottom of the board he looked up and saw how high it was. He felt scared but he didn’t want to let anyone know how he felt.Jabari finally built up the courage to walk to the bottom of the ladder, but when he looked up and saw how tall it was fear overcame him…but he didn’t want anyone to know he was scared. His dad recognized that Jabari was scared and pulled him aside to reassure him that it was okay to feel scared. Jabari’s dad explained what he did when he felt scared. Jabari uses what his dad taught him and walked up to the diving board again. His dad’s strategy worked, and Jabari was able to jump off the diving board with confidence. She understands Jabari is scared, and that he does it anyway rather than letting fear stop him do something he really wants to do. She joins in with the celebration at the end "he did it!! He can do it!" And says "I can do it"l!!!" herself now when she believes she can't do something but surprises herself. Every once in awhile, a story comes along and fills a hole in the picture book universe. Maybe we knew about the void, like how few children’s books feature main characters of color, or perhaps we only realize what we’ve been missing in retrospect, like tales with a competent, emotionally attentive male caregiver. Through a carefully crafted plot and wonderfully expressive illustrations, Jabari Jumps does just that, claiming a spot in the story-time queue it won’t soon relinquish.

Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall: 9781536202908

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools. The dialogue and text are straightforward and make a nice pairing with the creatively chosen angles for the illustrations…a welcome piece for any summertime collection. The story describes how Jabari, a little boy, overcomes his fears at the swimming pool. Jabari has finished his swimming lessons and passed his test and now feels he’s ready to conquer his fear of the diving board. His dad reassures him that it’s okay to be scared and helps him reframe his thoughts by seeing his actions as leading to a surprise. Jabari loves surprises, so this helps him eventually take the leap confidently off the board and into the pool. These activities can be used by the whole group, at stations or centers, or provide student choice. They’re perfect for differentiation and focusing on specific learning goals and skills.Mixed-media images in serene muted colors, high-rise buildings above the tree line, and the intriguing addition of faded newsprint accents strengthen the urban feel of the illustrations. Jabari’s story will help assuage the fears kids experience when faced with a new and daunting adventure. A terrific seasonal storytime read-aloud that’s perfect for one-on-one sharing. Young Jabari decides today is the day he is going to jump from the diving board, even though it’s a little high and a little scary. His dad knew how he was feeling though. He told Jabari that it was okay to feel scared and that sometimes even he felt scared. He then taught him what he does when he feels scared and how it helps. Jabari decided to give the diving board another go, this time using the technique his dad had taught him. Anyone who has hesitated on the brink of something daunting—a brave act or a big decision—will feel a rush of kinship with the small protagonist of Gaia Cornwall’s picture book “Jabari Jumps”. Jabari Jumps is a very sweet, short children’s book following little Jabari as he tries to work up the courage to jump off the diving board. The book shows children that everyone gets scared sometimes and that it is normal and okay. It also shows them how Jabari’s dad helps him to overcome his fears.