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    Thank You, Mr. Falker
    Thank You, Mr. Falker
    Thank You, Mr. Falker
    Audiobook18 minutes

    Thank You, Mr. Falker

    Written by Patricia Polacco

    Narrated by Kate Forbes

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Award-winning author Patricia Polacco based this story on her own childhood and the heroic teacher who helped her overcome her learning disability. Even though she is a wonderful artist who makes beautiful pictures with her crayons, Trisha can't figure out how to read. The other kids make fun of her, calling her terrible names like "Dummy." Then one day, a new teacher arrives. Mr. Falker doesn't think Trisha is dumb at all. He knows he can help her read.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateMar 8, 2013
    ISBN9781470356798
    Thank You, Mr. Falker

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    Reviews for Thank You, Mr. Falker

    4.5/5

    766 ratings103 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Trisha is a little girl that loves hearing stories from her brother and mother. She is very fascinated with reading, but is faced with an internal conflict in her own life. Trisha has dyslexia, each grade she enters the more confused she gets with new numbers and words. When she entered fifth grade and met her new teacher Mr. Falker, who gave her the time and attention. This book serves as a great purpose for all children. Dyslexia is very common and it is nothing someone should be ashamed of. It also helps those who aren’t affected see what other children may go through. All it takes is one great teacher to make a difference. We should all try to be more like Mr. Falker.
    • 4/5
      Trisha has struggled to read her whole life. This led to her getting bullied, and feeling dumb, overwhelmed, and angry. Then one day, Mr. Faulker noticed her struggling. The two work extra hard to teach Trisha had to read. After months of practice, Trisha finally learns to read! I liked that this book focused a bit on the emotional side of having a learning disability, rather than just the academic part.
    • 5/5
      This book is about a young girl who has a learning disability and struggles to read. Her teacher willingly works with her and really makes a difference in her life. I gave this book a five because many students have learning disabilities, so they can relate to Trisha. It shows them that teachers are really there for them. They can do anything others can do without disabilities, whether it be math or reading.
    • 5/5
      I think anyone who has ever had a teacher help them learn will love Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco. I could easily connect with Trisha because I had trouble learning to read. I would practice over and over again, but I couldn’t put the words into sentences I understood. It took me a long time, but eventually I became a reader. Once I started reading, I have never wanted to stop. I am thankful that I am able to read. It takes me places I have never been before. Reading about Trisha’s experience made me stop and think about the teachers that I have had so far and the different ways they have helped me. I am lucky to have had teachers that really care about me. There are many people who don’t come from loving homes, and a teacher may be one of the only people who treats them with love and kindness. Mr. Falker sounds like a teacher I would like. I enjoy this story because it gives me a warm fuzzy feeling inside each time I read it. This is a great book for people ages 8 and up. Younger kids might enjoy it too, but it is a longer picture book, with lots of words. If you are looking for a book to inspire you and make you feel thankful, then look no further!
    • 5/5
      This books shows that students that struggle need a little more help to get to where they need to go. This young girl struggles with reading and her teacher goes above and beyond.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. I felt that the things that really made this book great was the use of language and the characters. While reading this book, the language used was very descriptive and captivating to the audience. The author describes the child struggling to read the words on the page and details in the book how the words were blurry fuzzy and kept jumping all over the page. This makes it very easy for children to understand and comprehend this complex disorder. The characters were extremely well developed throughout the book. The main little girl is shown trying and trying to read and she just cannot get it. She goes through what children actually go through with this learning disability and it is made extremely clear that this is the authors true encounter. The teachers also had extremely believable character development throughout between the ones that did not help her and the one that finally did. This is a biography written in story form to make it more enjoyable for children to understand. The main purpose of this book is to relate to children who are struggling with something and remind them that they can get through it.
    • 5/5
      I really liked this book. I found Thank you Mr. Falker to be particularly inspirational because of the way Mr. Falker was able to reach Trisha and help her. As a future teacher, it portrayed how every teacher should strive to be with their students; helpful, caring, and persistent. I found the characters to be very relatable and strongly developed. While I relate and find admirable qualities in Mr. Falker, I can easily see how students can relate to Trisha. Even if it isn’t dyslexia, students with developmental disabilities can feel more “normal” after seeing a character that has similar struggles with academics. I like the point of view. The story was written in first person through the eyes of a girl named Trisha. Trisha had a lot of trouble reading and writing and struggling in her schooling. Seeing the story take place through her perspective forced the reader to see school as she saw it. Patricia Polacco based the story off of her own personal experience in school with dyslexia, which is why it is so vital that the story be told through her viewpoint. The purpose of the story was to show students and teachers never to give up on each other. Patricia Polacco couldn’t read until the age of 14 and because one teacher didn’t give up on her she was able to aspire to become a children’s literature author.
    • 5/5
      This book is about a young girl named Trisha that has trouble reading. Once she gets to 5th grade, her teacher sees how artistic she is and helps her use her ability to overcome her dyslexia.  
    • 5/5
      I absolutely loved this book. I believe that it is aimed towards higher elementary students (4th-5th grade) and leaves students really appreciating the things their teachers/ role models strive to do for them everyday. It also reinforces the importance of having confidence in yourself and ignoring mean things that people may say to shoot you down. I believe it would definitely be beneficial to present to a class because there is a thorough plot that is also easy to understand. Patricia starts not confident in her academic abilities and ends feeling proud and finally triumphant. Theres a little bit of a complex and metaphorical language that usually can be understand for it's targeted age. Like on the page when the "letting go of the grass" inference is gone over.I believe that this book also pushes readers to appreciate the things they have and applaud themselves for the things they are good at. Although a learning disability is never mentioned in the book, this story could provide great reassurance to children who may struggle to overcome learning issues and the social aspect of being different from your peers.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book! The story and meaning behind the book was very inspiring, the characters were well developed and the illustrations were very detailed. The plot of the story was that Tricia was a struggling student and her teacher showed Tricia what she was good at and put in the extra time and attention that she needed to help her succeed. Mr Falker said "Stop! Are you all so perfect that you can look at another person and find fault with her?" to the class when they laughed at Tricia for not getting the answer correct. This story could be very relatable to students in the classroom and inspire them to believe that they are smart. Tricia's character was well developed and you could see what she was thinking as well as how the students acted towards her and how their attitudes changes throughout the book. The big idea of the story is that every student is smart and with a little extra support or teaching in a different way all students can and will succeed.
    • 5/5
      This is a wonderful book about a young girl who things she is stupid but a new teacher discovers a learn problem. The girl is tormented and alienated by the other children but her new teacher shows her the way to become all she can be in this world. Mr. Falker spends many hours encouraging and showing the little girl she can read and is smart. He teaches her to believe in herself and not to let others get the best of her. Highly Recommend.
    • 5/5
      This is a very inspiring and touching story. Thank You, Mr. Falker is about a young girl who struggles with learning to read. Mr. Falker is an inspirational teacher who tries to help her learn to read. The writing and language used in the story was used with expression and definitely understandable for young readers. The illustrations in the story brought the book to life, you could read the story through the pictures. This book pushes young readers to not give up and keep working whether it be with reading or another problem.
    • 5/5
      This book is one of my all time favorite books! It is about a girl named Trisha who is having trouble learning to read. She loved books and her mother read to her every night. Trisha also loved to draw. She always had trouble reading and when her grandparents passed away, school seemed to get harder. Even after her family moved to California, she was still the lowest student in the class based on reading level. My favorite part is when she meets Mr. Falker and he stands up for Trisha and shows her that she can learn to read despite what anyone else thinks. He works with her after school for many nights in order to successfully build her reading skills. Trisha had bravery and smartness to fool the other teachers into thinking she knew how to read but Mr. Falker could see the pain in her eyes and helped her when he didn't need to. The big idea of this story is to be determined. Keep working hard no matter what obstacles are in your way because in the end everything will be okay.
    • 5/5
      I liked this book for multiple reasons. First, I enjoyed how this book was an autobiography of Patricia Polacco's childhood and how she struggled in school. The book has a very relatable plot for those who are struggling with dyslexia and the character of Trisha is very believable and well-developed because the character stemmed from the author's personal experiences. The second piece about this book that I enjoyed was the fact that the book pushes readers to think about tough issues, such as learning disabilities and bullying. Children at a young age need to recognize that all students learn in different ways and there is no need to bully children for being different. This book would be great to read in an elementary school classroom because it can be a model for students that bullying can hurt people and some people learn at different paces or in different ways. Overall, this book is written really well and would be a very engaging book for a read-aloud in the classroom that all students can learn from and enjoy.
    • 5/5
      I really liked this story for multiple reasons. First, the writing flowed really well. There was a clear plot to the story, and this made it easy to follow. The chain of events was easy to follow, and the plot did have some unexpected turns. These changes in plot allowed the story line to become more interesting, and engaging. I also thought the story was well paced. There were not any slow points to the story, and the plot was constantly developing until it is found out that Trisha has a learning disability. The language of the story was also quite descriptive. When it is described how Trisha was bullied the word choice allows the reader to feel the pain that Trisha is feeling. This allows the reader to be more sympathetic for Trisha because they are able to witness the difficulties that she is enduring. These times in the story are pushing readers to think about a tough issue. There are actually two tough issues that are intertwined during these parts of the story. One of the difficult issues is bullying, and the second is students who are struggling with learning disabilities. For readers who have not been bullied or have a learning disability this gives a new perspective about the difficulties that other students are enduring. Some students do not realize the impact of their actions and this story will allow them to see how their words can affect someone. The story is also important for students with learning disabilities to read because it is a story about overcoming what you thought that you could do. In the story Mr. Falker believed in Trisha, even when she had lost confidence in herself. This story will show students that it is possible to become more than what other people think you are capable of. Another reason I like this story is because the characters are very believable. The fact that this story is based on the author’s life and events that happened allows the characters to be well developed. Trisha emotions are real. What she says and does are believable, because they are based off events that did happen. The autobiographical aspect of the book allows the characters to be more authentic. I believe that the big idea of the story is that with the help of people who believe in you, you can overcome difficult situations.
    • 5/5
      I liked this book because of the illustrations and that it pushes the readers. The illustrations were very detailed and appealing to the eye. I liked that the pictures showed exactly what was happening in the story, so if the readers were overwhelmed by the length, they could look at the pictures and know what was happening. For example when Trisha is hiding under the stairs instead of going outside. The reader could look at the picture and know what she is doing. The story pushes the reader to think about bullying and the affects that it has on someone. Trisha was picked on for not knowing how to read, and was called dumb. Trisha started to believe what her classmates were saying and didn't want to go to school because she knew she was going to be picked on. The story shows that what you say to someone can stick with them.
    • 5/5
      There are two reasons why I liked this book so much. First, the plot was organized and was suspenseful. For example, when Trisha hide under the inside stairwell during the free time, as a reader I didn’t know who would find her or what would happen next. Second, the characters, particularly Trisha, were well developed and believable because I was able to connect to her. I too, had a difficult time reading when I was in elementary school. My Mr. Falker was my fifth grade teacher, Ms. Hieb. Just like Mr. Falker, Ms. Hieb took her extra time and energy to help me learn to love to read and how to read. Then, just like Mr. Falker, Ms. Hieb had tears in her eyes when I finished my first chapter book. The message of the story is that you don’t know how what you do will affect others. Mr. Falker was able to change Trisha’s life for ever by taking the time with her to help her learn to read.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book because of its' big message. The story explains to have faith, never give up and you will succeed. Not only did Mr. Falker help Trisha read, he made her realize some people are bullies and to stand up for yourself. The illustrations helped guide the reader through clearly as the story flowed and was paced well. When Trisha came to an ending years later, running into Mr. Falker she explained, "Thank you, thank you Mr. Falker." This really touched my heart because I can only hope to help my students in the future. This story explains a daily struggle for students and should be a true inspiration to all readers.
    • 5/5
      This was a great book that brought tears to my eyes. The central message of the story was about a teacher who did not give up on a young child and helped her to learn to read. This showed all young children to never give up. I liked how the writing flowed and gave vivid descriptions. For example, the sentence read, "They said beh, beh...oy, boy" showing how difficult it was for Trisha to read. I could hear her in my head having this difficulty and feeling her pain. What I enjoyed most was the ending and how there was such a happy ending. This book is relatable to many young children who have faced the same issue in having difficulty learning how to read. It is inspiring to all.
    • 5/5
      This book is absolutely enticing. This personal account of the author’s difficulty with reading is captivating and relatable to children. Patricia Polacco did an incredible job addressing disabilities and bullying, while expressing that there is hope for children who deal with either of these issues. The language in the book is simple enough for young students to understand, yet still describes how the young girl is feeling and what she is experiencing throughout the book. The two main characters are both well-developed over the course of the storyline and readers are able to put themselves into those positions. The illustrations add to the story by giving students a visual. The most powerful illustration portrayed bullying and showed readers exactly how it makes others feel when they are put down. The point of view is third person up until the very end when the author admits that she is actually the little girl in the story. There is both a conflict, Trish not being able to read, and a resolution, Mr. Falker supporting her as she learns to read. The book emotionally engages readers and left me close to tears.
    • 5/5
      In my opinion, this is a very inspiring and positive book! I really liked the main message of the story which was to never give up. I like how this is an autobiographical story of how the author herself was struggling to learn how to read and was able to keep this a secret from her teachers. This book also caused the reader to think about tough issues. One tough issue that is addressed in this book is bullying. I think that this is an important theme to put into a children's book because it provides a look into how hurtful words can be. I really like the characters in the book, mainly the little girl and Mr. Falker. The little girl is very resilient and also very clever for leading her teachers to believe that she can read. Mr. Falker is an exceptional role-model for teachers everywhere. His character was very kind and caring. He takes the little girl under his wing and never gives up on teaching her how to read. Overall, the book was very engaging and the plot was timed very well. The ones close to the little girl don’t find out right away that she doesn’t know how to read. I like how the book had an element of suspense in it (the reader waiting for Mr. Falker to figure out that she can’t read).
    • 5/5
      In my opinion, this story was amazing! The central message of the story is to work hard, and never give up. One reason I liked this story is because of the character. As a teacher, Mr. Faulker relates to me because he wanted his students to succeed. He never gave up on Trisha. He did everything he could to help her read. Another reason why I loved this story is because of the language. The author uses dialogue and emotion to help readers really understand the plot of the story. For instance, the author uses dialogue between Trisha and Mr. Fualker when he realizes that Trisha has never grasped reading. The last reason I enjoyed this story was because of the illustrations. The illustrator captured the story very well. For example, when Trisha gets picked on, there is an illustration of her looking terrified. There are mean words written all around her to show that she is getting bullied.
    • 5/5
      This is an autobiographical story but Patricia Polacco. The story follows her struggle to achieve a rite of passage her family holds very deal, learning to read. She tenderly describes her struggle with dyslexia and reading challenges. She is supported by her family but bullied by her peers. She has a real talent in Art but her reading struggle makes her feel dumb, none the less. None of her teachers seem to recognize her problem or seemed to care until Patricia reached the fifth grade and met Mr. Falker. He saw the ability and courage she possessed. He recognized the issue and provided her help until she finally became a reader. The book is beautifully illustrated,and would be engaging for both elementary and middle school students alike.The message is really timeless and ageless. It is an inspirational book and could lead to some deep exploration about overcoming obstacles, having grit, the love of family, traditions, and bullying. Thee is some symbolism and imagery used to tell this story.A timeless autobiography of hope.
    • 5/5
      Thank You, Mr. Falker is such an encouraging story about a girl who struggled to learn to read and felt poorly about herself because of it. But then, Mr. Falker came along and changed everything. He never gave up on her and finally, after many months, she finally did it. I can't imagine how helpful this book would be to a child who has a hard time with reading. Just to know that other people struggle the way they do must be incredibly comforting. This book tells a story about an adult in this girl's life who never gave up on her and believed that she could succeed, which is something that every child deserves.
    • 5/5
      This is a widely known and beloved children’s book, and it is so for a reason. This book describes so well what many children who struggle with reading go through- they feel stupid and worthless, like their entire sense self is judged on their ability to read. The fact that the main character, Tricia, is so easy to identify with is one of the main things that makes this such a wonderful book. Another thing I love about this book is the fact that it is a personal story of the author. This makes the entire thing that much more realistic. My favorite thing about the book however, is the ending, where Patricia Polacco writes about meeting Mr. Falker again many years later. She tells him how inspirational he was to her and how he inspired her, and that she is now a children’s author. This gives the reader a sense of validation. I think the main idea of the book is that a good teacher can make all the difference. This is especially important to me as a future teacher. I look to Mr. Falker as a role model of the kind of teacher I hope to be someday.
    • 3/5
      I liked this book because it compared knowledge to sweet honey and how you have to work for it. It covers Trisha's story about her struggles to learn how to read. Her struggles introduce the idea that everyone is different and everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. It is okay to be different. However, the book is very long and I think children would start to loose patience half way through the book. The first time I read this book I loved it. I loved it enough to use it in a lesson that I had to teach in one of my classes. However, when I read the book again during my lesson, I realized how long it was and that my class of college students were loosing focus and patience, so I can only imagine the attention span fifth and sixth graders would have for this book.
    • 5/5
      Thank you Mr. Falker brings you back to being little. It helps to rekindle memories of a dear teachers of yours growing up. Thank you Mr. Falker will make you want to take out that nice stationary set you got for christmas and write a thank you card to a teacher that helped you gain confidence within yourself.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. At a very young age, Trisha was very excited to start reading. However, she soon found out that she had a horrible time trying to read. She was teased very badly, and none of her teachers did much to help her until 5th grade. One of my favorite parts of this book is when Mr. Falker catches the students teasing her and says, “Stop! Are all of you so perfect that you can look at another person and find fault with her?”. When Mr. Falker discovers that Trisha is dyslexic he says, “But, little one, don’t you understand, you don’t see letters or numbers the way other people do. And you’ve gotten through school all this time, and fooled many, many good teachers! That took cunning, and smartness, and such, such bravery.” I loved how instead of him talking bad about the other teachers he complimented her by saying she was very smart to have fooled them. It melted my heart that Mr. Falker cared so much about Trisha and worked really hard with her to help her learn to read. The message of this story is that you can do anything you put your mind to, and you shouldn’t make fun of people because we all have faults.
    • 5/5
      Honestly a great book that is a favorite of mine. It would be wonderful to use to demonstrate dyslexia awareness and tolerance into a classroom.
    • 5/5
      This was a good picture book, for students to read with a partner or parent, for ages 5 and 6. This book would be good for them because it is about a beginner reader who is having difficulty. While other students are excelling, the main character is falling behind and not progressing further. It is a good book for emerging readers to realize that everyone is developing in all skills at different times. The main character needs more help than others in reading, yet she is a great artist and very good at drawing. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses which is a great message for students to take away from the picture book. This work of realistic fiction was something that all students should read to connect with.