“Delightful . . . Not only for kids, this series is a must for educators,
parents, and caregivers who want to help children end the cycle of cruelty.”
—Barbara Coloroso, best-selling author of The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander
“I love this series. Kids are sure to empathize with the characters
and recognize their own power to stop bullying.”
—Dr. Michele Borba, internationally recognized child expert and author of
The Big Book of Parenting Solutions
by Erin Frankel
illustrated by Paula Heaphy
Acknowledgments
Heartfelt thanks to Judy Galbraith, Meg Bratsch, Steven Hauge, Michelle Lee, and Margie Lisovskis
at Free Spirit for their expertise, support, and dedication to making the world a better place for children.
Special gratitude to Kelsey, Sofia, and Gabriela for their enthusiasm and ideas during the creation of
this book. Appreciation to Naomi Drew for her helpful comments. Thanks also to Alvaro, Thomas, Ann,
Paul, Ros, Beth, and all our family and friends for their creative insight and encouragement.
Copyright © 2012 by Erin Frankel and Paula Heaphy
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Unless otherwise noted, no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher,
except for brief quotations or critical reviews. For more information, go to www.freespirit.com/company/permissions.cfm.
Free Spirit, Free Spirit Publishing, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Free Spirit Publishing Inc. A complete listing of our logos and
trademarks is available at www.freespirit.com.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Frankel, Erin.
Tough! / by Erin Frankel ; illustrated by Paula Heaphy.
p. cm. — (Weird series ; bk. 3)
ISBN 978-1-57542-400-2
1. Bullying—Juvenile literature. 2. Bullying in schools—Juvenile literature. 3. Aggressiveness in children—Juvenile literature. I. Heaphy, Paula. II. Title.
BF637.B85F728 2012
302.34’3—dc23
2012006160
eBook ISBN: 978-1-57542-658-7
Free Spirit Publishing does not have control over or assume responsibility for author or third-party websites and their content.
Reading Level Grades 2–3; Interest Level Ages 5–9;
Fountas & Pinnell Guided Reading Level M
Edited by Meg Bratsch
Cover and interior design by Michelle Lee
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in Hong Kong
P17200512
Free Spirit Publishing Inc.
Minneapolis, MN
(612) 338-2068
help4kids@freespirit.com
www.freespirit.com
Free Spirit offers competitive pricing.
Contact edsales@freespirit.com for pricing information on multiple quantity purchases.
For all children,
young and old, who
have been involved in bullying.
Don’t lose sight of who you are.
Know yourself.
Be yourself.
And always listen
to your heart.
What are you staring at?
I’m not the weird one.
My name is Sam and I’m
1
That’s Luisa. She’s weird.
She dresses weird.
2
She acts weird.
She talks weird.
Someone has
to tell her,
so I do.
3
Keeping things cool at school is TOUGH,
but I’m pretty good at it. I get lots of practice.
4
5
It’s a TOUGH job, but someone
has to make the rules.
Around here, that’s me.
6
If everyone did
what they wanted,
things would be out
of control. Believe me,
I know.
7
The way I look at it, people need to be TOUGH.
You know, learn how to take a joke. I did.
8
9
If someone doesn’t like the way I act,
well that’s
10
Around here, what I say goes.
No one dares to tell me no.
11
So what if I’m a little TOUGH on Luisa?
The way I look at it, she has it easy.
Always getting the right answer.
Always with her friends.
Always smiling.
12
Well, at least she used to smile.
13
The truth is, I don’t have much to smile about anymore either.
Things are getting TOUGH around here.
People aren’t following my rules.
14
15
How do I think Luisa feels?
That’s a TOUGH question.
I try not to think about
other people’s feelings.
16
And the harder I try, the more I forget . . .
What it’s like to feel sad.
What it’s like to be scared.
Or what it’s like to really care.
17
I’m not being mean.
I’m just being
18
I act this way to keep things cool.
So people won’t mess with me.
Do they really
think I’m mean?
19
Maybe Mr. C. is right.
Maybe I could use a little help.
Someone to tell me: “Enough is enough!”
Someone to help me stop acting
so TOUGH!
20
Someone to help me see
that being kind
can be cool.
And someone else
to make the rules.
21
I’m starting to see that when I’m kind,
people notice.
22
And I can be kind and still be strong.
23
Changing is TOUGH,
but the more I act
like my real self,
the easier it gets.
24
With everyone standing up
for each other, school seems
like a cooler place to be.
25
Of course, I could always find someone
to pick on if I really wanted to . . .
26
. . . but it feels better to have a friend instead.
27
I discovered something
really amazing!
28
When I show people I care—
even just a little bit—
they show they care back.
Enough is enough!
I’m through with being . . .
29
30
31
Sam’s Notes
It’s tough work changing my behavior, but being mean all the time is even
tougher. Here are some things I’ve learned:
Taking my anger out on others only makes me angrier.
Out of control is how I felt before someone helped me change.
Unless I change my behavior, I will keep hurting myself and others.
Giving people a chance is a good way to fit in and be cool
.
Having real friends feels a lot better than being tough.
32
Luisa’s Notes
I’m glad Sam is giving up her old ways. I know that I’m not weird—no matter
what anyone says. Here are some other things I learned as a target of
bullying:
When everyone joins together to help, things start getting better.
Every person who is picked on needs someone to stand up for him or her.
I think all people deserve to be treated with kindness, including Sam.
Realizing that no one liked her behavior helped Sam change.
Disrespecting others means you are also disrespecting yourself.
Jayla’s Notes
I found out that things got a lot harder when I didn’t dare to stand up for
myself and Luisa. Now I feel good about the choices I’m making. Here are
some things I know for sure:
Deciding to do what I knew was right took courage.
Assisting Sam when she bullied Luisa meant I was bullying, too.
Reaching out to Luisa and being her friend was a good choice.
Eliminating bullying is everyone’s responsibility—we all have the power
to help.
33
Join Sam’s Kindness Club!
Acting tough didn’t take away the hurt I felt when people were mean to me. And it didn’t
help me make friends, because everyone was scared of me. Now, I’m making choices to
show I care, and things are finally starting to change for the better.
I think of my words like notes on my guitar. I try to choose the ones that will help others
feel good. Want to help? Just put your fingers on the kind notes below to help me play
the right chords.
Wow, it sounds great! Remember, the more you practice, the better you’ll get.
34
Kindness Club: Picture This
Writing down my thoughts helps me see how my words and actions affect others.
Mr. C. calls this activity “reflection.” He suggests that I draw my reflections to help me
picture what’s going on. I could use some help! Grab some paper and let’s get started.
1. Draw lines to divide the poster into four equal sections. At the top write: “Picture This.”
2. Label the four sections with these questions: “What did I do?” “What did I hope to
get by doing it?” “What happened when I did it?” “How can I get what I want without
hurting others?”
3. Now read my story again while thinking about
these questions.
4. Finally, draw pictures on the poster to
describe each of the questions.
Thanks for helping me see what
happens when I bully. Are you worried
about the way you’ve been acting
toward others lately? Try making your
own “Picture This” poster and sharing
it with someone you trust.
35
Kindness Club: Sticking to Caring
I figured no one cared about my feelings, so I chose not to care about others’ feelings. But
then I found out that people do care, and I want to be one of those people. I’m done with
being tough and I’m sticking to caring! Want to help me decorate a guitar with stickers?
1. Cut out a large guitar shape from a piece of cardboard. Tape six pieces of string on the
cardboard—these are your guitar strings.
2. Cut out heart shapes from a sheet of paper. These are your stickers.
3. In the center of each heart, write words to describe what happens when you stick
to caring. Examples: I am respectful. I feel happy. I make friends. I’m not lonely.
4. Place tape on the back of your hearts and
stick them to your guitar.
5. Pretend to play your new guitar, or hang
it in your bedroom. You can also
teach a friend how to make one.
Can you think of more activities
to do in our Kindness Club?
Share them with your
classmates and friends.
Someone who’s kind is tough
to resist!
36
A Note to Parents, Teachers, and Other Caring Adults
Every day, millions of children are subjected to
bullying in the form of name-calling, threats,
insults, belittling, taunting, rumors, and racist
slurs—and still more are witnesses to it. Verbal
bullying, which can begin as early as preschool,
accounts for 70 percent of reported bullying
and is often a stepping stone to other types of
aggression, including physical, relational, and
online bullying. As caring adults, how can we help
children feel safe, respected, and confident in who
they are? How can we help children who initiate
bullying make choices they can feel proud of and
We can start by holding children who bully
others accountable for their behavior, while
modeling and encouraging positive choices. We
can provide kids who are targets of bullying with
practical coping tools for positive thinking and
confidence building. We can help bystanders
explore safe and effective ways to stand up for
those who are being bullied. And through stories
such as Tough!, we can help children develop
awareness and perspective-taking skills to help
prevent and change bullying behavior. We can
help children like Sam understand that by hurting
others they are also hurting themselves, and
that kindness breeds kindness. We can explore
practical strategies to help children act on what
they know is right, while providing a trusting
environment to support their efforts.
Reflection Questions for Tough!
The story told in Tough! illustrates a fictional
situation, but it is one that many kids will likely
relate to even if their experiences have been
different. Following are some questions and
activities to encourage reflection and dialogue as
you read Tough! Referring to the main characters
by name will help children make connections: Sam
Important: Online bullying (called cyberbullying) is a real threat among elementary-age
children, given the increased use of smartphones and computers in school and at home.
It’s also the most difficult type of bullying to stop, because it’s less apparent to onlookers.
Be sure to include cyberbullying in all of your discussions about bullying with kids.
37
initiates the bullying, Jayla is a bystander to the
bullying, and Luisa is the target of the bullying.
Page 1: What do you think of the way Sam
introduces herself?
Pages 2–3: What has Sam written and said about
Luisa? How does it feel to have someone write or
say mean things about you?
Pages 4–7: How does Sam “practice” being a
bully? Have you ever witnessed bullying on TV or
in movies? How does it make you feel? What is
Sam’s relationship like with her brother Alex? How
do you think this affects Sam’s behavior at school?
(Note: Children choose to bully others for many
reasons. Their motivations are often complex
and not easily explained by family relationships,
media images, or peer pressure. However, talking
about all of these things
can help kids understand
what might contribute to bullying behavior.)
Pages 8–9: Why does Sam think people need
to be tough? Do you think saying or writing
something mean is ever “just a joke”? Why do you
think Sam joins in on page 9 when the boys bully
Emily (the girl with the violin case)? Have you ever
felt pressured to join in bullying someone? What
did you do?
Pages 10–11: What does Sam dare Jayla to do on
page 11? Why do you think Jayla does what Sam
says?
Pages 12–17: How does Sam feel about the way
she treats Luisa? What changes are taking place
around Sam? What does Sam think about the
changes?
Pages 18–19: Do you think Sam is being mean?
Does Sam want others to think she is mean? Why
or why not?
Pages 20–27: Who helps Sam change her
behavior? How does Sam show that she is making
positive changes? What does she realize about
Emily?
Pages 28–31: What does Sam discover? Do you
think she’ll continue to bully others?
Overall: Which character in Tough! is most like
you and why? What would you like to say to this
character?
38
The Weird Series
The Weird series gives readers the opportunity
to explore three very different perspectives on
bullying: that of a child who is a target of bullying
in Weird!, that of a bystander to bullying in Dare!,
and that of a child who initiates bullying in Tough!
Each book can be used alone or together with the