Big Al by Andrew Clements (1988) recasts the story of the odd one out. Here, the odd one out is a big, scary looking fish named Big Al. There are no other fish like Big Al--large, brown, and with big white teeth. (As I write this, I feel queasy about stereotyping.) All the other fish in this sea are small and colorful. Because of his appearance, Big Al has no friends. He doesn't predict the negative impact of his efforts to make friends. For example, Big Al dresses up in seaweed to become more visually appealing, and he puffs himself up thinking the other fish will laugh. Rather than warm up to Big Al, Yoshi's schools of tiny beauties are frightened even more by his behaviors. In the end, Big Al's physicality is the reason they change their collective mind. This is not a story about respecting oneself regardless of what others might think. Big Al earns respect for the nice fish he is. I find it a distraction to preface this conclusion with desperate attempts to fit in. Yoshi's fish are befitting the story; however, the setting is primarily an expanse of blue (water).
G Lee has Big Al Story. Just One Wish Kindness Program has Character Education Lesson Plan for "Big Al". 5th Grade Teacher New York has Big Al's Adjectives.
