Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Ally Nickerson has made it to sixth grade but struggles daily with certain aspects of school-- basically reading and writing.

Here is how she describes how she succeeds in school:

                “I’ve always had one important rule in the classroom which is to try to lie low.  If I’m called upon, I’ll say, ‘I don’t’ know,’ even if I do.  I discovered that giving a teacher an answer makes them expect more from me, and then everyone gets disappointed.  If they never get an answer from me, they stop asking.”

Ally’s picked on mercilessly by a girl named Shay and her cohort Jessica.  Shay manages to make Ally feel stupid and dumb.

When a substitute teacher named Mr. Daniels takes over for Ally’s teacher while she is on maternity leave, he finds Ally to be extraordinarily talented in drawing and math.

Here is the advice Mr. Daniels gives Ally:

“Now don’t be so hard on yourself, okay? You know, a wise person once said,  “Everyone is smart in different ways.  But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life thinking it’s stupid.”

Will Ally finally be taught a method to read and write which will work for the way her brain processes the written word?

Read this second book by the author of One for the Murphys to find out.