Meet Ivy, brand-new at Maple Street School, standing at the edge at lunch and recess, wishing she had a place. With Sprout, her growing buddy, Ivy learns the small, brave moves that turn “I don't belong” into “there's room for me”, and then “there's room for you, too.”
The storyteller reads to you. Just tap the big button!
Every time you learn something brave, Sprout grows a new leaf. Watch him grow as you help Ivy find her place.
Word Power
Tap each word. Then, if you want, say one out loud.
Now YOU say it (optional): “Hi, I'm ___. Can I play?”
Say it out loud, loud enough that Sprout can hear you!
🌱 Belonging Meter
Do each part to help Sprout grow. 0/9
Ivy's First Weeks at Maple Street
Read the scene. Try the move. Find your place, and make room.
Part 1
The Edge
“You don't belong here.”
It's Ivy's first week at Maple Street School. At lunch, the tables are full. At recess, the games are already going. Ivy stands at the edge, holding her tray, watching. “There's no place for me,” she thinks. “I don't belong here.” And right on cue, the Left-Out feeling whispers, “See? You'll always be on the outside.”
Sprout says: Big feelings come first, before we fix anything. Tap to see what everyone is feeling.
What's everyone feeling?
Say it: “Feelings first. Fixing second.”
Part 2
Calm the Left-Out Feeling
Ivy's tummy feels tight and her cheeks feel warm. That's her body's alarm bell. It rings fast, before she can think of what to do. Before Ivy takes one brave step, she takes one slow breath.
Sprout says: Reset with Ivy. Breathe in slow through your nose… and let it out even slower through your mouth. Feel the alarm get quiet.
Reset with Ivy
Say it: “Calm first. Then I make my move.”
Part 3
Everyone Needs a Place
The Left-Out feeling talks in whole sentences. “You don't belong.” “They already have their friends.” “There's no room for you.” Sprout leans in. “Let's flip each one, with the word from Word Power.”
Sprout says: Flip each thought. Watch what the truth does to it.
Tap a thought to flip it
Say it: “Belonging is for me, too.”
Part 4
The Brave Hello
Ivy spots a kid named Theo building with blocks all by himself. Her heart pounds. Saying hello feels scary, like the biggest jump in the world. But Sprout knows a secret: brave hellos have words you can practice. “Pick one,” says Sprout. “Then let's say it.”
Sprout says: Every friendship starts with a hello. Tap a brave hello and hear how it sounds. Then, if you want, say it out loud.
Tap a brave hello
Say it: “Hi, I'm ___. Can I play?”
Part 5
Read It Together
At the reading corner, Ivy and Theo pick a picture book. But the pages got mixed up! To read it together, they have to put the story back in order: beginning, middle, and end. Ivy grins. This she can do.
Sprout says: Every good story has an order: first, then, last. Tap the parts in order (beginning, middle, end) and read it with Ivy.
Tap the story in order: beginning, middle, end
Say it: “First, then, last: that's a story.”
Part 6
Who Else Is on the Edge
Now Ivy has a friend. But over by the fence, she spots someone else standing alone: a kid named Sam, holding a ball, watching the game the way Ivy did on day one. Ivy remembers exactly how that feels.
Sprout says: Belonging grows when you pass it on. Tap to notice who might feel left out, then think how Ivy could welcome them in.
Notice who might feel left out
Say it: “I can welcome someone in.”
Part 7
Make Room
Ivy and Theo are about to start a game. Sam is still by the fence, alone. There's room for one more, but the game is about to begin, and it would be easy to just start without him. What should Ivy do?
Sprout says: This is the biggest moment of all. Making room is how belonging spreads. Pick the move Ivy would be proud of.
Choose Ivy's move
Part 8
A Place at the Table
By Friday, everything is different. At lunch, Theo saves Ivy a seat. Sam shows up with his ball. Ivy isn't at the edge anymore. She's right in the middle, laughing. “I found my place,” Ivy thinks. “And I made room for someone else, too.”
Sprout says: Look what grew in one week: I grew a whole leafy branch! Tap the belonging receipts.
Tap the belonging receipts
Say it: “I found my place, and made room.”
Part 9
Make Room Again
The next Monday, a brand-new kid stands at the edge of the lunchroom, holding a tray, watching, right where Ivy stood two weeks ago. Ivy knows that feeling by heart. Her whole week was practice for this very moment.
Sprout says: This is the best part of belonging: passing it on. Pick what Ivy says.
Pick what Ivy says
Say it: “Pass it on. Make room.”
Story complete
🎉 You helped Ivy find her place, all nine brave moves! You earned your Belonging badge, and look how big Sprout grew!
And here's the secret: a brave hello works anywhere something feels new: a new class, a new team, a birthday party where you don't know anyone. You can always find your place, and make room for someone else.
Want to say one more brave hello, like Ivy? “Hi, I'm ___. Can I play?”
You can record and hear yourself, or just say it out loud, your choice.
Tell a grown-up: ask me what WELCOME means.
For Grown-Ups
What this builds (transformative SEL): Belonging (“I belong”) with a thread of Collaborative problem-solving (“We solve it together”).
What this story practices.Room for Me, Room for You builds relationship skills: the small, learnable moves for joining a group and, just as important, welcoming someone who's been left out. It also builds two literacy skills: reading aloud real introduce-yourself scripts, and putting a short story in order (beginning, middle, end).
Try it at home or in class. Ask your child what BELONG, WELCOME, and INCLUDE mean. Practice one brave hello together before a new situation: a new class, a playground, a party. When you spot a child on the edge, notice it out loud: “Looks like they're new, how could we make room?”
A note on the left-out feeling. In the story, feeling left out is never treated as something the child did wrong, and no one is blamed for not including first. If your child has been feeling on the outside, the story models the moves, but a real, ongoing hurt is a good moment to talk, and to loop in a teacher.
This is a practice tool for rehearsing skills, not therapy, counseling, or a clinical service.
From The McCray Learning Lab, Elliott McCray, Ed.S.
Privacy Note
No accounts, no data collected. The story runs in the browser; nothing about the child is stored or sent anywhere. There are no third-party trackers or ads.
The voice-recording moment is device-only. If the child chooses to record a brave hello, the audio lives only in that moment on the device: it is never saved, never uploaded, and is gone when the page closes. Recording and playback are always optional; Continue is never gated on recording; playback never auto-plays. The narration uses a recorded storyteller voice and only reads this page, never the child.
This is a practice tool for rehearsing skills, not therapy, counseling, or a clinical service.