Another picture book about selective mutism is Rika chan ga waratta (Rika laughed).
To put it more precisely, a photograph book. Kazuo Kashima, the author of the book and a former elementary school teacher, took a lot of photos of his class. This book includes many photos of Rika, a first-grade girl with selective mutism. This is a non-fiction book about Rika in his charge.
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In the story, Rika overcomes selective mutism.
But no professional intervenes in her. Her parents also don't help her.
She is helped by her classmates. Her classmates discuss how to reduce her anxiety and give her a helping hand.
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School is a place for learning. School children learn many subjects such as arithmetic, science, etc. But they also learn a lot through their daily activities, including how to care for a child with selective mutism. I thought that probably because this book is written by a former teacher, not a doctor or a counselor.
But I think it it better to see doctors or counselors rather than to make children think how to help a classmate with selective mutism. Even if teachers make children think, it needs to be based on teachers' understanding of selective mutism. Kashima was an experienced teacher at that time. I think he must understood selective mutism well.
Index of SM in Japan
