For Grown-Ups: How to Hold This Story

 

Two Different Tools, One Shared Philosophy

 

The Little Dream That Wouldn’t Give Up and the Dream Forward Journal are designed to work alongside each other — but they are not the same thing.

 

The book is a story. It teaches through narrative, emotion, and imagination.

 

The journal is a space. It allows children to respond, reflect, draw, imagine, and explore at their own pace.

 

Together, they support children to understand that dreams are something they can move toward through small steps, effort, and belief — and that those dreams are allowed to change as they grow.

 

The Lesson Within the Story (The Book)

 

The Little Dream That Wouldn’t Give Up carries a clear and intentional message.

 

Through gentle storytelling, children are shown that:

• Dreams are worth listening to

• Courage is built through small steps

• effort matters, even when progress is quiet

• Giving up is not the same as changing direction

• dreams can grow and change as we do

 

This lesson is offered through story, not instruction.

 

There is no need to pause the reading to explain the meaning or highlight morals. Children absorb stories in their own way, often returning to them again and again as their understanding deepens.

 

Making Space After the Story (The Journal)

 

The Dream Forward Journal is not a follow-up task, and it is not required reading after the book.

 

It exists as a separate, child-led space where ideas from the story — or from life — can land when the child is ready.

 

Some children may want to draw their dream straight away. Others may return days or weeks later. Some may use the journal without ever revisiting the book.

 

All of these are valid.

 

The journal supports children to:

• imagine freely

• take small, manageable steps

• reflect without pressure

• change their mind

• return to ideas over time

 

How to Hold Space as a Grown-Up

 

Your role is not to connect the dots for a child.

 

You don’t need to ask questions, guide responses, or relate journal pages back to the story. Simply offering time, safety, and presence is enough.

 

Holding space might look like:

• reading the story together and letting the conversation drift

• sitting nearby while a child draws or writes

• allowing silence, repetition, or unfinished pages

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Trust that children will take what they need, when they need it.

 

Letting Go of Outcomes

 

While the story offers a meaningful lesson, neither the book nor the journal are designed to produce a measurable outcome.

 

Children do not need to name a dream, stick to it, or show progress. Dreams may be imagined, symbolic, changing, or unspoken.

 

When children are allowed to take small steps — and to change direction without shame — they learn resilience, flexibility, and self-trust.

 

Letting go of outcomes protects the lesson from becoming pressure.

 

When Big Feelings Appear

 

Sometimes a moment in the story or a journal page may stir big feelings.

 

A child might close the book, skip a page, change the subject, or walk away. This is not a failure to engage — it is communication.

 

In these moments, calm presence matters more than explanation. You might acknowledge what you notice, or you might simply stay close.

 

Neither the book nor the journal replaces professional support, but they can be gentle companions alongside it.

 

Using the Book and Journal in Different Settings

 

At home, the story may be part of bedtime reading, and the journal may be explored independently.

 

In classrooms and community spaces, the book can be read aloud, with the journal offered as an optional, quiet activity — never a requirement and never assessed.

 

Both resources are designed to grow with the child and remain relevant across ages and stages.

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For Schools & Organisations

 

Together, The Little Dream That Wouldn’t Give Up and the Dream Forward Journal support wellbeing, self-belief, and reflective thinking through story-led exploration.

 

The pairing of narrative learning (book) and open-ended reflection (journal) aligns with strengths-based, trauma-aware, and culturally safe approaches by prioritising agency, voice, and flexibility.

 

They are suitable for classrooms, wellbeing programs, and community settings, and adaptable across a wide age range.

 

An Invitation

 

If you are interested in using The Little Dream That Wouldn’t Give Up and the Dream Forward Journal in schools, community programs, or facilitated sessions, workshops, or talks, we offer these options.

 

These sessions focus on storytelling, small-step thinking, and creating environments where children feel capable, supported, and free to grow.

You’re welcome to reach out to explore what this could look like in your setting.