Prologue – Obtain and view an episode of “Mister Rogers’s’ Neighborhood.” How does the program embody the values and principles referred to in the Prologue as the core of Fred Rogers’s identity and work?

The answer to this depends on the individual program, but qualities to look for include: acknowledging the feelings and perceptions of children as being valid; celebrating individual identities; integrating music and puppetry; Fred’s use of his own feelings and experiences as source material; consideration and valuing of community and neighborhood; references to being kind; and helping children to understand the world, and their own individual potential.  

Part 1, Chapters 1 and 2 – How does the title of Chapter 2, “Breathing Room,” literally and metaphorically reflect Fred’s experiences with his family and with his schoolmates as outlined in this chapter?

Literally: Fred’s air-conditioned room was a room where he could breathe, his “breathing” room...