In the story, Stephanie's classmates constantly call her ugly. She is relatively unresponsive to their bullying, but you can use this to start a class discussion on the proper treatment of peers. The story provides an example of how students should not behave toward their classmates. Read the story and ask students to imagine how they might feel if another member of their class called them ugly. Discuss this and come up with a better way Stephanie's classmates should have interacted with her.
The illustrations in "Stephanie's Ponytail" are humorous watercolor representations of Stephanie's story. After reading the book, discuss various watercolor techniques with your students. Provide them with watercolors and art paper and ask them to paint a watercolor representing why they are special. Stephanie proves in the end how unique and special she is, so have the students paint their own special quality and then share their artwork with the class.
Even though Stephanie does not respond to the pressures of her classmates, the way in which they treat her is mean and unfair. Read "Stephanie's Ponytail" together as a class; ask students to pretend they are the main character. Ask them to write a letter from her perspective explaining how her classmates' treatment makes her feel. Encourage students to read their letters aloud to a peer.
All children experience some type of peer pressure similar to Stephanie at some point in their lives. Ask students to write an essay on a time they felt pressured by their peers. Encourage them to include details on the situation, their feelings and how they handled the events. Because these essays may involve embarrassing or personal experiences, reassure students their essays will only be read by you, and not shared with the entire class.