growing up
— A girl navigates the birth of her baby brother, student council elections, and self-discovery while trying to become popular by imitating her perfect classmate.
— A New York City boy gets permission to go outside alone for the first time, gets lost, and must find his way home using the subway.
— Swifty navigates hip-hop classes, failed auditions, a new baby brother, and friendship drama while discovering drums and cutting her hair for charity.
— A child reflects on feeling overwhelmed by emotions and memories in a small space, concluding that the heart needs more room than the brain.
— A leaf contemplates the community rule that all leaves must eventually fall, resisting until witnessing a tree being cut down transforms fear into understanding.
— A spoiled rich man loses everything when his parents die, struggles to find work, and eventually creates a program to help homeless people become rideshare drivers.
— A girl's obsessive attachment to a blue cookie jar leads to its loss at the beach during quarantine, forcing her to confront her dependence on the object.
— While her mother is sick, a daughter seizes the chance to cook in the usually forbidden kitchen, making pizza with nervous care as a surprise.
— Two next-door-neighbor boys share mint chocolate chip ice cream and play video games on a windy spring afternoon, their friendship revealed through accumulated details.
— At a national dance competition, a girl remembers her grandmother's sacrificed dream and her team's journey from regional defeat to championship victory.