Try On My Hat 2026

by

To Lia and Ross With gratitude to Stephen Cohn, Paige Desjardins, Homa Tavangar, Louise Derman-Sparks, Patricia G. Ramsey, Liz Fernandez, and the educators, parents, and activists that support the anti-bias education movement.

Story and illustrations © 2021 by Bill Weber. Photography by Adobe Stock. All rights reserved.

Avery’s World characters © & TM by Bill Weber Studios.

This publication may not be reproduced, distributed, or otherwise transmitted without the express permission of the author.

Bill Weber Studios, New York and Los Angeles www.billweberstudios.com

by

nce upon a time, Avery the dove and Rosalia the bird-ofparadise were dancing high in the sky.

“Whoo-hoo!” whooped Avery.

“Whee-hee!” whistled Rosalia.

“I love dancing in the clouds with you.”

Avery’s blue coat-tails f lapped and snapped. Rosalia’s pink feathers swirled and twirled.

The two happy birds laughed and danced and played until. . .

THE SUN CAME OUT FROM BEHIND THE CLOUDS! “Oh, no! I can’t see!” cried Avery.

“The sun is too bright!” squealed Rosalia.

They shut their eyes and put their wings over their faces.

And then . . .

THEY TUMBLED DOWN TO THE GROUND! Thump! Avery and Rosalia landed in the garden, stuck together like a lump of mashed potatoes.

“Mewsh!” meowed Lakpa the cat.

“Usch!” moaned Ragnar the seagull. “You just missed the pear tree!”

“We didn’t mean to fall,” said Avery. “The sun got in our eyes while we were dancing.”

Yeesh!

“You need a hat like mine” said Ragnar, “to protect your eyes from the sun. It’s called a JACHTHOED (YOK-hote).”

“Why is it orange?” asked Avery.

“Because orange is bright and easy to see,” explained Ragnar. “My Grandpa FarFar gave me my hat when I was growing up in Scandinavia.

When we played hide-and-seek, my grandpa could always nd me and know that I was safe.”

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Scandinavia Usch!

You found me!

Avery asked Lakpa, “What kind of hat do you have?

It looks like an umbrella.”

Lakpa laughed. “Mewsh!

My hat is a DOULI (doo-LEE) made from strong bamboo.

“It’s from Southeast Asia, just like me. I wear my DOULI when the sun is hot and when the rain is wet.”

Rain or shine, I’m doing fine!

Southeast Asia 13

Just then, Ricotta and Jubnah oated down from the pear tree.

“Try on my hat!” said Ricotta. “It’s a big, oppy CAPPELLO ESTIVO

(ca-PELL-o es-TEE-vo).

“When I go to the beach with my family in Italy, my CAPPELLO ESTIVO helps me stay out of sight when the sun is too bright!”

Shhh!

Don’t tell the sun I’m here!

Italy

Jubnah shouted, “Try on MY hat!

It’s a KEFFIYEH (keh-FEE-yeh)!

“My family lives in the Middle East where there is sand everywhere. We put on KEFFIYEHS to keep the sand out of our faces when the wind blows.”

“Why is the back of your hat so long?” asked Avery.

“To stop the sand from going down my neck and tickling me!” laughed Jubnah.

No more tickles!

HA-ha-ha ha-ha-ha-HA!

Middle East

Avery was happy and excited.

“I want to try on all your hats!”

The bamboo DOULI was thick and strong.

The orange JACHTHOED was bright and bold.

The white KEFFIYAH was soft and light.

The oppy CAPPELLO ESTIVO was big and wide.

Avery thought, “Every hat is a good t. But which one should I wear?

“I know! The JACHTHOED, so everyone can see me when I’m dancing!”

“Now it’s my turn!” said Rosalia.

P O PL The orange JACHTHOED pushed down her feathers, then popped off her head.

The bamboo DOULI slid down her feathers and plopped on the oor.

Te e Hee The oppy CAPPELLO ESTIVO sat on top of her feathers and looked silly.

r r r

G

The white KEFFIYAH got tangled in her feathers and made a mess.

Rosalia was sad. “I want a hat that ts my feathers!”

“Try on my hat!” called a voice from the pear tree. It was Grandma Bibi, a wise and gentle snake.

“I have a special kind of hat for you,” said Bibi. “It won’t hurt your feathers and it will protect you from the sun. It is called a GELE (GEH-lay).”

“GELES are ribbons of cloth that wrap around your head.

When I lived in Africa, my friends and I wore colorful GELES from sun to moon every day.”

“Will a GELE t me?” whispered Rosalia.

“GELES t everyone! They t elephants with big ears. They t giraffes with long necks. And they will t Rosalia birds with tall head-feathers.”

I’m a giraffe and I like to laugh and I like to laugh

Africa

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“Come, child,” said Bibi. “We will help you put it on.”

Bibi took off the GELE she was wearing. Then Jubnah and Ricotta wrapped the long blue cloth up and around the feathers on top of Rosalia’s head.

The new GELE t perfectly.

“Thank you,” cooed Rosalia. “It’s beautiful!”

Let’s dance!

Bibi’s smile grew as big as the sun. “Look at all our wonderful hats!”

Then she started to sing: Try on my hat I’ll try on yours We’ll dance in the clouds We’ll dance on the oor My hat is yellow Your hat is blue Our hats are all colors Just like me and you The friends tried on each other’s hats as they sang along. Then they laughed, danced, and played until the cool moon rose up in the sky.

Tie a Simple “Bow to How Tie” Gele

FRONT

1) Start with a very long strip of cloth. It should be wide enough to cover your forehead and the top of your head.

2) Place the center of the strip against your forehead and bring the ends back behind your head.

BACK

3) Twist the ends around each other twice against the back of your neck. Pull the ends tight before bringing them to the top front of your head.

4) Tie two simple overhand knots – one on top of the other – on top of your head. You can tie more knots if you have too much fabric.

5) Spread out the two ends of the cloth to make two bows. If you do not want big bows, you can tuck the ends of the cloth underneath your knots.

Pull tight

Pull

tigh

t

GUIDE TO HATS, NAMES, AND OTHER NEW WORDS AVERY (AY-vurr-ee) - Europe: England. Name meaning Elf King.

BASEBALL CAP (BAYS-bawl KAPP)- North America: United States. Hat with a stiff, arched peak that shades the eyes of baseball players.

BERET (buh-RAY) - Europe: France, Spain. Soft, exible hat used by many militaries around the world.

BIBI (BEE-bee) - Africa: Kenya. Swahili word for “grandmother.”

BOWLER (BOH-ler) - Europe: England. Bowl-shaped hat designed to stay on your head while horseback riding. It became popular with American cowboys as the Derby.

CAPPELLO ESTIVO (ca-PELL-o es-TEE-vo) - Europe: Italy.

Literally “summer hat.” Made of soft, stiff fabric or woven grass.

COWBOY HAT (KOW-boy HAT) - North America. Hatmaker John Stetson boiled wool to make a stiffbrimmed hat that kept its shape.

DOULI (doo-LEE) - Southeast Asia: China, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia. Farmer’s hat usually made of woven bamboo. It comes in a variety of shapes and styles. Lakpa wears the Vietnamese-style nón lá (leaf hat).

FEZ (FEHZ) - Middle East: Turkey, Egypt.

North Africa: Morocco. Brimless hat named after the old Islamic capital of Morocco. The wearer can lower their head to the oor in prayer without having a brim get in the way.

In Arabic, called a Tarboush.

GELE (GEH-lay) - Africa: Nigeria. Headwrap often made of stiff fabric and hand-painted. Gele is the Nigerian term; different countries have different words for this versatile head covering.

HAKU LEI (HAH-koo LAY) - Pacic Islands: Hawaii.

A crown of fresh owers.

JACHTHOED (YOK-hote) - Europe: Scandinavia, Sweden.

Literally “hunting hat.” Bright orange so that hunters can see each other and stay safe.

JUBNAH (JUBB-nah) - Middle East. Arabic word for “cheese.”

KARAKUL (KA-ra-kool) - Central Asia: Uzbekistan. Made from the wool of sheep raised in the city of Karakul.

KEFFIYEH (keh-FEE-yeh) - Middle East. Arabic headwrap secured with a cord. One of different names and styles worn throughout the region.

LAKPA (LAHK-pa) - Asia. Nepali/Tibetan name that means “Wednesday.” Nepali children are often named after the day of the week they were born.

MEWSH (MEWSH) - International. Silly kitten exclamation that can be either positive or negative.

PAGRI (puh-GREE) - Asia: India. Headwrap also called a Turban. One of many names and styles worn throughout the Indian subcontinent.

RAGNAR (RAG-narr) - Scandinavia. Name of a legendary Viking hero.

RICOTTA (rih-KAH-tuh) - Europe: Italy. Cheese made from whey.

ROSALIA (row-zuh-LEE-uh) - Europe: Spain. Latin for the ower “rose.”

SOMBRERO (som-BRAIR-row) - Europe: Spain.

North, Central and South America: Mexico. Literally “shadower.” Widebrimmed hat to protect the head, neck and shoulders.

USCH (OOSH) - Scandinavia: Sweden.

Exclamation used to express surprise and disgust (like “yuck.”)

YEESH (YEESH) - North America: United States. Exclamation used to express disbelief or exasperation.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Bill Weber is an award-winning artist and writer who works with non-prots to improve the lives of families around the world.

Bill was privileged to be mentored by Marvin Hamlisch, Shari Lewis, and John Burstein (aka Slim Goodbody) and has designed for Broadway, lm, and television.

He has held leadership roles in national children's media organizations, and has written many published articles, including “Anti-Bias: The Next Step Forward in Children’s Programming.”

He grew up in a multi-national family in a multi-ethnic neighborhood where people enthusiastically shared each other’s cultures and traditions. This is his fourth children’s book.

Learn more at www.billweberstudios.com.

Our hats are made in different lands, for different reasons, by different hands!

Join Avery, the dove of peace, and his friends as they celebrate cultural diversity while modeling empathy and pro-social behavior.

Avery’s WorldTM is an anti-bias community where all cultures are equal, all voices matter, and everyone has a contribution to make.

Avery and his friends are committed to creating a world where everyone is celebrated for their contributions, not judged by their racial, religious, or cultural backgrounds.