1. Vincent Kreyling EDL 666 School Leadership Fall 2008
Principal as Instructional Leader Exploring Children’s Literature for Leadership Calling All Engines 2005
Vincent Kreyling
EDL 666
School Leadership
Fall 2008

2. Summary
The story is set on the fictional Island of Sodor located in the Irish Sea off the coast of England. The main transportation system is a series of railways operated by two groups of train engines known as the “steamies” and the “diesels”.
The story opens with the Sir Topham Hatt, the railway operator, visiting the “sheds” where the steamies are kept and asking them for their help in building the new airport for the island.

3. Summary
Excited to help two of the steamies, Thomas and Percy, take materials to the construction site and are met by Arry and Bert, two of the diesels. The steamies don’t want to work with the diesels because they are oily, dirty and different. The diesels bump and biff the steamies making the work difficult and not fun.
A hurricane hits the island that night causing a lot of damage to the seaside, windmill, suspension bridge and to the airport construction site.

4. Summary
The next morning Sir Topham Hatt comes back to the sheds and tells the engines they will have to work even harder because of the damage from the hurricane. As they start their work the steamies and the diesels become angry with each other and set off a chain reaction of bumping and biffing each other. As a result no work is done.
That evening Sir Topham Hatt returns to the sheds and scolds the engines for causing “confusion and delay”. He tells them that because they did not get their work done that the airport will not be built.

5. Summary
That evening, after having a dream, Thomas learns that steamies and diesels can work together even though they are different. He goes to meet a kind diesel named Mavis to ask for help organizing a big meeting for all of the engines on the island.
At the meeting Thomas tells all the engines that they need to work together. If they do not the airport will not be able to open and the engines will not have the passengers or freight to do their individual jobs.

6. Summary
The engines all decide that they should work together to clean up after the storm and complete the construction of the airport. They were careful not to bump or block each other as they did their jobs and began to enjoy working together. As a result the airport was finally built and could transport visitors to and from the Island of Sodor.

7. Leadership and Followership in the Book
Leadership is displayed by both Sir Topham Hatt and Thomas the steam engine.
Sir Topham Hatt displays leadership when he directs the activities of the steam engines toward building the airport and helping to clean up the island.
Thomas displays leadership when he calls the engines to a meeting on the island to put aside their differences.
Followership is displayed by all of the engines on the island through the way they interact with one another and continue to do so even after they have been asked for help building the airport.

8. Negative Leadership for Children
This book has examples of both positive and negative leadership for children.
Sir Topham Hatt displays negative leadership when he comes back to the sheds on the second day and scolds the steamies for not accomplishing any work.
He berates the steamies for causing confusion and delay.
Green (2009) suggests that in order to lead effectively one should first understand the existing conditions of the work environment. Once this is accomplished a vision, such as the successful completion of the airport, can be identified and shared with all of the stakeholders.

9. Positive Leadership for Children
Thomas displays positive leadership when he calls the meeting for all of the engines on the Island of Sodor.
Thomas realizes trough a dream that all of the engines can work together, even though they are different.
At the meeting Thomas helps the engines to learn that by working together, even though they are different they can help to build the airport.
Senge (2006) says that people do not carry organizations and working cultures in their minds, but instead carry images, assumptions and stories (p. 164).

10. How This Book Advances Gender, Racial or Ethnic Perspectives
One of the main factors that prevented the steamies and diesels from working together was their assumptions about one another.
Senge (2006) says that people do not carry organizations and working cultures in their minds, but instead carry images, assumptions and stories (p. 164).
Once Thomas showed all of the engines that it was to their advantage to work together they were able to remove their assumptions about each other and work together.

11. Management/Leadership Styles in the Book
Sir Topham Hatt uses a classical style of management known as Administrative Management.
Lunenberg and Ornstein (2008) describe an administrative management concept developed by Henri Fayol as including five basic functions: planning, organizing, commanding, coordinating and controlling (p. 5).
Sir Topham Hatt displays all of these characteristics in his dealings with the steamies.

12. Management/Leadership Styles Continued
Thomas falls more into a post-behavioral style of leadership developed by Peter Senge known as Systems Theory.
Through his actions he attempts to create a learning organization among the engines on the Island of Sodor.
Senge (2006) describes a “learning organization” as one where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning how to learn together (p. 3).

13. References
Allcroft, B., (2005). Thomas and friends: Calling all engines. Random House. (NY).
Green, L.G., (2009). Practicing the art of leadership: A problem-based approach to implementing the ISLLC standards (3rd ed.). Pearson. (NY).
Lunenberg, F.C., & Ornstein, A.C., (2008). Educational administration: Concepts & practices Thomson Wadsworth. (CA).
Senge, P.M., (2006). The fifth discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization. Currency Doubleday. (NY).