Mr. Grumpy

Mr. Grumpy by Roger Hargreaves was published in 1978 by Scholastic Incorporated. It is one an enourmous selection of fun titles that draw a child's attention to positive and negative charachter traits. The characters, typcially the title of the book or a book within the series, are delightful, entertaining, and provide a powerful yet suttle message.

Mr. Grumpy is a short story about a grumpy rectangle. He is grumpy and mean to everyone he encounters. One day he ran into Mr. Happy. After thier brief encounter, Mr. Happy left a little less happy. He then struck a deal with Mr. Tickle. Every time Mr. Grumpy was grumpy, Mr. Tickle tickled him. Mr. Grumpy did not like to be tickled or experience happiness. Soon he figured out that if he was grumpy he would experience a tickle. At the end of the story, Mr. Grumpy was still grumpy but a little less.

TWO CENTS WORTH:

I think the author has known me since I was a tiny rectangle. Mr. Grumpy could easily be me as a child, as a teen, and now as an adult. There are those times I wish Mr. Happy and Mr. Tickle worked out a systematic plan to change my grouchy behavior. ;)

This simple story provides a wonderful opportunity for character development discussions with students in all grades (elementary and secondary). The characters are easy to identify with as well as the simple plots are identifiable situations that can lead into powerful discussions. As I continue to develop the Ambassador's Club at our school, I plan to utilize some of these Scholastic books (i.e. Mr. Grumpy, Mr. Greedy, Mr. Happy, Mr. Nosey, Mr. Wrong, etc...) as we explore core character traits.

NO AR QUIZ