Henry and the Gym Monster: Children’s picture book about taking responsibility ages 4-8 (Improving Social Skills in the Gym Setting)

Loved it. I have been a PE teacher for 20 years now and with each passing year the kids seem to have less social skills. Kids need all around social skills, but I am so happy that this book is geared toward the physical education setting. We need more books like this!! I really liked how he redeemed himself at the end with classic examples of what us, PE teachers want to see more of: apologizing, helping kids up, or letting kids get in front of the water fountain line. (never seen that one) LOL. Overall well thought out message and colorful illustrations. I could see myself using it for all my

I read this book to my 4 year old and she loved it. It had my child giggling while also relating to the underlying moral of the story, take responsibility for your actions and be kind to others. I found it interesting as the setting took place in a gym, which I have never seen in a children’s book before. I also work in the school setting and know how much kids love to unwind and have fun in P.E. At times, it’s hard for kids to remember that rules still need to be followed while they are having fun. This book is a great way to teach kids social skills in a setting that is often forgotten about

Likes: Henry and the Gym Monster is a jovial tale about a boy named Henry and the decisions he makes. When his thinking gets him into trouble, he ultimately chooses to be responsible because his poor decisions just don't make him feel right. The storyline is SOOOO believable and the illustrations are colorful and engaging. A wonderful book on taking responsibility and the behaviors that go into making positive choices. Loved it!!!Dislikes: I wish there were more books about Henry. I am hoping this author writes more books like this in the future!

Henry and the Gym Monster does an excellent job showing how students often struggle with social and emotional learning throughout their day, including during classes such physical education. Understanding your emotions or how they effect other students can be challenging, and we witness Henry initially struggle to take responsibility for his actions during his Physical Education class. By the end of the book and his class, however, we are reminded by Henry's actions that it is important to take responsibility for how you act and treat other people. As a special education teacher, I can appreci

I highly recommend this book for teaching social skills,and taking responsibility for our own actions, to school age children. This book would be perfect for kindergarten and up. The illustrations are captivating and the story is relatable for children. It’s definitely a “must buy” to add to your collection!

My son and I read this and thought it was a really funny book. My son laughed at the great illustrations. The monster especially looked awesome. I don’t think we have ever had a book that takes place in gym class, so my son really liked that. There is also a great lesson in the story to take responsibility for your own actions. This is something I struggle with teaching my son, so it was nice to re-enforce that with this book. I really enjoyed seeing the monster whispering things to Henry and tricking him into doing the wrong thing. My son’s favorite part was watching the monster grow and shri

This is a great book for elementary aged students. The fact that it takes place in the gym is something very relatable to the students. There are many easy connections student can make to this book. The illustrations are engaging! This book has a great message that all students can learn from (competitiveness, following rules, friendship, etc.)! I would highly recommend this book to those who work with elementary aged students.

I liked that the author chose PE class as his book setting, an environment that is both fun and challenging to many kids. He showed that the difficulties children often have in dealing with competitive situations and just how easy it is to let behavioral problems get out of control. He did a great job of expressing that taking responsibility for one's actions and treating others with kindness and respect is the best way to reduce our inner monsters to a manageable size. And I Loved the funny surprise ending!