Published: 2021
Author: Julia Zheng | Illustrator: Graziella Miligi
Genre: Picture Book / Holiday / Winter Fiction
Audience: Pre-K–Grade 2
Number of Stars: ★★★★★ (5/5)
Goodreads Link: The Giving Snowman
Publisher’s Summary
On a snowy night, Snowman lends a helping hand to Bird, Rabbit, Farmer, and Traveler when they are in need. The next day when the sun comes out and melts Snowman, Bird, Rabbit, Farmer, and Traveler work together as a team to rebuild Snowman.
The Giving Snowman is a book about kindness and gratitude. Children can learn through the story that giving to others is a virtue that connects all of us and makes our lives more beautiful.
Review
The Giving Snowman is a very heartwarming story. The story follows a snowman who becomes very caring and generous to others around him, he finds the greatest sense of joy from being able to help others. As he sees others around him in need, he shares whatever he can to help them. He gives the bird and her babies a hat as a home. His carrot nose to a rabbit’s family for food. The farmer’s family his stick arms for heat. And a traveler his scarf to warmth. In return, the others see how generous the snowman is and after he melted, they rebuild him and share what they can with him back. The traveler makes his snowballs again, the farmer gives him a carrot, the rabbit finds sticks, and the bird gets pebbles for his eyes. Together they rebuilt him, also giving back the hat and scarf. They continue to share their gratitude back and forth.
Through the simple and very meaningful storytelling of this book, children can learn valuable lessons about kindness, generosity, friendship, giving, compassion, empathy, and selflessness. This book would make an excellent read aloud for teachers, parents, and caregivers. It would help to open discussions about character traits and ways we can be generous to others. It encourages readers to think about the importance of helping others. It lends to how a little bit of kindness can go a long way.
The illustrations of the book help to simply capture the magic of winter. The pictures create a colorful yet warm and inviting atmosphere. They relate to the meaning behind the story, helping to connect the visual representation to the written message.
🎨 Visualizing Character Traits: The Cycle of Kindness
The story utilizes a circular narrative to show how one act of kindness often returns to the giver. This is a foundational concept in Social-Emotional Learning (SEL).
- Empathy in Action: The Snowman doesn’t just feel sorry for the animals and travelers; he takes physical action to solve their problems.
- Selflessness: The Snowman gives pieces of himself (his scarf, his carrot nose, etc.) without worrying about his own “perfection.”
- Gratitude and Teamwork: The animals don’t just say “thank you”—they wait for the opportunity to give back, demonstrating that friendship is a two-way street.
🎒 Classroom & Curricular Connections
- Social-Emotional Learning (Character Traits):
- Activity Idea: “The Giving Snowman’s Basket.” Draw a large snowman on a poster. Have students write down things they can “give” to their classmates that aren’t objects (e.g., a smile, a helping hand, a kind word) on paper snowflakes and tape them to the snowman.
- ELA (Predicting and Retelling):
- Activity Idea: Before the final pages, ask the students: “The Snowman gave away his carrot and his scarf. How do you think the animals will feel when the sun comes out?” This helps build empathy and predictive skills.
- Art & Creativity (Build-a-Snowman):
- Activity Idea: Provide various craft materials (buttons, fabric scraps, twigs). Have students “rebuild” their own snowman, but have them work in pairs or small groups to mirror the teamwork shown by the characters in the book.
- Science (States of Matter):
- Activity Idea: Briefly discuss why the snowman melted (the heat from the sun). This is a gentle way to introduce the concepts of solids and liquids to very young learners.
