Grumpy Monkey

Name: Grumpy Monkey
Author: Suzanne Lang

A story that explores patience and opens a conversation with your child.

★★★★★ Loved by families

Read the Guiding Questions Find this book →

♥ This book teaches: Patience. staying calm while something unfolds.

Before, During & After Reading

Guiding Questions for Parents.

Definition: Patience means having self-control, waiting and enduring when one would rather not. In short: Stay calm while you wait. Summary: Jim the monkey insists he’s not grumpy but his loyal friends know he is. He’s all “bunched up”, his eyebrows look funny, and he doesn’t feel like doing anything, even when his jungle buddies try to help him. Finally, he encounters a gorilla friend in need, Norman, who is in pain because he sat on a porcupine. As they console one another, they patiently wait for the grumpiness to go away - and it does! Lesson Objectives:

Students learn some new friendship skills. In particular they learn that when a person is having a hard day, most likely someone else is too. If that’s the case, the two people can just quietly talk about it, and sometimes that’s all it takes to feel better.

Guiding Questions:

What does the word grumpy mean to you?
Did Grumpy Monkey Jim know why he was grumpy?
Why did Grumpy Monkey say he wasn’t grumpy when his friends said he was?
Have you ever tried to look happy, but inside you didn’t really feel happy? What happened?
Friends tried to help the monkey cheer up. What were some of their suggestions?
Why do you think Grumpy Monkey didn’t try any of their suggestions?
Norman the gorilla had some bad luck. What happened to him?
When Norman and Grumpy Monkey talked about their problems, did that help them feel better?
When you talk about your problems with someone, does that help you feel better? Why or why not?
When you feel grumpy what’s the best way to cheer you up?

🌿 Virtue Connection: Patience means waiting without losing yourself.

About the Story.

This guide is part of the Values & Virtues library, a free collection of 400+ book guides and activities organized around 12 core virtues for children from pre-K to 6th grade. Each guide includes Guiding Questions designed to open a real conversation with your child in 10 minutes or less.