Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns About Sportsmanship: Winning Isn’t Everything

Howard B. Wigglebottom

by Reverend Ana, Susan F. Cornelison

This book introduces 4-8 year olds to concepts like respect, camaraderie, teamwork and the pleasure of playing sports and games for the fun of it. The tenth book in the award winning Howard B. Wigglebottom series. Tips and lessons are included Reviews/support resources are available at the We Do Listen Foundation website at wedolisten (dot) org.Book HardcoverPublication 1/1/2012 32Reading Age 4 and Up

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, School, Juvenile

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2011

Reviews

[Andie Dole]

This was a delightful story about not being a jerkface friend and teammate. I really appreciated the coach not letting Howard play when he was being unsportsmanlike.

[Mymcbooks]

My Review: This book is about Howard B. Wigglebottom who didn’t like to lose and just had to be the best at everything. He was the best at the seed spitting contest, sledgehammer and pie eating contests, the skateboard, pogo stick and many more contests. As far as he is concerns he will do anything to come in first place even if it means cheating. As long as he came in first he was happy. When he came in second he threw a temper tantrum.

During a soccer game, Howard would hog the ball and wouldn’t be a team player. He went as far as tripping a player on the other team just as he was about to score a goal. He was rude to the coach and other team players so the coach took him out of the game. When Howard saw a parent yelling at the referee and asked to leave he understood how bad he had been behaving and he was embarrassed and ashamed.

Howard learnt he didn’t want to be a bad boy or grow up to be like the upset dad. He pleased with the coach to put him back into the game.

He learnt how to be a team player by sharing and accepting that second place is still as good as first place. He learnt to be polite by shaking the hand of the captain of the winning team.

A great book that teaches children about good behavior, teamwork, respect for others, learn how to forgive mistakes and not to cheat. Sportsmanship is learning to be fair and follow the rules while having fun.

Great illustration which helps tells the story. The last few pages have suggested lessons and reflections on to be the best, team sports and sportsmanship.


Disclaimer: As per FTC guidelines, I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review. I received no monetary compensation. All opinions expressed here are mine and mine alone.

[Deanna Mays]

I read this to my P.E. Class! Great for teaching Sportsmanship and being a part of a team.

[Tessa Bonner]

Q

[Tori]

In Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns About Sportsmanship, Howard has a hard time losing in any game he plays. He goes so far as to cheat and hurt his friends in the process of winning. Howard will do whatever it takes to win a game so he will continue being the best. During a soccer game Howard monopolizes the ball and trips other players. When the coach calls him out on it Howard becomes very rude and upset with the coach, causing him to be thrown out of the game and sat on the bench. Howard is furious and begins to think how unfair this is, but suddenly a father stands up and starts yelling at the referee. Howard can't believe how this father is making himself look to others and hopes he doesn't look like that. The father gets escorted out, and Howard is left with the thoughts of his actions. Howard becomes ashamed of his behavior. He realizes that winning isn't everything and he has been unfair. He apologizes to his coach and asks for another chance to play during the soccer game. During the game Howard has the chance to score the winning goal, but sees another team mate wide open who could also make the shot. He has a tough decision...should he shoot and score the goal or give the other team mate an opportunity to win? He kicks the ball over and they lose, but Howard is so happy that he played fair he doesn't care. He realizes there's much more to life than winning, and covets his second place trophy over his first places ones all combined. He even shakes hands with the winning team, and praises all his team mates on their hard work.

Every child has an issue when it comes to winning or losing. Losing is a tough childhood lesson to learn, and something a lot of children deal with. All children love the feeling of winning and they start to think winning is everything. Often times this can lead to being a "sore loser" without them even realizing it, and before they realize it they are acting out if they lose or even cheating to win.
Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns About Sportsmanship teaches fair play and the value of good sportsmanship. I think this is a book that all children can learn from, and the colorful fun illustrations help keep children engaged page after page.
My 5 year old son was riveted. Often he does okay with playing games, but like all children he wants to win. He can sometimes be upset or get a little down when he doesn't win at something. This book really helped show him that it doesn't matter whether you win or lose, but whether you're having fun playing the game. There's more to winning such as friendship, teamwork, and having fun. He has carried this lesson on over to his own friends and it has created a more positive play experience for everyone. Now he is more focused on the fun of the game rather than winning or losing and is happy whatever the outcome.
At the end of the book there are helpful tips, and lessons that parents and teachers can put into play.

The We Do Listen Foundation is a group of writers, artists, designers, educators, therapists, parents, caregivers and teachers who share a vision of a kinder world with more harmony and peace. They are devoted to help children listen, learn, and communicate in an effective way while feeling good about themselves.
There are ten picture books in their award winning, educator endorsed series that tackle important life lessons for 3-8 year olds. They cover listening, bullying, sportsmanship, anger management, feeling good about themselves, moderation, truth, divorce, peer pressure, belonging, generosity, attention, etc. You can check out the animated versions of the books on their website .


Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of this book by the author/organization in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

[Briana Schanke]

Modern Fantasy

1st-3rd grade

I enjoyed reading this book. Being an athlete takes a lot of responsibilities and goals to maintain. Teaching young children to be a good teammate is important. I think this book has good examples of what children should do and what they shouldn't. I also liked how the author included tips at the end of the book for children to read through and understand how to put those into action.

[K.L. Bernard]

Howard B. Wigglebottom loved to win. He had to be the best at everything. At the fair he won the seed spitting contest, the pie eating contest and the sledge hammer contest. He was best at lots of things. There was a time when Howard came in second. He wasn't very happy. As a matter of fact he got so mad he kicked his second place trophy and hurt his toe. When it was time to play soccer with his team his anger was the worst. He yelled at the coach and other team players. Howard wanted to win so bad he hogged the ball and tripped some players. The coach made him sit out of the game. It wasn't until Howard saw a parent yelling and throwing a tantrum that he realized how bad he must have looked. He was embarrassed and ashamed. Howard asked the coach if he could play. He promised he wouldn't let the team down, and he didn't.

This is a wonderful book for kids. The soft illustrations are vibrant and fun. Howard teaches kids how to have fun, respect others and play fair. Teaching a small child sportsmanship is a tough thing to do. Winning can be a lot of fun but losing will teach a lesson too. Teaching kids to do their best no matter what is it's own reward.

At the back of the book parents and teachers will find helpful tips and lesson plans to educate young readers. The We Do Listen Foundation is a non-profit organization that creates entertaining, education books and songs to help young children be better listeners, learn important life lessons and feel better about themselves. The website offers free animated versions of the books, games and songs as well as teaching and parenting resources. To find out more, visit www.wedolisten.org.

[Ruth Hill]

"While I realize this is written for younger kids, I found that this was a pretty good story. I enjoyed the illustrations, and the angry dad yelling at the referee was quite an interesting part. The message of the story is that winning is not everything. I don't think that people should get all upset when they don't always win first place. And the story showed that really well. There really was not anything that I didn't like. This book would be perfect for ages 4-6. It teaches an important lesson in a fun way."

This review was written by my eight-year-old daughter. We were sent a copy of the book in exchange for our honest review. We were not financially compensated, and all opinions are 100 percent ours.

And it looks like a good book for kids! This is from the Mama!

[Melissa Portillo]

Howard B. Wigglebottem Learns About Sportsmanship - I adored this book! The pictures were so vivid and the story was written in a way my son completely understood.
What I loved best was at the end of the book there are tips to help you to talk to your child about the lessons of the book!

I was having my own problems with my 5 year old and his having to be the winner of games and sports etc. This was a wonderful way to show him that it's OK for him not to win all the time. I honestly applaud the author and his wonderful book series. I can't wait to read more and neither can my son we are #1 fans at my house.

[Julian]

Howard likes to win and is actually very good at many things. Unfortunately, when he doesn't win he starts acting like a complete jerk. He ends up being benched by his coach for this reason. Another jerk, this time an adult, will help Howard seeing how ridiculous he looks like when he acts up.

Howard learns his lesson, apologizes and the rejoins his team as a true participant. He makes a questionable tactical decision, which costs the team the game, but a bigger lesson has been learned.

Good book to help kids navigate the feeling of losing and teaching positive sportsmanship. Not for fans of cheesy sports gear ads for sure. Here winning isn't everything.

[Eden Silverfox]

I read this book before giving it to a friend for her daughter. It was a good book, that I think teaches some very important lessons, like winning isn't everything and it is important to work together and have fun.

[Becky Carleton]

This is an excellent choice for kids who are learning about sportsmanship. The questions at the back of the book will help kids and caregivers reflect and deepen their understanding of why it's important to be a good sport when playing games.

[Alice]

I love this series, it teaches values without it being in your face. It could just be a good story without being heavy handed on the value. Great series!

[Tanya]

Good for my competitive, sensitive, and perfectionist daughter. But a little pedantic for more than three stars.

[Marcie]

I do think this one can be used to talk about how seeing someone else misbehave might be a spark to create better behavior, but the books in this series are just too easily resolved.

[Ck]

Great story on Howard learns that he doesn't have to be first or to win everything he is in.