The Biggest Snowman Ever Book Review: A Winter SEL Story About Teamwork, Cooperation, and Inclusion

Paloma Ruiz Olmo
Dec 18, 2025
4 min read

Updated: Jan 4

Winter SEL book review for teamwork, cooperation & inclusion.

Winter offers countless opportunities for children to practice working together — whether they are building a snowman, solving a problem, or learning how to share ideas. These moments may seem simple, but they are powerful building blocks for social-emotional learning (SEL) and character education.

In new Winter Books for SEL & Character Education series, we focus on The Biggest Snowman Ever by Steven Kroll. This lively winter picture book uses humor, problem-solving, and collaboration to teach children essential skills like teamwork, cooperation, inclusion, and flexible thinking — all through a snowman-building adventure children instantly relate to.

What Is The Biggest Snowman Ever About?

The Biggest Snowman Ever by Steven Kroll is a winter children’s book about two mice who set out to build the biggest snowman in town. As competition turns into cooperation, the characters learn that working together leads to better results than working alone, highlighting teamwork, collaboration, and inclusion in a fun, winter-themed story.

This book is a favorite for teaching social-emotional skills in early childhood and elementary settings.

Why The Biggest Snowman Ever Is Perfect for Winter SEL and Character Education

Winter play often brings out strong emotions — excitement, frustration, competition, and pride. The Biggest Snowman Ever captures these feelings in a way children recognize immediately.

At first, the characters are focused on winning. They want their snowman to be the biggest and best. But as the story unfolds, children see how competition can create conflict and how cooperation can transform the outcome. This makes the book a powerful teaching tool for social-emotional learning, especially when children are learning how to work with peers.

Rather than lecturing about teamwork, the story shows children what happens when characters listen, compromise, and collaborate. These lessons are essential during winter months when children spend more time together indoors and need strong social skills to navigate group settings.

Social-Emotional Learning Skills Supported by The Biggest Snowman Ever

Teamwork and Collaboration

At the heart of this story is teamwork. Children see that when characters combine ideas, strengths, and effort, the outcome is better than what either could achieve alone. This reinforces the SEL concept that collaboration leads to success.

For young learners, this helps shift thinking from “mine” to “ours,” a key developmental step in social-emotional growth.

Cooperation Over Competition

The Biggest Snowman Ever gently explores the difference between healthy competition and cooperation. Children learn that trying to outdo others can sometimes lead to frustration, while working together builds connection and shared success.

This is especially relevant for classrooms, homeschool co-ops, and sibling dynamics, where cooperation is an everyday challenge.

Inclusion and Shared Belonging

The story also emphasizes inclusion. When characters decide to work together, everyone belongs. Children learn that ideas matter, contributions matter, and everyone has a role to play.

This supports inclusive thinking and helps children understand that group success depends on participation, respect, and empathy.

How The Biggest Snowman Ever Supports Learning at School

Teachers frequently use The Biggest Snowman Ever as part of winter SEL lessons focused on teamwork and classroom community. The story naturally leads to discussions about group work, sharing materials, and solving problems together.

In school settings, this book supports:

Cooperative learning skills
Conflict resolution discussions
Classroom community building
SEL lessons on teamwork and inclusion
Writing or drawing reflections about group work

Because the story is engaging and humorous, it keeps children interested while delivering meaningful SEL messages.

How The Biggest Snowman Ever Supports Families and Homeschool Learning

For parents and homeschool families, The Biggest Snowman Ever provides an easy way to talk about cooperation without turning it into a lecture. Children see themselves in the characters, making the lessons feel relatable and practical.

Families often use this book to:

Discuss sibling cooperation
Practice turn-taking and sharing
Explore problem-solving together
Reflect on how working together feels

It works well for mixed-age groups and can spark meaningful conversations about fairness, effort, and shared goals.

Winter SEL Activity: Build the Snowman Together

This activity reinforces the story’s message by giving children a chance to practice teamwork in a hands-on way.

Invite children to work together to create one shared snowman drawing or craft. Instead of each child making their own, they collaborate on a single project. Each child contributes one part — the head, body, face, accessories, or background.

As children work, guide them to:

Listen to each other’s ideas
Take turns
Problem-solve when opinions differ

This activity helps children experience cooperation in real time, reinforcing the SEL skills highlighted in the book.

Responding to Teamwork: Reflecting on Working Together

After the activity, take time to reflect on how working together felt. Children often need support identifying the emotions that come with collaboration — pride, frustration, excitement, or relief.

Encourage children to talk about:

What was easy about working together
What was challenging
How they solved disagreements
How the final result felt

This reflection helps children connect emotional awareness with social behavior, strengthening long-term SEL skills.

Reflection Questions to Deepen SEL Learning

Use these open-ended questions to support discussion or journaling after reading The Biggest Snowman Ever:

Why did the characters want to build the biggest snowman?

What happened when they tried to work alone?

How did things change when they worked together?

How does it feel when everyone helps?

When have you worked with someone else to build something?

These questions encourage self-reflection, perspective-taking, and emotional language development.

Character Education Takeaway

The Biggest Snowman Ever teaches children that success doesn’t have to mean winning alone. It shows that cooperation, inclusion, and teamwork lead to stronger relationships and better outcomes.

These lessons support character traits such as respect, responsibility, empathy, and collaboration — skills children will use throughout their lives.

Final Thoughts: Why The Biggest Snowman Ever Belongs in Your Winter SEL Collection

If you’re building a winter SEL unit, snowman-themed learning series, or focusing on teamwork and cooperation, The Biggest Snowman Ever is an essential addition.

It provides a playful yet meaningful way to help children practice collaboration, problem-solving, and inclusion during the winter season.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, Inspire, Guide & Nurture may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only recommend books and resources we genuinely love and use to support social-emotional learning at home and in classrooms.