Little Bear

Little Bear

Written by Else Holmelund Minarik

Illustrated by Maurice Sendak

Published in 1957

Grade Level: 1st-2nd grade

Synopsis: Little Bear is just one of five books written by Else Holmelund Minarik about Little Bear.  Others include Father Bear Comes Home (1959), Little Bear's Friend (1960), Little Bear's Visit (1961), and A Kiss For Little Bear (1968) (Wikipedia article, June 25, 2011).  All the books in the Little Bear series are comforting and playful.  In one story, "Birthday Soup," Little Bear cannot find his mother and presumes she has forgotten his birthday.  With the prospect of guests arriving and no cake in sight, he sets out to make birthday soup because all of his friends like soup.  Just as the guests are sitting down for soup, Mother Bear shows up with a big, beautiful birthday cake.  "I never did forget your birthday, and I never will," she says to her son.  In "Little Bear Goes to the Moon," Little Bear declares that he will fly to the moon in his new space helmet. Mother Bear tells him to be back by lunch and he is.   

Theme/Skill: The Little Bear series is designed for beginning readers.  The relationship between Little Bear and his mother is loving and jovial and the spacious layout and large type will encourage children to keep on reading.  The teacher can use this book and others in the series to help students with their reading and decoding skills.  Students learn and progress at different rates, yet this book will hold their attention and entice them to continue reading.  It is the perfect book to transition children from picture books to chapter books.


Pre-reading activity: The entire Little Bear book would not be read to students in one day.  The book could be spread out in order to spend more time on details of individual chapters.  Before reading a chapter to the students, be sure that they have a purpose for reading.  Make them aware of what they should be noticing while you read.  Students could also be placed in reading groups with a copy of the book to read to each other or listen to on tape.  For example, before reading the chapter about Little Bear's Birthday, tell students to be sure to notice what each guest brings to Little Bear.  This will give the students a focus while reading.


Post-reading activity: After reading the assigned chapter for that day, have students (in their reading groups) list the characters that came to the party.  They should also list what each character brings.  Students can then take a large piece of white paper that has been folded into six sections.  They should number each box and write a sentence about what each character brought to Little Bear's party and illustrate that image.  Each reading group will be completing an activity and will share when they are finished. 


Assessment: Students will be informally assessed on how well they work in groups.  The reading groups should go smoothly because students work with the same peers for weeks at a time.  All students should be providing insight and answers to their group discussions/assignment.  I want students to learn how to work well with others; compromise, patience, problem solving.  Students will also be formally assessed on whether or not they followed the directions and did what was asked of their group. 

Reflection: Minarik and Sendak were able to work together to create literature that would not only engage the child, but promote imagination and make them laugh out loud.  Little Bear is just like children their age are; silly, inquisitive, and curious.  Children will learn from reading Little Bear because they want to.  It is a book that would intrigue them, but not overwhelm them.  The chapters are set up so that they can be read in one sitting, yet they are not so interconnected with one another that students would be lost if they had not read other chapters.  All in all, Little Bear is a book that has stood the test of time.  It has been popular for generations and is still relevant and interesting for young children today.  

When teaching a lesson or unit on Little Bear, Teacher's Net Lesson Plans would be very helpful.