Bears

Week #7's theme was bears! Of all of the animal picture books in our library system, bear books outnumber all of them! 

Books:

Toddler Books:

Can You Growl Like a Bear? - John Butler
Make a Wish Bear - Greg Foley
Tiptoe Joe - Ginger Gibson
Big Smelly Bear - Britta Teckentrup

Polar Bear Morning - Lauren Thompson

Preschool Books:

Tiptoe Joe - Ginger Gibson
Big Smelly Bear - Britta Teckentrup
Polar Bear Morning - Lauren Thompson
Scare a Bear - Kathy-jo Wargin 

Rhymes/Songs/Fingerplays:

Where is Bear? (Tune: "Where is Thumbkin?"):

Where is bear? Where is bear?

Here I am. Here I am.

How are you this fall? Very tired, thank you.

Go to sleep. Go to sleep.

*I used a puppet bear and a lap-stage with a cut-out of black paper to make it look like a cave. I had the kids wake bear up on the count of three (and if they weren't loud enough, Bear couldn't hear them so they'd have to try again).

If You're a Bear and You Know It (Tune: "If You're Happy and You Know It"):

If you're a panda bear and you know it, clap your paws.

If you're a panda bear and you know it, clap your paws.

If you're a panda bear and you know it, and you really want to show it.

If you're a panda bear and you know it, clap your paws.

Other verses:

If you're a polar bear and you know it, show your teeth.

If you're a grizzly bear and you know it, growl real loud!

*I made large cut-out pictures of each type of bear so we could learn the different bears while singing the song.

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? - FLANNEL

*We have a flannel of Eric Carle's book, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?". It is easy enough for parents and children to follow along and our parents helped the kids respond to each of the following animals and their colors. 

Polar Bear Game:

Polar Bear, Polar Bear, Where have you been?

I've been to play with another bear friend.

Where did you go to? And what did you do/

We played a bear game two by two.

Take one step forward, Take two steps back,

Turn all around, jump front, jump back.

This little bear game, is not hard to do,

Just grab a partner and you do it too!

Source: Can Teach