We're Going on a Bear Hunt

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The book won the overall Nestlé Smarties Book Prize in 1989 and also won the 0–5 years category. [5] In 1989 it was an 'Honor Book' in the Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards. [6] The book also won the ' School Library Journal Best Book of the Year' and the ' Mainichi Newspapers Japanese Picture Book Award, Outstanding Picture Book from Abroad' award. [7] It was highly commended for the 1989 Kate Greenaway Medal. [8]

I read this book to my Reception class the day before we went on a school trip to the 'Build a Bear Factory'. It linked in with work they had done that week about bears and was a perfect introduction to the idea of 'going on a journey'. The school trip was to be their first as a class and reading this book to them was a good starter activity before we discussed the next day's school trip and what the children would be doing. A family of five (with a dog) embarks on a bear hunt, (without weapons). At first you can see this is just a family outing, it's all in fun, it's about spending a day in nature pretending they are going on a bear hunt, and Dad is all smiles, but as we proceed from the sea though the meadow, across a river and into the dark woods, Dad is more serious, that's a kind of subtle key. The eldest of the children (called Stanley “Stan” in the television adaptation) is sometimes mistaken by readers as being their father but is in fact the oldest brother and sibling. They are based on Oxenbury's own children. Likewise, the dog is modelled on an actual family pet. [2] Bowie-Sell, Daisy (10 July 2013). "We're Going on a Bear Hunt". Time Out . Retrieved 25 January 2017.Helen Oxenbury – Author Profile and Information & Video at Simon & Schuster." Author Interviews & Appearances, Authors In the News & More – Simon & Schuster. Web. 28 July 2009. Stanley is the eldest child, Katie is the second oldest, Rosie is the middle child, Max is the fourth child, and the baby sister (unnamed in both the book and TV adaptation) is the youngest. The book has been adapted as a stage play by director Sally Cookson with musical score by Benji Bower and design by Katie Sykes. The play has run in the West End and in provincial theatres. The ending of the performance has been changed so that there is a reconciliation between the family and the bear. [9] [10] Time Out magazine, who awarded four stars out of five, whilst describing the performers as "wonderfully entertaining" also said "those in the later primary years might find it a little boring – not an awful lot happens, after all." [11] Television adaptation [ edit ] I remember this as a campfire skit. Captured oral traditions always disappoint me, as they never exactly match the story and wording you learnt - and so it is with We're Going on a Bear Hunt. Also the written word doesn't indicate the sing-song rhythm of the original, and doesn't provide an indication of all the relevant movements. These elements were always critical to the success of the skit, and may be lost in this book form.

Wynne, Sharon Kennedy (28 March 2020). "Bored kids are going on a bear hunt and it's adorable". Tampa Bay Times . Retrieved 29 March 2020.

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There are plenty of children's books about self destructive impulses. In The Cat in the Hat, the children are seduced into destroying their entire house, which they know full well will result in mother's unbridled scorn. Franklin the Turtle is always doing stupid shit and then whining about it when he gets caught. I don't have a big problem with those books. They make sense to me because they follow three core principles: it's ok to depict kids doing dumb shit, because their mistakes are generally inadvertent. The mistakes characters make should teach children about human folly and the lessons we can glean from the err of our ways. Finally, rarely, if ever, are the parents depicted as condoning the child's self-destruction. Each of the obstacles, apart from the river, is based on a real life location in England and Wales that Oxenbury knew. [1] We're Going On a Bear Hunt'by Michael Rosen, practically sums up my reading experience in primary school. This 'join all in' picture book, was read during a whole school assembly. i remember the excitement myself and the other children would feel when asked, " what are they going on?" And we would all shout out, really loudly "A BEAR HUNT!!!".

We're Going on a Bear Hunt is a British 1989 children's picture book written by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Helen Oxenbury. It has won numerous awards and was the subject of a Guinness World Record for "Largest Reading Lesson" with a book-reading attended by 1,500 children, and an additional 30,000 listeners online, in 2014. Whenever the text says “We can’t go over it”, etc. ask instead, “Can we go over it?” and shake your head while everyone says “no!”, etc. This involves the group and pulls them into the drama.

I followed up the reading of this book with the class the following week when they were asked to act out in small groups what they could remember from the story. The fact that I had introduced actions to represent what the family in the story saw on their journey meant the children were able to confidently recall a lot of the story and really enjoyed acting it out.