Educational Story Stretchers for Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What Do You See

Another beautiful Eric Carle book, Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See? has a wealth of learning opportunities for preschool children. Get tips and ideas for stretching this story into a great educational tool.

Baby Bear, Baby Bear What do You See? Author and Publisher Information

Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See? is written by Bill Martin Jr. and illustrated by Eric Carle. The book was published by Henry Holt and Company in 2007. The ISBN number on my hardback edition is 0-8050-8336-7.

Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See? Story Summary

This delightful story begins with brown bear, who is climbing a tree, and asks him the question “What do you see?”. The journey that ensues, introduces children to ten North American animals; red fox, flying squirrel, mountain goat, blue heron, prairie dog, striped skunk, mule deer, rattlesnake, screech owl and, of course, Momma Bear. 

Story Stretching Educational Ideas for Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See?

• Colors - This book presents parents of preschoolers the perfect chance to teach their children colors in an easy and natural fashion. Two of the animals have colors specifically mentioned in their names, the “red fox” and the “blue heron”. Have your children discuss with you the colors of the other animals.
• Geography – North America – Get a large map or globe and show your preschooler where North America is. Explain to them that each of the animals in the Baby Bear book live in North America.
• Physical Education – Movement Play - Each of the animals in Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See? has a unique way of moving. One flies, one slips past, one glides, one climbs, one struts, one runs, etc. Let your preschooler demonstrate what those types of movements might looks like. Then have him also pretend to be that particular animal. Take turns playing this game for a lot of laughs!
• Numbers – Counting - On the last page of the book, Momma Bear is telling us about all the animals she sees. There are ten total and, with each animal clearly displayed on the two-page spread, this is the perfect place to practice counting with your child.
• Language Skills – Story Telling - The repetition of Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See? is very reassuring to young children. They can easily anticipate what is coming next in the story. Encourage them to create their own version by using some of their favorite zoo animals. To start this process in our home, I had each child give me the names of ten of their favorite animals. Then we glued magazine clippings or printed photos of the animals onto index cards. Now each child could tell their own version of Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See? with their own, unique animals to make a very personalized story all their own!

A very popular book for young children, Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What do You See? should be available at your local library or purchase your own copy from Amazon.com.

See ten more Educational Preschool Story Stretchers that you can download and take with you.

Related posts:

1. Preschool Story Stretchers with Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
2. Preschool Story Stretchers with Mister Seahorse by Eric Carle
3. Story Stretchers for The Tale of Benjamin Bunny
4. Preschooler Story Stretchers for Animal Dads
5. Preschool Story Stretchers with If You Give a Pig a Pancake by Laura Numeroff