Description
Michael Rosen has taken an old children's rhyme, and turned it into a picture book for young children, with watercolour illustrations by Helen Oxenbury.
- "We're going on a bear hunt.
- We're going to catch a big one.
- What a beautiful day!
- We're not scared."
Reader's Reviews
1
Thoroughly enjoyable as a bogey picking event, especially if you join in all the traditional actions, or you march around the room reciting the poem again after you've finished reading it.
2
It is a great story about a family who go on a journey though obstacles such as long wavy grass and a wide river to look for a bear. All the way through they say that they are not scared but when faced with the big scary bear they are sent running all the way home back through all the obstacles.
There is a variety of educational uses for this book. Firstly science, you can try and get them to think about what may live in the different places. The book could form the basis or art they could draw the places or make their bear. In English they could use this to right their own story about a fear they have or to write a different ending. This then could link into PSHE where they could discuss fear, what to do if they are scared, where they can go to get help, what may scare others and also flipping it the other day did they need to be scared maybe the bear just wanted to be a friend. You could use it as part of your music, drama and PE lessons too.
I think this book is a must for all going into KS1 and foundation.
3
“We’re going on a bear hunt”, by Michael Rosen is an award winning story (Winner of the Smarties Book Prize 1989), involving a family going on an adventure to find a bear but they have to face numerous obstacles to get there, and once they arrive at the cave they are scared by what they find. It gives the reader a real sense of adventure when reading, while also wisely showing the reader the dangers of meeting the bear. The genre of the book starts as fiction, with the adventure of the bear hunt, but turns to fantasy towards the end when the family has to out run the bear.
The book is filled with repetition, firstly, the story, “We’re going on a bear hunt. We’re going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We’re not scared”, and secondly, the sounds involved in overcoming the obstacles the family must pass like “splash splosh” when the family go through the river. Each sound is repeated 3 times for effect. The book is a great read for both young and older children. Young children would be able to follow the story with the reader by reciting the words with them and doing actions for the story, while readers up to Key Stage 2 should enjoy the text level and illustrations of the book.
“We’re Going on a Bear Hunt” creates many possibilities of using the book for other activities such as children creating their own adventure, or getting them to make their own pictures to go with the story. This is a superb book for developing children’s imagination and therefore is a great read both at home and in the classroom.
Parental Guidance
- Reading Age: 5+
- Reading Aloud Age: 2+
Clean.
If you like this you might like
- list other books or authors here