We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Micheal Rosen was published in 1989 and is real classic. It's rhythmic, repetitive, chantable and full of fun noises. Some report being very scared by the book when they were very small, so maybe don't go over the top with the terror! If this story had a moral it would probably be 'Leave the bears alone!'
Just don't buy the tiny board book like I did!
Age: 3-9
Topic: A family go for a walk to look for a bear. They traverse different terrains only to discover they're actually scared of bears.
Vocabulary: forest, river, mud, grass, snowstorm, cave, bear. (The adjectives are optional) A good teaching moment for mummy, daddy, baby, brother and sister too. Repeated phrases: We're going on a bear hunt, we're going to catch a big one, what a beautiful day, we're not scared, oh no! and We can't go over it, we can't go under it, we're going to have to go through it!
Procedure:
Sing your hello song whilst being scared and very much not scared!
Preteach the landscape vocabulary with flashcards. Play some flashcard games. For the first lesson 'say yes when you see the...' is excellent.
Tell the story with the book. Omit the adjectives at your discretion. I think 'thick oozy mud' is quasi onomatopoeic but teaching it actively would be too much for my students. Watch the master at work here. You cannot get better story telling instructions than this:
Worksheet time: I drew a cave, with a forest, river, grass, mud and a snowstorm for mine, and asked the children to draw the bear in the right place. Or you could use this:
