Guide your students to examine Wild About Bears as a mentor text for the nonfiction subgenre of a survey text. Mentor Survey Text: Variations in Species. How do these texts reflect humans’ awe and fear of bears? (2) With younger students or if you want a shorter activity, provide students with a similar range of texts, guiding them through an examination of and discussion of the mixed representation of bears in the texts. Within their small group, students should examine the texts they have gathered in order to be able to describe to their classmates how bears are portrayed in the story. Depending on the amount of time that you have available to you and the age of your students, you could extend this activity in two different ways: (1) Divide students into small groups and ask them to collect either: myths / religious beliefs about bears, fairy tales about bears, newspaper stories (mined from a digital database), fractured fairy tales that purposefully turn popular perceptions of bears upside down and / or contemporary children’s books that have bears as characters. As students to think about how their perceptions of bears have been formed make a list of students’ responses, they are likely to name stories, television clips, movies, or first hand reports. After reading the book, invite students to add to their writing (or talk about), noting new information learned and questions they might have. Before reading Wild About Bears ask your students to write or share orally their knowledge of and feelings about bears. The author’s concluding statements highlight the environmental and human imposed challenges faced by the bear species, along with a hopeful note: “ The world’s eight great species of bears will continue to inspire and fascinate us as long as we do our part to protect and preserve their way of life.” An excellent introduction to a storied species, this engaging picture book has many roles to play in the elementary classroom. Additional facts appear in smaller font size on the color saturated spreads for example, on the pages devoted to the North American black bear: “ One litter may contain different colored cubs.” Back matter includes a world map of species’ locations, a pictorial habitat glossary, and resources for further exploration. The main text is layered onto panoramic views of the bears in their habitats rendered in watercolor. Beginning with characteristics common to the species, their physical traits and behaviors, Brett then devotes a double page spread to each bear type, highlighting unique aspects of their habitats, diet, and tendencies.
The eight species of bears that populate our Earth are the subject of Jeannie Brett’s appealing picture book survey text.
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