JULY 10th IS NATIONAL TEDDY BEAR PICNIC DAY
July 10, 2023
As a child, I didn't play with dolls, but my best friend was my teddy bear, Albert. He protected me while I slept, kept all of my secrets, comforted me when I was sick and didn't care that I dragged him around by one foot. He was my constant companion and spent countless hours on a blanket under a huge oak tree in my backyard reading books and enjoying tea parties with me.
July 10th is National Teddy Bear Picnic Day! All across the country, children and their teddies will be getting together for snacks, stories, and activities. Visit our Teddy Bear Picnic Pinterest Board for some ideas.
One of the largest celebrations is held each year at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in Medora, North Dakota. The name teddy bear comes from former United States President Theodore Roosevelt, who was commonly known as "Teddy". He was a hunter, but while hunting in Mississippi in 1902, he refused to shoot a small bear. The Washington Post picked up on this story and made a cartoon of the event. Toy store owners, Morris and Rose Michtom, wrote to President Roosevelt for permission to call their stuffed animals "Teddy Bears". Their company went on to become the Ideal Toy Company, one of the largest toy companies in the world. Today, teddy bears are among the most popular gifts for children and are often given to adults to signify love, congratulations or sympathy.
HOW TO CELEBRATE:
If your children have teddy bears, you might want to plan something to celebrate this endearing holiday. Your celebration could be as simple as a blanket, your child, their teddy and some sweet items that bears might enjoy such as animal cookies, gummy bears, berries, jelly and honey under a tree in your backyard. Fun activities could be to draw pictures of bears or enjoy reading or hearing a bear related story. Or you could arrange a full on outdoor picnic complete with a basket full of goodies and your children's friends with their teddy bears at a local park where more adventurous kids could crawl on the ground and pretend that they are bears or climb a tree! You could even visit Zoo Atlanta to see some real bears to celebrate our furry friends!
BOOKS:
Some of my children's favorites books about bears were:
Corduroy by Don Freeman. In this classic story, Corduroy the bear explores a department store at night and then gets to go home with Lisa, a little girl who buys him the next day.
Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne. Most of us grew up with this lovable bear, Winnie the Pooh and all of his lovable friends in the 100 acre wood. Although this is a chapter book, many preschool children can listen and enjoy the Winnie the Pooh books.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? My First Reader is a classic book with a repetitive text. While it only features one bear, there are several other bear themed books by Carle such as Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See? and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You See?
My kids loved The Berenstain Bears! This is one lovable family you'll want attending your next teddy bear picnic. Some of our favorites are: The Berenstain Bears: In The Dark, Count Their Blessings and Forget Their Manners.
Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey is a classic story of a girl and her mother who encounter a bear and her cub while picking blueberries.
TheTeddy Bears' Picnic by Jimmy Kennedy. There's even a song about teddy bears that you could teach the kids. The lyrics are below and you can watch this video if you don't know the tune:
The Teddy Bear's Picnic Song
If you go down in the woods today
You're sure of a big surprise.
If you go down in the woods today
You'd better go in disguise.
For every bear that ever there was
Will gather there for certain because
Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic.
- CHORUS:
Picnic time for teddy bears,
The little teddy bears are having a lovely time today.
Watch them, catch them unawares,
And see them picnic on their holiday.
See them gaily dance about.
They love to play and shout.
They never have any cares.
At six o'clock their mommies and daddies
Will take them home to bed
Because they're tired little teddy bears.
Every teddy bear who's been good
Is sure of a treat today.
There's lots of marvelous things to eat
And wonderful games to play.
Beneath the trees, where nobody sees
They'll hide and seek as long as they please
'Cause that's the way the teddy bears have their picnic
REPEAT CHORUS
If you go out in the woods today,
You'd better not go alone.
It's lovely out in the woods today,
But safer to stay at home.
For every bear that ever there was
Will gather there for certain, because
Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic
Click for more FUN DAYS IN JULY TO CELEBRATE WITH YOUR FAMILY!
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