Dudu Bear Series Books -- Watermelon Rind

Author: Ge Bing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-10-01
Features: This is a picture book designed to cultivate good behavior habits in infants and young children. Developing behavior habits is an important aspect of early education. There is a saying: "Behavior determines habit, habit determines character, and character determines destiny." These words are worth reflecting on. Some primary school students never developed the habit of organizing their backpacks from a young age. When they started school, they discovered they had no sharpened pencils or notebooks, causing them to be in a hurry and disorganized, wasting time and affecting their studies. If they had been taught from a young age to put away toys after playing and return books to their places after reading, they would have grown up to be orderly in both life and work, which is one of the factors ensuring career success. "How to get along with others" is also a lesson that should be learned from a young age. People cannot live without being part of a group. If children are not taught to be considerate of their parents or to play friendly with their peers from a young age, they may grow up to be out of sync with others, making it difficult to cooperate with colleagues and achieve success in their work. Infants are too young to understand many reasons why they should or shouldn’t do something. However, they have a characteristic: they love to imitate. They unconsciously learn from their parents and the people around them. If we set a good role model for them to follow, wouldn’t that be more effective?
"Dudu Bear" is the protagonist of the "Dudu Bear" column in "Infant Picture Book" (edited and published by China Children's Press and Publishing, a monthly magazine). He first appeared to readers in January 1998 and, despite not being around for long, has had a huge impact on young readers. "Dudu Bear" is not only a good child but also has a lovable image, making him popular with everyone. Among young readers, he has high authority, and children all look up to him as a role model. As soon as they hear how "Dudu Bear" does something, children imitate it immediately.
How should we read this book to children? First, before reading, let the child look at the pictures first. Ask them questions like: "Who is in the picture? What are they doing?" For example, in the series "Potty Training," the picture "Washing Hands" features four animals: Dudu Bear, a puppy, a rabbit, and a kitten. What stands out is Dudu Bear and the puppy—Dudu Bear is washing his hands, while the puppy is drooling and reaching out with one "paw" to grab food from a plate. Let the child observe the picture first, not only to prepare them for the story but also to help them develop the habit of actively observing and thinking for themselves.
Second, read the text on the picture to the child exactly as it is. Before reading, "prepare" by reading with emotion to engage the child and anticipate where they might need explanations.
Third, after reading the picture, make sure the child understands what they should learn from "Dudu Bear." As for the reasons why, you can provide appropriate explanations based on the child’s age and understanding.
Fourth, if the child exhibits behaviors mentioned in the picture (e.g., not washing hands before meals), address it specifically when reading but avoid "bringing up the past" to criticize or blame the child.
Fifth, praise the child immediately when they show good behavior by imitating "Dudu Bear."
Sixth, good habits take time to develop, and there may be setbacks. Parents must be patient. Children don’t mind repetition when listening to stories, so you can read it to them as many times as needed.
Seventh, while this book primarily focuses on developing good behavior habits, parents can use their creativity to help children learn more from it. After telling the story of each picture a few times, encourage the child to retell it to improve their language skills. For example, after reading "Washing Hands," ask them to count the number of animals in the picture (four) to practice counting, or ask what color Dudu Bear’s clothes are (yellow, like the little duck) to teach them to distinguish colors. For older children, you can ask more in-depth questions, such as observing and comparing the shapes of the ears of the bear, rabbit, puppy, and kitten.
Teaching children is an art. Teaching them to read is no different. We hope parents will make good use of this picture book to help their children gain even more from it.