Dudu Bear Series Books -- Seesaw

Author: Ge Bing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-10-01
Features: This is a picture book designed to help cultivate good behavior habits in infants and young children. Developing good habits is an important aspect of early education. There is a saying: "Behavior shapes habits, habits shape character, and character shapes destiny." These words are worth reflecting on. Some primary school students never learned the habit of organizing their backpacks from a young age. When they started school, they discovered they had no sharpened pencils or notebooks, leaving them in a frenzy. This wasted time and affected their learning. If they had been taught from childhood to put away toys after playing and return books to their places after reading, they would have grown up to be organized in both life and work—this is one of the factors that ensures career success.
"Learning how to get along with others" is also an essential skill to learn from a young age. People cannot live without being part of a community. If children are not taught to be considerate of their parents or to play nicely 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. Babies are too young to understand many reasons behind actions, such as why they should do something or why they shouldn’t. However, they have one characteristic: they love to imitate. They unconsciously learn from their parents and the people around them. If we set a good example for them to follow, wouldn’t we achieve better results?
"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 made his debut to readers in January 1998 and, despite a short time, has had a huge impact on young readers. Dudu Bear is not only a good child but also adorable, making him a favorite among kids. He has great authority among young readers, and children all look up to him as a role model. Whenever it is said how Dudu Bear does something, children immediately imitate him.
How should we read this book to our children? First, before reading, let the child look at the illustrations. Ask them questions like: "Who is in the picture? What are they doing?" For example, in the "Urinating" series, the illustration titled "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 cultivate the habit of observing and thinking independently.
Second, read the text on the illustrations to the child in its original form. Before reading, "prepare" by reading with emotion to engage the child and anticipate areas where they might need explanations.
Third, after reading the illustration, help the child understand what they can learn from "Dudu Bear." As for the reasons behind these actions, provide appropriate explanations based on the child’s age and understanding.
Fourth, if the child exhibits behaviors mentioned in the illustrations (e.g., not washing hands before meals), address the issue specifically during the story but avoid dwelling on past mistakes or blaming the child.
Fifth, praise the child immediately when they display positive behavior modeled after "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 parents can read the book to them multiple times.
Seventh, while this book primarily focuses on developing good behavior habits, parents can use it to provide multifaceted education. After telling the story of each illustration a few times, encourage the child to retell it to improve their language skills. For example, after reading "Washing Hands," ask the child to count the number of animals in the picture (four) to teach them counting. Ask them, "What color is Dudu Bear’s clothes?" (Yellow, like the little duckling) to help them learn to distinguish colors. For older children, 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. Reading to them is no different. We hope parents will make good use of this picture book to help their children gain even more from it.