The Berenstain Bears School Days Collection

by Jan and Mike Berenstain

My parents made sure that my sister, Sarah, and I grew up surrounded by books. Part of our collection was Berenstain Bear titles. My sister, in particular, loved these books. I spent hours wishing for a pegboard like Brother and Sister got to help clean up their messy room (I still have a ridiculous affinity for pegboards) and Sarah remained devoted to the book that revolved around too much junk food. When my own children arrived on the scene, Sarah made sure that these books came out and were reshared. Imagine the glee in our home when a review copy of The Berenstain Bears School Days Collection by Jan and Mike Berenstain arrived on the doorstep. My 7 and 9 year olds immediately absconded with it and it took the promise of snacks to lure the book back into my hands.

This collection features four Berenstain Bear stories; The Berenstain Bears School Time Blessings, The Berenstain Bears Stand Up To Bullying, The Berenstain Bears The Truth About Gossip, and The Berenstain Bears Blessed Are The Peacemakers. In addition, there is a sticker and activity book, coupled with a cookbook. Each of the stories revolves around teaching from Scripture and works to breathe God into everyday events of children’s lives. The stories are told within the context of the family’s day to day lives, which makes them accessible to the reader. The Scripture references are woven throughout. While not many families nowadays have conversations in ways that the Bear family does, the dialogue is effective for teaching the readers new ways to deal with everyday concerns. The conversation questions and activities at the end of each story are accessible and require no extra materials other than what a busy family already has on hand. 

This collection could be used in many ways in children and family ministries. Sometimes, you need an activity in your back pocket. Pulling out this collection, while not the substance of a lesson in your faith formation time, definitely can help augment what you’ve discussed and provide new conversations. I would add a copy of this in our Little Free Library so that the community could borrow and enjoy. Additionally, I would take the recipe book in the back of the collection and use it for a midweek enrichment ministry. The recipes are not challenging, include many steps that children can do on their own, and would be lovely for sharing with others. Wind down each session with a newly created collaborative mealtime blessing, and you’ve got a slam-dunk series of sessions with children and/or families.

While my children were finishing their ‘give Mama back her book’ snack, I asked them what they thought of the collection. Celia, age 7, found the illustrations magical (her word) and wants to share the book with her best friend because she thinks that she will like the activities and stickers. Noah, age 9, talked about how he liked the intertextuality (his word) of the story that involved Romeo and Juliet because it’s fun to read a story within a story. He also is champing at the bit to get into the kitchen and try out some of the recipes. And as for my sister? She’s coming for a visit next weekend, so I’m going to pull the storybook out and enjoy a trip down memory lane with her. Maybe she’ll help me install a pegboard while we eat some junk food.