July 10th is an amazing holiday! The Teddy Bear Picnic day!
It's time to gather your teddy bear friends and get the teddy bear picnic song (by composer John Walter Bratton) on your phone set up a picnic blanket, snacks and treats and show your fuzzy bear how much he or she means to you!
How to Plan Your Teddy Bear Picnic:
- Pick a good time for your family (think nap times and possibly lunch or dinner time)
- Find the perfect spot outdoors or inside if it's too hot or if it's raining.
- Send invites to your kids and their bears. You can also have your kids make invitations and give them to their bears and other stuffies (siblings too) to make it a big party!
- Plan a fun menu for both bears and humans. (Bears love honey, marmalade sandwiches and porridge!)
- Pack a picnic basket with napkins, blanket and all the utensils needed to serve the picnic.
- Use decorations to make the picnic super special! Balloons, Winnie the Pooh, watermelon, honeycomb decor or anything your little bear loves!
- Plan a game, activity, storytime or craft for the event to make it super special.
Important parts of the Teddy Bear Picnic!
FOOD!!
- Marmalade sandwiches
- Gummy bears
- Honeycomb treats
- Sausage rolls
- Porridge (make sure it’s the right temperature for Goldilocks!)
- Chocolate chip cookies
- Fresh fruit
- Juice and water
- Don't forget your kids favorite food too!
- Best food for Teddy? Fake food - if you have play food from a kitchen you can have your little one pick out Teddy's favorites and fill a picnic basket of their own for their stuffed friend.
Best Ages for The Teddy Bear Picnic?
Lets face it, we all can use a teddy bear picnic at any age! Most kids between 1 and 7 truly love a teddy bear picnic some older do to so don't exclude older siblings unless you know they truly aren't interested. Also keep in mind that some older kids still love their teddy's and may want to participate at 12 or 14 too.
Tips for:
- Toddlers 1-3 - choose simple activities like singing, listening to stories and imaginative play
- Preschoolers 3-5 - involve interactive games, bear-inspired crafts, and outdoor exploration
- Early School years 5-7 - Think of a more structured gathering. Consider teddy treasure hunts and teddy bear races.
Consider having prizes for kids 3 and up, make a playlist for background music, and first aid like sunscreen and band aids for example. For the older kiddos do introductions around the table, make sure all kids and teddy's meet each other.
Activity Ideas:
- Find bear songs to sing - a couple examples - Winnie the Pooh, The Bear Went Over The Mountain. I Met a Bear, Oldie - Smokey Bear, Teddy Bear Song.
- Draw your bear or do a search and find with bears.
- Bear hide and seek - During the picnic bear sneaks off and hides around the picnic area!
- Do a bear storytime We're Going On A Bear Hunt, Grizzly Bear activity song.
- Watch a bear movie Open Season, Brother Bear, Yogi Bear, The Little Bear Movie, Kung Fu Panda, Paddington, Brave, Christopher Robin (or any Winnie the Pooh movie), Jungle Book for example.
Fun Facts about Bears!
- US President Theodore Roosevelt was the inspiration for the name Teddy Bear.
- The first Teddy Bear was made by a Brooklyn sweets shop owner Morris Michtom in 1902.
- Winnie the Pooh is based on the real-life story of a real bear named Winnepeg who lived at the London Zoological Garden. Author A.A Milne and his sone would visit often and Winnepeg was their favorite!
- The biggest teddy bear was made in 2008 in the USA, was 55ft tall and called C.T Dreams
- The bear hug originated in 1846 about 60 years before the teddy bear was created!
Music only for Teddy Bear Picnic song. Edwardian version.
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