The New Bear at School

by Carrie Weston, Tim Warnes (Illustrator)

Boris the bear is new at school--and all the other animals are afraid of him! Pitch-perfect writing and delightfully charming illustrations will make this a treasured starting school story.

It's hard enough being the new kid at school, but when you're a big bear like Boris, it's even worse! Poor Boris tries his best to be gentle, but his sharp-toothed smile scares away his classmates. In the end, the animals find they love having Boris on their side!

With a heartwarming story and charming illustrations, THE NEW BEAR AT SCHOOL will touch anyone who has ever felt left out.

Genres: Picture Books, School, Animals, Childrens, Friendship, Fiction, Storytime

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 4, 2007

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Reviews

[Jade · Rating 2 out of 5]

A story about a 'hairy, scary, grizzly' bear named Boris who is looking for friendship and acceptance on his first day of school. However Boris is very clumsy and frightens the other children who do not want to be his friends. Even the teacher suggests that Boris tries to be more gentle. When Boris unwittingly scares a gang of bullies, his classmates embrace his 'bear-ish' ways and are glad to be his friend.
The bit when Boris cries alone in the book corner was quite upsetting. Children shouldn't be taught to judge someone on the way they look or certain aspects of their personalities. They certainly shouldn't be taught that accepting someone who is deemed a little different as a friend should be based on what they can get out of the friendship!!
Apart from the beautiful illustrations, I was a little disappointed with the message of the book.

[Susan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Franklin the Turtle had a big moose move into the school - this is along those lines but as the mother of very tall boys who were teased, I found it irksome. While a book I recently read, How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin by McNamara, made good points about being small - especially with the terrific line "small things can have a lot going on inside them", this story has the teacher continually asking the large bear to try not to be so scary, and the (rather doofy) looking bear inadvertantly saves the day by appearing scary. I would not choose this book to read to a larger or taller child in order to make them feel better about themselves.

[Anu-vinkkari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pienten metsäneläinten luokkatoveriksi tulee uusi oppilas joka ei ihan vastaa odotuksia. Boris-karhu on liian suuri, liian karvainen, liian äänekäs ja liian pelottava. Ystävälliseksi tarkoitettu hymykin on täynnä isoja pelottavia hampaita. Väärin ymmärretty Boris-parka jää yksin ja on kovin kovin onneton. Kotimatkalla muitten koululaisten kimppuun hyökkää lauma ilkiörottia ja silloin iso karvainen koulukaveri onkin hyvä olemassa. Erilaisuutta ja hyväksymistä herttaisella kuvituksella. Isot eivät aina automaattisesti kiusaa pieniä, vaan asiat voivat joskus olla myös ihan toisin päin.

[Mills · Rating 2 out of 5]

Five stars for the kind, friendly, bashful softie that is Boris, but one star for a book that teaches your child that when they go to school, they can expect to be judged and even bullied based on how they look. Boris tries to make friends with the other pupils, but is feared and excluded because he's a big grizzly bear not a little teddy. Understandably, this is upsetting for him (not to mention me).

Boris had nobody to play with and nobody to talk to. Tears filled his big brown eyes. Large teardrops rolled down his long nose and splashed to the floor. "I'm a scary bear", he sniffed. "I'm a hairy bear", he sobbed. "I'm just a great BIG grizzly bear."

It's probably the "just" that bothers me most. He is feeling worthless because other people are judging his appearance. I mean, seriously, you cannot tell me that is a message you want to share with a child!

Of course, being a children's book, there's a happy ending when Boris saves the other pupils from some ninja rats... but even that is bittersweet. You see, he saves the day by being big and scary and the rats running away; so although the other pupils start to accept him, this is all because of his appearance not his behaviour. In fact, when Boris scares away the rats he does it by trying to say hello to them.

Certainly, Oh, Boris! ends with Boris accepted by his class but - and I'll say this as many times as it takes - he is accepted not because he's a friendly and kind bear, but because his "scary" (I thought he was adorable, personally) appearance has been advantageous.

I want to give him a ginormous cuddle and tell him he deserves better than "friends" that are so shallow.

I don't want to discourage people from buying Oh, Boris because I want him to have good homes (I know, I know, it's just a book...) BUT if you do buy it, please, for the love of god, make sure to talk to your child about why it is not ok for Boris to be treated the way he is.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really wish this book had a different ending. Everyone is afraid of bear, and instead of realizing they're wrong on their own, he saves the day and then they like him. It's good they change their minds but they change them for the wrong reason.

[Bethlyn Allmey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book to use with children about starting in a new school and feeling out of place. A lovely story that explains the process and feelings that come alongside it well. Would recommend.

[Dave Farrance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Childrens Story Time 01/10/22

A sweet story about a grizzly bear that starts school. All the other little animals in the class think it’s going to be a teddy bear, so when a big fluffy grizzly walks into the room they all struggle to get used to it.
After school, some bandit rats attack the little animals, but the grizzly comes along and scares the rats away, so the other animals fall in love with the bear and they all live happily ever after.

[Shemona · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘The New Bear At School’ by Carrie Weston and Tim Warnes is the perfect story book to read to children on the first day of term. It a tail of Boris a ‘scary’ grizzly bear who starts school but all the other animal students are too scared to befriend him. This upsets Boris and makes him feel very lonely and upset. However, his big size becomes an advantage as he helps to frighten off the big bad bullies in doing so makes friends with his fellow students. This positive story explores friendship, bullying and loneliness. It portrays ‘first-day’ anxiety and nerves and thus makes it relatable to all students. Due to the morals in the story I feel this is best suited for all ages especially key stage 1.

[Luis Fe Domínguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es una historia que usa los mismos vicios lingüísticos para atraer la atención de los niños pero, ¿para quién escribe Carrie Weston? ¿Lo hace para que adultos precoces se emocionen o se marginen por un oso pardo, etiquetado desde ya como un oso grande, peludo y tenebroso? No lo creo, lo hace como recurso para darle a este increíble protagonista, un antagónico inmerecido y a la vez heroico. Para hablar de racismo y segregación hay un montón de historias más.

Lo que más me gustó de esta historia a parte de las ilustraciones que la acompañan, es el ritmo con el que se cuentan y se describen las acciones para Boris. Se puede disfrutar en cada frase un aire de emoción diferente, los matices vocales varían, hay una acción rápida, cambiante, dinámica, que mantiene al oyente interesado en la historia. ¿Que se veía venir el cliché? Pues sí, un recurso absurdo para darle un evento heroico a ese oso pardo, pero que gana por inocencia un recuerdo tierno dentro del lector joven.

Me encantó compartirlo con niños, una historia que habla del prejuicio y de la segregación de una forma romántica y absurda, pero de forma inofensiva (medio agresiva a veces), para lectores que no se toman tan enserio temas sociales.

[Sara Houser · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did have a problem with this book. First of all being new and starting new things is hard enough. My issue with this book is that it wasn’t welcoming. So the new student tried to make new friends and be friendly but the others just made sure they didn’t include the new student. Also at one point the teacher asked the new student to stop being scary instead of standing up for him knowing it was his first day and knowing that he was bigger than the rest. No one should ever feel that lonely unwanted feeling. Second I didn’t like that when the rest of the kids were being picked on, the new kid came up and scared the bullies away. The others then loved him and we all know that they just thought they had a cover that when they got into danger they’d use the new kid to defend them. I’m sorry the message of this book wasn’t great but the illustrations were decent. That’s pretty much why it got the two stars.

[Diana Isiordia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book would be a great discussion starter especially if a new student is expected in the classroom. However, I think that the story can be controversial. In the beginning, the students were excluding the bear and the teacher was even encouraging this behavior in a way. It wasn't until the bear did something "beneficial" for the other animals that they accepted him. Teachers and parents should discuss this with young readers. They should not believe that someone should be included or respected unless they do something for them.

[Jenna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kuvakirjassa käsitellään joukkoon sopeutumista, kuulumattomuuden tunnetta ja ystävyyden solmimista. Paikka paikoin kirja on mielestäni jopa julma. Kuopukselle tuli oikeasti paha mieli Boris-karhun puolesta; muut luokkalaiset ovat häntä kohtaan varsin ilkeitä. Eihän kukaan mahda omalle ulkoiselle olemukselleen mitään. Itseäni harmitti, kuinka tilanne ratkaistiin - Boris-karhun täytyi ryhtyä sankariksi, jotta muu luokka hyväksyi hänet.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The New Bear At School
by Carrie Weston
Another book for bully proofing

Bear is a new story about a new kid in school. He is trying to be friendly, but he is big, he is hairy, and he is a grizzly bear. But what frightens the rest of the class is what will help him make friends. A great story to teach the kids about accepting someone new.

[M · Rating 1 out of 5]

The illustrations are very nice. I wish the author had chose more neutral adjectives the teacher in the book could have used. There are so many word options that would not have a negative connotation such as the word "scary". Implies it's OK or acceptable for kids or a teacher to call another kid "scary" because of their innate appearance.

[Kirsten Murphy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like the illustrations, but not a big fan of the storyline. The teacher isn’t very friendly or supportive to Boris as a new student trying to be part of the class, and the only reason his classmates finally accept him is because he can do something for them. Could be used for discussion of acceptance and how to treat others.

[Mama Bearian · Rating 2 out of 5]

The new bear at school, Boris, just wants to make friends. But the other animals think he’s scary and don’t want anything to do with him. Don’t worry, Boris saves the day in the end. It’s cute, but it made me a little sad that Boris had to “save” the other animals in order for them to be nice to him.

[Hypatia's Dream · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es difícil ser el "nuevo" de la escuela, con este cuento aprendemos a empatizar con los niños que han tenido que mudarse o cambiar de escuela, así en vez de excluirlos, podemos apoyarlos para adaptarse pronto a su nuevo entorno. En español a este cuento lo titularon "Boris" y lo encuentras fácilmente en las redes sociales para su lectura.

[Braley Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

I felt this book teaches a great lesson to younger students. It reminds me of the good saying "Don't judge a book by its cover." Basically, you shouldn't judge people by the way they look. Therefore, this books does a great job of conveying this message to younger children.

[Jolie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un cuento para niños que nos enseña la importancia de no juzgar a los demás por las apariencias.
Además, a muchas personas siempre nos cuesta adaptarnos a nuevos entornos, por lo que los demás deben entendernos y ayudarnos, en vez de señalarnos.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations are amazing, but the story is the same old, same old "He's too scary until he helps us get away from even scarier things." Now that they have a use for him, the other animals are happy to let the big grizzly bear be part of their group. Meh, it just rubbed me the wrong way.

[Petra Dijkstra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Een prentenboek waarin het gaat om er eerst niet bij horen maar gelukkig later wel. Boris komt erbij in een klas met dieren, iedereen is bang voor hem totdat hij de dieren redt van de rattenbende. Close readinglessen mee gedaan

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this to my second graders today and they thought it was good for teaching about accepting everyone even if they are different. Good beginning of the year book. Nice vocabulary too.

[Ellen Williams-Sharkey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really sweet book about a big bear who struggles to fit in to begin with when starting a new school, but who just wants to make friends.

[Arika]

This book can be eyeopening for some children. There is a hidden phrase throughout the book! I really enjoyed reading it. The images are so colorful and vibrant, they easily catch the readers eye.

[Christine Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

School Storytime

There is a new bear at school and everyone is excited until they learn he is a big scary grizzly bear. Poor Boris...will he ever make friends? A little long for my young group.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Prévisible mais cute.

[Tatiana Gomes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bom para a entrada na escola, um novo colega, as características de cada um. o dar uma oportunidade para conhecer.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

read this book when I was younger and loved it still is one of my favorite books

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet book about making friends in a new place when you are very different. The other animals are all afraid of Boris the bear, a new student at school. Very nice illustrations and story.

[Vicky Flores · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me encanta usarlo para enseñar sobre las diferencias y la inclusión. Además, a los niños los hace reir 5/5