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School is always fun in Ms. Colman's class!

Natalie Springer likes school a lot. But not when the kids call her a baby.

Natalie has a chance to do something important in Ms. Colman's class. Her teddy bear is going on a trip around the world! Will Natalie be brave enough to send her teddy so far away?

82 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1996

2 people are currently reading
78 people want to read

About the author

Ann M. Martin

1,119 books3,067 followers
Ann Matthews Martin was born on August 12, 1955. She grew up in Princeton, New Jersey, with her parents and her younger sister, Jane. After graduating from Smith College, Ann became a teacher and then an editor of children's books. She's now a full-time writer.

Ann gets the ideas for her books from many different places. Some are based on personal experiences, while others are based on childhood memories and feelings. Many are written about contemporary problems or events. All of Ann's characters, even the members of the Baby-sitters Club, are made up. But many of her characters are based on real people. Sometimes Ann names her characters after people she knows, and other times she simply chooses names that she likes.

Ann has always enjoyed writing. Even before she was old enough to write, she would dictate stories to her mother to write down for her. Some of her favorite authors at that time were Lewis Carroll, P. L. Travers, Hugh Lofting, Astrid Lindgren, and Roald Dahl. They inspired her to become a writer herself.

Since ending the BSC series in 2000, Ann’s writing has concentrated on single novels, many of which are set in the 1960s.

After living in New York City for many years, Ann moved to the Hudson Valley in upstate New York where she now lives with her dog, Sadie, and her cats, Gussie, Willy and Woody. Her hobbies are reading, sewing, and needlework. Her favorite thing to do is to make clothes for children.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/annmma...

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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
Profile Image for Leigh.
1,190 reviews
April 2, 2022
This was a cute book and one I really enjoyed. I love Natalie mostly because she calls out Karen for the sociopathic narcissist she is. I also thought it was cute how Ms Colman taught the kids about geography and got them interested in learning. She's an awesome teacher and the project reminded me of flat Stanley that some schools do. In Ms Colman's lesson one of the kids will bring in a stuffed animal or doll. They will attach a note to him and leave him places asking people to send pictures and postcards of his travels. Like the people who steal garden gnomes. It was also an innocent time since if you left a teddy bear in an airport now the bomb squad would be called. Anyway Natalie is the only one who shows up with a stuffy and her Buzzy bear gets the job. The bear goes all across America into Canada and over to Europe before he vanishes and is thought lost forever. The kids are awful to Natalie except Karen so maybe she does have a redeeming quality. Ms Colman handles it well. We should all have a teacher like her I think. But it all sorts itself out in the end and was one of the better books in this series.
Profile Image for Skye Hegyes.
Author 7 books17 followers
February 26, 2016
This is a naturally cute story for young children just starting to read chapter books. It has a touching story many can understand and care for.

I, myself, would like to try the project suggested in this tale.

The children of classroom 2A decide to send one of their stuffed animals out and about in the world with instructions to send back post cards, photos, or letters of adventures with the stuffed animal as it traveled. Their instructions also explain that they would like the stuffed animal back by a certain date.

The stuffed animal chosen is a teddy bear Natalie loves called Buzzle Bear.

As time passes, the children learn of Buzzle Bear’s adventures to Chicago and Texas, Canada and England. And then… nothing.

The story teaches several lessons, but the most important one is that one mustn’t tease others. When the class hears about the possibility of Buzzle Bear’s never returning, Natalie breaks down into tears and the other children pick on her, calling her a baby. The teacher decides to teach them a valuable lesson all children should learn – that kindness can go a long way.

Plus it teaches the miracles of waiting patiently for good news.
185 reviews
childrens-books
February 13, 2009
My daughter was reading this in her "cubby" this morning.
Profile Image for Emily.
34 reviews1 follower
June 2, 2009
I had nothing else to read I think it was good wade and maddie might like it.
Profile Image for Carol Mcgloshen.
78 reviews
April 22, 2013
Would be good for children to realize that just because others say things but they may feel another way. I think young children could relate to the emotions the characters in the book experience
8 reviews
September 19, 2015
She was a baby because of her bear was getting sent off to different places, even though she got another one that was the same kind.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews

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