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A Pair of Polar Bears: Twin Cubs Find a Home at the San Diego Zoo
TWIN POLAR BEAR CUBS
Kalluk and Tatqiq were only three months old when they were found orphaned in Alaska. Together they were brought to the World-Famous San Diego Zoo to be cared for.
From the cubs' first tentative months in the zoo's infirmary to their home in the Polar Bear Plunge, this book chronicles the twins' development with exclusive photographs from the zoo and Joanne Ryder's poetic, informative text. Playful and curious, Kalluk and Tatqiq have won the hearts of more than three million people who visit the zoo each year. Whether they're diving into the water, rolling in the dirt, or sliding down a snowdrift, these adorable bears will charm readers of all ages.
Kalluk and Tatqiq were only three months old when they were found orphaned in Alaska. Together they were brought to the World-Famous San Diego Zoo to be cared for.
From the cubs' first tentative months in the zoo's infirmary to their home in the Polar Bear Plunge, this book chronicles the twins' development with exclusive photographs from the zoo and Joanne Ryder's poetic, informative text. Playful and curious, Kalluk and Tatqiq have won the hearts of more than three million people who visit the zoo each year. Whether they're diving into the water, rolling in the dirt, or sliding down a snowdrift, these adorable bears will charm readers of all ages.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2006
About the author
Joanne Ryder
108 books21 followersJoanna Ryder is an award-winning author whose books offer a unique blend of poetry and science. Her innovative Just for a Day series invites children into the world of wild animals, ranging from a sea otter to Tyrannosaurus rex. Ms. Ryder says, "Children know that my books often ask them to imagine being a different creature. So they always ask me which animal I would choose to be. I'd be a flying one, I tell them. Or if I could, I'd wish for wings. And I've discovered children would love wings, too. But which ones to choose? I wrote Rainbow Wings to help us decide." Ms. Ryder lives in Pacific Grove, California.
-taken from www.balkinbuddies.com
-taken from www.balkinbuddies.com
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 5, 2022
I find this text especially engaging for my own students because it takes place at our local San Diego Zoo. Many students, in various cities, visit the zoo with their families and during grade level field trips. A field trip to the zoo in connection with an academic unit would be especially powerful after reading this text. The text is unique in that it is a first-person account of the zookeepers (written narratively). The text includes many photographs of the actual bears as they grow up at the zoo.
The author, Joanne Ryder, is somewhat of an expert in this area. She has been a docent at the San Francisco Zoo and is well known as a conservationist. She has written several other books for children in the same genre as A Pair of Polar Bears. The text includes many first person accounts of the bears’ caretakers.
The text uses kid-friendly language and naturally includes academic and content vocabulary to enhance comprehension of the topic. The author includes two different levels of text in a very natural way where beginning readers could read the less complex text and feel as if they are reading the entire text. The two styles of text are not repetitive, but each adds meaning to the text entirety.
I recommend this book for at home reading, but it would be even more useful in the classroom. Teachers would be able to address multiple language and content standards while taking advantage of children's interest in animals.
The author, Joanne Ryder, is somewhat of an expert in this area. She has been a docent at the San Francisco Zoo and is well known as a conservationist. She has written several other books for children in the same genre as A Pair of Polar Bears. The text includes many first person accounts of the bears’ caretakers.
The text uses kid-friendly language and naturally includes academic and content vocabulary to enhance comprehension of the topic. The author includes two different levels of text in a very natural way where beginning readers could read the less complex text and feel as if they are reading the entire text. The two styles of text are not repetitive, but each adds meaning to the text entirety.
I recommend this book for at home reading, but it would be even more useful in the classroom. Teachers would be able to address multiple language and content standards while taking advantage of children's interest in animals.
August 27, 2018
Informational/ Nonfiction
Summary:
Two twin polar bears begin their journey alone and helpless. Their life takes a turn for the better when they are moved to the San Diego Zoo where they are taken care of. The day to day life of the polar bears is available for readers to enjoy.
Evaluation:
I absolutely loved this book. I loved the way that it shows the life of the polar bears, not only in the text but also in the photographs. The captions of the pictures also enhance the reading and assist in showing the reader exactly what the author is wanting to point out. My favorite picture comes from the page where the cubs are climbing on the crates and logs. The author shows a caption where the reader can have insight to why the polar bears were placed into this setting and how it is preparing them for their future home.
Activity:
For this read aloud, I would first read the story to the students. Then, I would read the story showing the pictures without captions. Finally, I would read the captions to the students and show them how it enhances the reading. The students could then draw a picture and write a caption that explains the picture to the teacher. This could be a lesson in the nonfiction unit in 3rd grade.
Summary:
Two twin polar bears begin their journey alone and helpless. Their life takes a turn for the better when they are moved to the San Diego Zoo where they are taken care of. The day to day life of the polar bears is available for readers to enjoy.
Evaluation:
I absolutely loved this book. I loved the way that it shows the life of the polar bears, not only in the text but also in the photographs. The captions of the pictures also enhance the reading and assist in showing the reader exactly what the author is wanting to point out. My favorite picture comes from the page where the cubs are climbing on the crates and logs. The author shows a caption where the reader can have insight to why the polar bears were placed into this setting and how it is preparing them for their future home.
Activity:
For this read aloud, I would first read the story to the students. Then, I would read the story showing the pictures without captions. Finally, I would read the captions to the students and show them how it enhances the reading. The students could then draw a picture and write a caption that explains the picture to the teacher. This could be a lesson in the nonfiction unit in 3rd grade.
March 18, 2024
This book is all about a pair of polar bear siblings. They go through the struggle of trying to find a home that will best suit them. This book is a nonfiction book that tells a true story of these two polar bear cubs. My friend recommended this book to me, so that is why I read this book. Although it is a nonfiction text, I believe that kids will really like the story and want to read it over and over again especially if they have developed a fascination for animals. I thought this book was okay, it was not my favorite and pretty forgettable. I would not add this book to my personal library, I did not enjoy it and although it is nonfiction, it was not very educational for the kids. I think kids would like it because of the pictures in the book and because it is about polar bears which are admittedly pretty cool. However, as the one reading it, I do not think that I would want to read this book endlessly to kids. I think if the kids enjoy it enough they would one day want to add it to their library. I think that this book was fun and had a cute story, but I just do not see myself wanting to read it again.
February 5, 2022
I picked this up on a whim at the library and was surprised at how bad (low quality) the pictures are. The prose was fine - I liked that there was some writing for younger readers and a bit more information available for others - but the photos were a disappointment.
May 29, 2019
I thought this book was very good. enjoyed the journey that the polar bear cubs went on to survive after they had been abandoned.
January 25, 2023
This wasn't the book I was planning on using in my preschool storytime today, but it worked pretty well to read just the bold text and show the photos.
February 21, 2014
I enjoyed reading the story of the twin polar bears from Alaska. It was fun to read the facts about the siblings such as how much they love and protect each other. I liked how they had bigger text you could read to a younger audience, and then smaller words that contain more facts for a more mature audience. I love the San Diego zoo. It was fun to hear stories about animals that really live there. Great pictures too!
November 5, 2014
I really enjoyed this picture book on a set of twin polar bears and their journey from Alaska to a zoo in California. Something that really stood out to me was that it had captions to read for the kids' level of comprehension, and it also had background stories & more information for adults to enjoy.
March 1, 2014
I thought this was a fun book. It teaches about animal rescue and teaches the life styles of polar bears. I like that they described the personalities of the two bears. I think that would help children see that it isn't only humans that have personalities.
November 26, 2010
Genre: Non-Fiction Copyright: 2008
Love this story of bears making their way from the wild to the Zoo. The photos are beautiful, but best of all this book is easy to read for my begining readers!!!
Love this story of bears making their way from the wild to the Zoo. The photos are beautiful, but best of all this book is easy to read for my begining readers!!!
March 11, 2013
Animal behavior
Grades: 2 - 5
Grades: 2 - 5
April 21, 2017
The story of orphan twin polar bears, found in Alaska and their new home at that the San Diego Zoo. Written on two levels.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews