By: Yoko Sasaki and 蒲蒲兰 (translator)
Originally Published in: Japan
Format: paperback
Language: Simplified Chinese
Pages per book: 19 
Lines per page: 1-4
Price per book: $1.43
Luka® can read this book!

This adorable 小熊宝宝绘本(xiǎo xióng bǎo bǎo huì běn), Baby Bear, series has been professionally translated into Chinese from the incredibly popular Japanese version. It includes fifteen lighthearted stories about baby bear and his animal friends. Young children enjoy reading these relatable and reassuring stories about things like going potty and taking turns at the playground. Meanwhile, parents we've talked to like these stories for their friendly encouragement of positive habits (e.g. when Baby Bear starts to walk away from his toys, they cry out to him that they want to be returned "home" and then thank him when he's put them away).

The amount of text on each page varies between 1 word and 4 short lines. Simple words and phrases are usually repeated throughout each book, creating especially effective repetition for language acquisition. It is a perfect first reader for any child learning Chinese vocabulary about daily routines.

If your child is ready to recognize sight words, point your finger at each character as you or Luka® reads the stories. You may be surprised by how quickly your child will recognize some seemingly complicated Chinese characters! Your child may recognize an entire book in this series and get his or her first "I can read a book" experience!    

Book titles: 小熊宝宝绘本(xiǎo xióng bǎo bǎo huì běn)

《小熊宝宝-你好》Hello There
《小熊宝宝-拉㞎㞎》Going Poop
《小熊宝宝-午饭》Lunch Time
《小熊宝宝-睡觉》Going to Bed
《小熊宝宝-大声回答“哎”》Answering Loudly
《小熊宝宝-尿床了》Who Wet the Bed?
《小熊宝宝-洗澡》Taking A Bath
《小熊宝宝-刷牙》Brushing Teeth
《小熊宝宝-我会穿短裤啦》I Can Put On My Pants Now
《小熊宝宝-收起来》Cleaning Up
《小熊宝宝-排好队，一个接一个》Taking Turns
《小熊宝宝-谁哭了》Who is Crying?
《小熊宝宝-散步》Taking a Walk
《小熊宝宝-好朋友》Good Friends
《小熊宝宝-过生日》Happy Birthday

Is my child ready for this set?

"Read to me": 
Babies and toddlers who are just learning to speak Chinese will enjoy having these books read to them Luka®or an adult.

"Read by myself": 
Children ages 3+ who are learning to read Chinese characters could use this as a first leveled reader set. Read with Luka or an adult to recognize their very first Chinese characters.

Good to know: 

JoJo-recommended books are carefully reviewed and selected. During the selection process, one of the things we pay attention to is the font of the text. Why? Because we believe in helping young children become independent Chinese readers and font matters when children are learning to read! Chinese fonts in today's print materials can be highly decorative.  More standard fonts such as 楷体 (kǎi tǐ) font make it easier for beginning language learners to recognize the strokes and structures of Chinese characters. 

Our only reservation about the Baby Bear 15-book set is that it uses a handwriting font. In the following case, the particular radical looks different from the standard 楷体 (kǎi tǐ) font, but the rest of the characters look just fine. If your child is learning to recognize Chinese characters, use it as a discussion moment about differences between handwriting and standard print fonts! 

Option to pair with Luka®:
Consider adding Luka®, the reading robot, to your order. Luka® reads 70,000 books in Mandarin Chinese! ​
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Set Luka® in front of the book, and it will read aloud any page your child turns to-- creating a unique, independent physical book reading experience even if your child isn't ready to rea

Happy learning!