I fell in love with the Paddington books when I was eight. I remember because for Christmas that year I received a stuffed Paddington bear- which I still have- and the complete set of Paddington books. Over the years I’ve loved sharing the books, first with kids I taught in traditional school, and then with my own kids. If you’re reading A Bear Called Paddington and want to make a unit study as you introduce your kids to Paddington, the ideas in this post will help.
This post is part of the 31 Days of Literature Unit Ideas series. You can find all of the books in the series here. You can get this literature unit study as well as 44 others and lots of great literature unit study resources here in my free ebook The Ultimate Book of Unit Studies for Literature Lovers.
This unit study is a little different from the previous ones in the series. I’m still sharing extension ideas to go along with the book. But I’m structuring things a little differently. The Paddington books are a series of stories about the wild adventures and scrapes of little Paddington, with each chapter sharing a new story. I’ve structured this study to include several ideas to complete along with each chapter. Although the book could easily be read aloud even to younger kids, the lengthier descriptions have usually made it better for mid-upper elementary.
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The Story
The Brown family is at Paddington Station in London to pick up their children from school when they come across a small bear. With no one around to take responsibility for him, they discover that he has a tag: “Please look after this bear.” As it turns out, he’s come from Darkest Peru from his Aunt Lucy. The Browns take pity on him and decide to take him home. But even before they can leave the station, Paddington has quite an experience with a bun and some tea.
Activities
- Learn more about the Paddington Railway Station on this site. (Scroll down to see information about the railway’s history.
- Michael Bond was inspired to have the character of Paddington seated alone wearing a tag by the real life sites of child evacuees during World War 2. Read more about the children who were evacuated from London during the war on this BBC site for kids.
- Learn some interesting facts about London in the 1950s from this site.
- This short video is actual footage from London in the 1950s.
- Paddington comes from Darkest Peru where his aunt Lucy has moved to a home for retired bears. Learn more about Peru at National Geographic Kids here.
- Paddington has quite an adventure during his first English tea time. You can throw your own tea party with some of these ideas.
Book list
The Story
Paddington arrives at the home of the Browns- Number 32 Windsor Gardens. He’s rather sticky from his tea time adventures, so the Brown’s daughter, Judy hurries him upstairs for a bath. Left to his own devices, even bath time can be a hazard for Paddington.
Activities
- Paddington learns how much water the Brown’s bathtub holds the hard way. Use the calculations on this site to figure out how many gallons of water your tub holds. Or take the longer- and often more fun- route and measure water in gallon jugs to see how much the tub holds.
- Paddington has quite an adventure involving shaving cream. Here’s a fun science experiment/art project you can try with shaving cream.
- Paddington got in trouble with the shaving cream because he was drawing a map of his travels. Use this website to create a map of all the states you’ve visited. You can print or share your map.
- The Brown’s daughter Judy is quite taken with Paddington from the start and wants the family to keep him. Write your own paragraph with what you would say to persuade your parents to keep Paddington.
Booklist
- Super Simple Things to Do With Water: Fun and Easy Science for Kids by Kelly Doudna
- Maps and Globes by Jack Knowlton
- Follow That Map: A First Book of Mapping Skills by Scott Ritchie
The Story
Paddington needs to be outfitted as a proper English gentleman, um, bear. So he heads off on a shopping trip with the ladies of the house. When they enter the underground railway station, Paddington immediately steps in trouble.
Activities
- Paddington has quite an adventure riding the underground London trains. This video will give a glimpse of riding the underground now. Talk about what may have been different in the 1950s when Paddington was written.
- Paddington had the opportunity to meet policemen on his adventure. Learn more about policemen and women in London here.
- Paddington has a little trouble with the escalators on his trip. Read this article from How Stuff Works to find out how an escalator works.
- Paddington’s story is humorous, but being lost in a strange place can be frightening. Read this web page for some good ideas to follow if you get lost or separated from parents on a trip.
Booklist
- Top 10 London by DK Publishing (not necessarily for kids, but it’s a travel guide with some great photos)
- Kids’ London by Simon Adams
- A Walk in London by Salvatore Rubbino
The Story
Paddington finally makes it into the shops, but, as always, things seem to go wrong. He’s not particularly agreeable about some of his new clothing. And trouble really pops up when he unknowingly falls into a window display.
Activities
- Paddington’s big shopping trip takes place in London, but it’s interesting to learn about how shopping in England in the 1950s is different from modern times. Read this article in which the author fondly remembers shopping in a small English village outside of London in the 1950s.
- Check out this site for a list of the top ten large department stores in London today. You can read about them and see pictures. What do you think has changed from the description of Paddington’s trip to Barkridges?
- Paddington has the company of a pack of dogs all day because he has surreptitiously stored some bacon in his ever present briefcase. Read this article to learn more about what people foods are safe for dogs.
- Paddington has a little trouble falling into a window display in the department store. Make your own diorama of a department store window. You can choose what you want to sell in your store and arrange the display. This article has information on how to create a diorama.
Booklist
The Story
Paddington has learned about “Old Master” paintings from his friend Mr. Gruber. He’s excited to find that, occasionally, under a modern painting, there is a classic from a famous artist. He’s so excited about the idea that he, unfortunately, decides to do his own checking for an Old Master…on a painting Mr. Brown is entering into an art contest.
Activities
- Read about the “Old Master” artists on this site. Choose one or more to research further. (There are links to quite a few.)
- Look at the pictures on this site to see some beautiful images of paintings by some of the Old Masters.
- Choose an artist and use the ideas on this page to create a work of art in that artist’s style.
- Watch this video slideshow to see examples of ten pieces of art from famous artists.
- As a family project, hold your own art show. Give each member time to create a work in the style of a master artist- from the website above. Display the pictures and invite family to come and look. You can even add some refreshments to make it a real party.
Booklist
- 13 Artists Kids Should Know by Angela Wenzel
- Child’s Introduction to Art: The World’s Greatest Paintings and Sculptures by Heather Alexander
- Children’s Book of Art by D.K. Publishing
- Can You Find It Inside? Search and Discover for Young Art Lovers by Jessica Schulte
The Story
Paddington’s first trip to the theater turns into an adventure for the whole family. Paddington enjoys the play so much that it seems real to him. Wanting to rescue the heroine of the play, Paddington seeks out the adversarial character during intermission to try to right the wrongs.
Activities
- Paddington has many adventures during his theater visit. Learn about the history of theater during different time periods from this site.
- This site is filled with fun performing arts activities. Get the family involved by choosing a few to do with your family.
- This page has some fun interviews with real people who work in theater. Read about their jobs in the theater.
- Check out this diagram to learn about the parts of the theater.
Booklist
- On Stage: Theater Games and Activities for Kids by Lisa Bany-Winters
- Break a Leg!: The Kids Guide to Acting and Stagecraft by Lise Friedman and Mary Dowdle
- Acting and Theater by Cheryl Evans
The Story
The Browns take Paddington on his first trip to the seaside. From trouble with a photographer to a sand castle contest to an unexpected voyage, Paddington once again finds adventure.
Activities
- Paddington greatly enjoyed his visit to the seaside. Look at this site to see some great pictures and read about the beaches near London where Paddington may have visited.
- On this site you can read some fun facts about the ocean.
- This travel site for kids has some great information about each of the world’s oceans. Read about them and look at where they are on the map. Which ocean would Paddington have visited?
- Paddington was very interested in having his picture taken. On this site you can read about the history of photography and how it has changed over the years. There are also some fun photography related activities here.
Booklist
- Click, Click, Click: Photography for Children by George Sullivan
- Camera: A History of Photography from Daguerreotype to Digital by Todd Gustavson and George Eastman House
The Story
The Browns honor Paddington’s birthday. His gift is a magic set because he’s been quite interested in magic shows he’s seen. They throw a birthday party for him, inviting his friend Mr. Gruber. Their crotchety neighbor- who isn’t a fan of Paddington- invites himself because of the food. When Paddington presents a magic show for his guests, things don’t go exactly as planned.
Activities
- Paddington is very interested in his magic set. Many magic “tricks” have science behind them. Watch this video for ten cool magic experiments with a scientific explanation.
- Learn how to do your own magic tricks to do a show for your family.
- This site has ten fun magic tricks that are based on science. Try your hand at these chemistry experiments/magic tricks.
- This is another fun site with an explanation of how a few magical powers are explained with science.
Booklist
- Big Magic for Little Hands by Joshua Jay
- Kids’ Magic Secrets: Simple Magic Tricks and Why They Work by Loris Bree
- The Everything Kids’ Magical Science Experiments Book by Tom Robinson
Other resources…
- Harper Collins has a set of free, printable discussion questions for A Bear Called Paddington.
- This official Paddington website has information about the author, Michael Bond, the book series, the newer movie, and more.
- This site has some great Paddington color sheets.
- This site, which talks about the Paddington movie, has some great activity sheets.
- This site has some fun ideas for a Paddington birthday party. You could also use the ideas to have a party at the end of your unit study.
- You can find the Paddington movie here.
You can get this literature unit study as well as 44 others and lots of great literature unit study resources here in my free ebook The Ultimate Book of Unit Studies for Literature Lovers.
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