Jennifer Whelan and Deirdre Brandner on their new 'Bear' series of books for young children

Good Reading Podcast

In 'Bear Learns How to be a Rainbow' winter is coming and Bear is feeling sad, lonely and scared. But Bear discovers he can be the sun and as bright as the daylight sky. But what will Bear do when the rainbow disappears and winter arrives? Bear loves eating blueberries and reading. In 'Do Bears Who Eat Blueberries Go Bananas?' Bear reads something that makes him feel worried. This 'sticky thought' follows Bear everywhere but his friend Kookaburra has a plan that will help Bear chase that sticky thought away. With Jennifer Whelan’s whimsical illustrations and engaging storylines, and Deirdre Brandner’s practical toolkit resource, children's troubling thoughts and emotions are addressed in fun and uniquely engaging Bear adventures. In this episode Gregory Dobbs chats to author and illustrator Jennifer Whelan and educational psychologist Deirdre Brandner about the importance of addressing troubling emotions in young children, and the simple storylines and attractive colourful illustrations that underpin their evidence-based approach to building self-regulation in young children.