Introduction

A Teddy Bear Tale

This story has evolved over time
thanks to counselors, friends,
storytellers and a special artist

We all hope it helps you
mend a child's mind and heart

Click here to view the seven slides in order

Some ways to use the slide show

1. You can tell the story of the Teddy who faced a disaster, but whose community pulled together to rebuild again

2. You can show children the pictures and let them tell YOU the story, encouraging them by asking questions such as "How do you think Teddy feels seeing so much destruction?" or "What are some of the things the Teddies are doing to make things better?"

(We don't advise letting children view the slides on their own because they may not know how to interpret them. The involvement of a knowledgeable, caring adult helps children effectively process their thoughts, feelings, and experiences)

Possible Goals You Can Work Toward

1. Help children identify and express their feelings. Let them know that their feelings are OK.

2. Encourage older children to develop a way to create a memorial or rebuild their community (eg. plant a garden) This gives them a sense of control over their lives and begins the healing process.

3. It is important to assure children that the grownups in their lives will make life safe for them again. Kids need to know they can count on us "big Teddies" to be there for them.

Why Teddy Bears? Teddy Bears are a symbol of love and comfort. They are not defined by ethnicity, race, religion, sex, color, age or creed. They will adapt to your children and to your culture and circumstances.They are equal opportunity friends.	These seven simple slides are a gift to you and the children you are helping. We recommend that you give each child his or her own Teddy to hold and keep. They may even act out the story as you go along. We've seen Teddies inspire some amazing things and we know they'll work their hardest for you.

Why Teddy Bears?

Teddy Bears are a symbol of love
and comfort. They are not defined by ethnicity, race, religion, sex, color,
age or creed. They will adapt to your children and to your culture
and circumstances.They are equal opportunity friends.

These seven simple slides are a gift to you and the children you are helping.

We recommend that you give each child his or her own Teddy to hold and keep.

They may even act out the story as you go along. We've seen Teddies inspire some amazing things and we know they'll work their hardest for you.

Chronology of Slides (this is one suggested story line; feel free to adapt)

1. Teddy is sleeping peacefully

2. A terrible disaster occurs that changes Teddy's life

3. Teddy sees many scary things happening

4. Teddy sees many other Teddies coming to the rescue

5. Things are getting fixed up by the grown-up Teddies

6. Teddy sees Teddy doctors, teachers, police and fire bears, parents, builders, (ask kids who else they see) working together to make the world safe again for all the little Teddies and bring back happiness

7. Even though things will never be the same, in time, Teddy is able to have fun, sleep and have peaceful dreams again.

Click here to view the seven slides in order

If you would like your own copy of the slides, try holding down your mouse (right side for PCs) button on each slide. You should see a menu pop up. One of the selections should be "save this image as" (or something similar). Click on that option and the computer will open your hard drive. Decide where you want to store the slide(s) (you might want to make a new folder) and give it a name. The slides should store as gifs or jpegs, which you can then insert into PowerPoint or any other type document. We hope this works for you. If not, and you've figured out some other way to download the slides, let us know and we'll share it here for others to try.

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