The Berenstain Bears Forget Their Manners

As a mom constantly reminding my kids about "please" and "thank you," this Berenstain Bears book has become our family's perfect conversation starter about manners. When Mama Bear gets fed up with her family's rude behavior and introduces the "Politeness Plan," my children giggle at the Bears' bad habits while simultaneously recognizing their own slip-ups. The charming illustrations of Papa Bear burping and the cubs forgetting their table manners make it easy for kids to see why good manners matter, without feeling like they're being lectured. This has become our most-reached-for book whenever we need a gentle reminder about being polite, and the improvement chart idea from the story even inspired us to create our own family manners show more challenge. show less

The Berenstain Bears Forget Their Manners is another didactic story, telling how Sister and Brother and Papa Bear behave rudely, and poor, saintly Mama Bear must bring them back from the brink of barbarism.

The story, such as it is, is simple and direct. Mama's family is behaving rudely, and she will not stand for it. She tries coaxing, complaining, and shouting, and she tries enlisting Papa Bear to shout at the children, and none of these things cause them to be more polite. Eventually, she creates "The Bear Family Politeness Plan," a list of 'rudenesses' and 'penalties' that she hopes will effect the changes she wishes to see. The cubs, too clever for their own good, decide that they will be so overly polite that Mama will get sick of show more it and give up on the whole idea. Their plan doesn't work, and eventually they're just polite out of habit. Mama wins again.

It's probably clear from my tone that I don't care for this book. As entertainment, it is a failure. I suspect that its sole purpose is as a prop for parents to justify similar 'politeness plans' for their own children.

...

(The full review is posted on my blog.) show less

I really liked this book because, for one, I love all Berenstain Bears books. (I read all of them/had all of them as a child) I really like how on the first page, with the title, there is an "etiquette for bears" note and it says, "'Please' and 'Thank you' Help quite a lot. To make a polite bear out of one who is not." I like this because it really sets the tone for the book and is already giving clues to what the actual story is about because in the beginning, Brother and Sister Bear are both arguing and aren't using their manners. However, after being taught by Mama and Papa Bear, they learn how to correct their actions and how to be polite. For example, in the beginning, they would forget "please" and "thank you" or rude pushes show more instead of an, "excuse me" and even name calling, such as, "silly head, fuzz brain, and noodle puss." At the end of the story, they were saying things like, "terribly sorry to have kept you waiting," and "excuse me, brother dear!" To get Brother and Sister Bear to this point, Mama implemented a "Bear Family Politeness Plan" where if you did something that wasn't polite like, "name calling," you had a penalty like, "clean the cellar." I really liked that this was how the manners were implemented because it really gave a reason for the Bears to be polite. I also really like that the manner rules not only applied to Sister and Brother Bear, but to Papa and Mama bear as well because it showed the children that it is not only them who need to learn how to improve their manners. For example, Papa Bear interrupted Mama Bear at some point and Mama says, "Thank you, Papa, for your comment. But interrupting is number three on the Rude List, and the penalty is dusting the downstairs."

The big message in this story is, obviously, the importance of using manners. In the beginning, Brother and Sister Bear have no use of manners and after Mama implements the "Bear Family Politeness Plan," the cubs both decide to be "overly polite" so that Mama will get fed up and drop the plan. However, the cubs get into the routine of being polite to each other and forget about the plan all together. This also says something about, once you do things enough times over and over again, it begins to become a routine and not something that you think about. I think that Brother and Sister developing these manners without even thinking after a while, is a prime example of that. show less

The Berenstain Bears Forget Their Manners by Stan Berenstain has always been one of my favorite childhood books. I’ve always loved the Berenstain Bears series because of the fun stories and the important lessons they teach. In this book, Mama Bear helps the whole family remember their manners after everyone starts forgetting to be polite. I liked how the story showed that everyone makes mistakes sometimes, but we can always learn and do better. The characters are so relatable, and the lesson about kindness and respect still sticks with me today. Stan Berenstain’s stories always had a perfect mix of humor, heart, and helpful lessons—one of the many reasons I’ve loved his books since I was a kid.

Some would call this book cheesy, and the whole chore/rudeness thing seemed a bit over the top, but manners are always good to know. This was published way back in the 1980's but given how shitty kids (and adults) can be today this is definitely one of the much-needed Berenstain Bear books.

There's a reason this is one of the most popular Berenstain Bears books. The pacing of the story is exquisite, and the illustrations and descriptions of the ways the various family members forget their manners - and in which Mama Bear reminds them - are hilarious.

This story is an enjoyable read especially with children at home. Mama Bear has noticed that her family has forgotten their manners and they are being rude to each other including Papa Bear. They are forgetting to say "Please" and "Thank you." They are pushing without saying, "Excuse Me" and reaching across the dinner table. Mama Bear tried coaxing, complaining and shouting to no avail. She tries to get Papa's help, but she quickly realizes that he is part of the problem. At her wit's end, Mama creates a Politeness Plan to get the family's attention. For every rude act, there is a penalty. The plan seems to be working because Mama has noticed a change for the better in the treehouse. Her family is back to minding their manners and all show more is well. Even at the end of the story when the family experiences a fender bender, Papa remains calm and polite and the other bear is reminded to use his own manners.

The story reminds children to not only use their manners, but gives examples such as using "Please and Thank you" as well as "Excuse Me." Showing the children that using a chart or plan can help prompt a person to be mindful of using their manners. The students see that the children learn their lesson and begin using their manners out of habit not just because of the politeness plan. show less