I’ve read Sweet Dreams Lullaby by Betsy Snyder HUNDREDS of times since it was Isabelle’s favorite bedtime book when she was a tyke. So when Ari said, “Where are the wooly bears?” when I read it aloud to him last night, I had no answer. Instead, I shot this video. (Why did I shoot it? No one really knows.)
But, yet, they were RIGHT THERE… in that last spot!
How did I figure this out? (Well, it wasn’t from googling because I was envisioning grizzly bears… or even black bears!) On the endpapers, there are constellations with the words of what they are beneath each constellation. There was one that looked like a caterpillar that said woolly bears beneath it.
“Wait a second! It says woolly bears beneath that constellation. Do you mind if I look this up on my phone?” I asked Ari since my iPhone isn’t out at bedtime.
“That’s fine,” he replied.
Moments later, I found myself on the Farmer’s Almanac site and discovered that woolly bears are caterpillars.
No wonder Isabelle never thought to ask “Where are the woolly bears?” Perhaps she knew, all along, that they were caterpillars.
Raising Literate Humans 
I feel compelled to read that book and perhaps buy it for my new grandson. I’m also trying to remember when and how I learned about wooly bears, but somehow I did know this, although I’ve not thought about it in years. *scratching my head*
Too funny! I cant imagine why you took the video but it is so perfect, as you linger on the caterpillars and say, “Not there!”
Also, this is the perfect use of that phrase, ‘I was blank age when I learned…’
Your bedtime ritual is so full of wonder. Thanks for sharing!
Haha- somehow I knew they were caterpillars, but looked around for woolly bears with you- expecting bears. A great moment for Ari to have you learn with him!
Stacey, I love the discovery here – – books lead us through so many doors! I also love that you used your phone for a book-related purpose at bedtime.
I love that you filmed this – and so perfect that you pause on the caterpillars to say “Not here!” What a perfect reason to grab that iPhone at bedtime to do a tiny bit of research!
They are interesting animals! My third graders learned about these animals in one of our test prep books. While most of the pieces there are not the most interesting, this one was. These guys can survive all sorts of things!
Wait – wooly bears are caterpillars? This is completely new information for me (though apparently not to Kathleen’s third graders!). I love this bedtime video & discussion. I love how you figured it out. What a fun moment to capture in a slice – and in multimedia! Also, Ari really does ask great questions.
I spent many a summer afternoon with three and four year olds gathering wooly bears when I was a nursery school teacher (42 years ago!). Thanks for bringing me back. Thanks for the memories. We made wooly bear houses and an entire encampment!
New information for me too. I am glad Ari asked, you learned and shared the story with us. Language is fascinating.