Little Bear (Nick Jr.)
common sense media says
Gentle, age-appropriate viewing for preschoolers.
parents & educators say
- 39% say there are positive role models
- 32% say there are positive messages
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this series is gentle, conscientious, and family-oriented. The pace is perfect for young viewers, and the plot is appropriately concise. Though the educational content is sparse, the characters' utter involvement with nature is a welcome variance from the computer-and-robot themes that dominate so many cartoons for children. Reading Homelund's book and comparing it with the TV series might be a way to delve further into this idyllic realm.
Violence & scariness:
Not applicable.
Sexy stuff:
Not applicable.
Language:
Not applicable.
Consumerism:
Not applicable.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
Not applicable.
More on Little Bear
Review It
Based on 28 parent & educator reviews:
- 39% say there are positive role models
- 32% say there are positive messages
Most useful reviews by all members
hondurab
parent of 5 year old
parent of 5 year old
Lovely series for very young, endearingly sweet for anyone!
I stumbled across our first Little Bear video at the hospital when my son had just turned one, and he's loved it since (he's 3 now)! It's so simple, sweet, calm, fun and silly, inspiring friendly, loving, imaginative and adventurous ideas. I can't overstate how clean and feel-good wholesome the stories and interactions are between all the characters... and how gently simple(but not patronizing, empty, sappy or baby-ish)and subtle the "lessons" or examples are.
Impressive. Charming. Sweet. Perfect.
There are a very few episodes that have been scary for my son...Father Bear's encounter with the angry wind, a "monster" story around the camp fire, and a couple of others. I think it's fine for there to be some that are outside of our comfort zone...we'll grow into them.
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little bears best
teen, 14 years old
teen, 14 years old
perfect for all ages 1 through 120
beat show on earth, people should live like little bear, if they did they the world would be a lot better.
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MamaLoco
parent of and 2 , 4 , 7 year old
parent of and 2 , 4 , 7 year old
Perfect for little ones!
We have loved every episode. My kids reenact them often and they never seem to tire of them. Very wholesome. No violence. I often joke that when I am feeling frazzled I just pretend to be Mother Bear and suddenly I'm baking cookies and smiling :-) Books are wonderful too.
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CTbrowncoat
parent of 4 and 7 year old
parent of 4 and 7 year old
Behold the most calming toon on TV
Hands down the best toon on TV for young ones. Has a wonderful calming effect on our kids. And the animals are all great role models - polite and kind to one another. And Duck is pretty damned funny. :-)
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piper0137
parent of 4 and 4 year old
parent of 4 and 4 year old
Perfect for little kids new to TV
This show has become a staple in our house -- our twin two year olds would rather watch this show (and read the "Little Bear" books) than do almost anything else! The characters are well-developed for a children's series, it isn't dumbed-down for toddlers or preschoolers, and it has VERY positive messages. It's also slow-paced -- there's no frenetic, MTV-style editing here -- which is great for toddlers watching TV for the first time. Our girls didn't watch TV at all until after they turned two, so we've been very selective in what they've seen. I would recommend this just as highly as I would Sesame Street; it's that good.
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jen72
adult
adult
A+++ for toddlers & pre-schoolers
My son has been watching this show since he was 2 (now just turned 4) and he still looks forward to it. Now my daughter who is almost 2 loves it as well. It is one of those gentle & quiet kind of shows that gets my kids in the settle down mode. There is absolutely nothing to worry about when they watch this show. If anything, it coaxed my son into learning all the names of the characters and made him ask questions. All good stuff for ages 2 to 4.
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Blue-Bunny
teen, 18 years old
teen, 18 years old
Peaceful fun...
Little Bear is, as CSM says, "gentle, age-appropriate viewing for preschoolers". It really calms the mind and is tons of fun for little ones. It's a peaceful, fun environment filled with interesting, funny characters. It's not annoying, like Yo Gabba Gabba (that's for sure). In fact, I even use it sometimes to help me fall asleep. The music is mellow, the atmosphere is quiet. and the characters aren't loud and obnoxious. But anyways, it's just really good, probably one of the best baby shows I've seen (don't ask me why I watch this). The role models are pretty decent and there are a few lessons. Little Bear and his friends love to play together. In other words, I recommend this to all.
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SheenaLongland
parent of 3 year old
parent of 3 year old
I don't care for the show. Personally, I find that Little Bear is a rather selfish character. BUT, my son likes it, so I make sure to watch that stupid show with him in case it gets to the point I have to explain that its not right to be selfish.
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rebma97
teen, 14 years old
teen, 14 years old
A cute show for toddlers
Little Bear is a show about this cute bear named, well, Little Bear. Anyway, most of the episodes, evolve around him doing stuff with his friends, like duck, and I think there was this cat and other animals but I forgot their names. It's not that educational, but Little Bear and his friends are good role models for kids. Anyone older than 6 may find this show boring, but it's age-appropriate and fum for kids
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TylerReview
teen, 15 years old
teen, 15 years old
Lovable Little Show!
Little Bear is a show bout' Little Bear and his family.It's obviously aimed at smaller children and has good role models(Little Bear always plays nice and learns from his elders.)The only worry is that Little Bear runs commercials on toothpaste and has a few products out there, but it's not that often you see them nowadays*mon Sense Media, you need to do something about these children who blatantly LIE about the content of a show, like "NoParentEmail".He/She should be ashamed!
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love2
parent of 19 year old
parent of 19 year old
full of giggles laughs and FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
kids ages 2-5 and maybe 6 will love this show!!!! it's age apropreat and full of giggles, laughs and FUN!
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lifeincircuit
parent of 4 and 6 year old
parent of 4 and 6 year old
beautiful series!
I so adore little bear, as do my kids. It's really lovely, with gentle music and calm story lines. Perfect to pop on while relaxing for a few minutes before bed time(or any time you need a moment of calm!).
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deswhitby
adult
adult
overall very appropriate and cute. buuuut....
there are some perilous moments - like when Little Bear and Owl imagine they are fishing on the high seas and catch an enormous, ferocious whale with gigantic teeth who threatens to eat them (yikes!!!), and the episode with the dragon which sent my 2 and 4 year olds shreaking from the room. Little Bear is the first show my children have ever seen. We have avoided media 100% with them - until now, and Little Bear has been a great choice, but parents show preview each episode for frightening content. Otherwise, it is brilliant. I only mention this because I haven't seen anyone else say anything about it, and I wish I had had a warning. Don't hesitate to allow little ones to watch it, just get familiar with the content first.
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cherry619
adult
adult
Show for nighttime
Little Bear is one of those shows for night time when things are settling down and kids are going to sleep. The gentle nature of all the characters and fun adventures that Little Bear takes us on will grab any child's mind and let them explore their creative side with make believe and also exploring nature and the things around us.
Not to mention the music score is really calming and not in your face like a lot of kids shows with all the singing and dancing.
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Elektra61306
parent
parent
Unique and calming!
I agree with some other posters who describe Little BEar as being "calming". It really is! I would put this on when my kids were infants to help calm them down, and to this day, I find it to be a fun, relaxing and very mellow cartoon. The animal characters are realistically drawn and the background music is very charming.
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MamaD407
parent of 4 year old
parent of 4 year old
Sweet and gentle for little ones
My son is watching now as I type this! He LOVES Little Bear and usually watches it right before bedtime. Amazingly, the calmness of the show helps settle him down for the night. We haven't yet read the books, but I'm planning on starting very soon.
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lightworker23
parent of 8 and 14 year old
parent of 8 and 14 year old
Little Bear the Movie!
Little Bear the Movie is not reviewed here on Common Sense, so I thought I'd take the opportunity to share that the beloved TV show is also a wonderful full length feature. It's a favorite in our house that's been watched over and over again, much more so than the TV episodes. Nothing flashy or fast, just good old Little Bear, but in long form. Wonderful story and exceptionally well done, as you would expect from Little Bear. Enjoy!
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sahminva
parent of 5 year old
parent of 5 year old
Relaxing
This is probably my favorite of all the shows my daughter watches. It is soothing, morally enlightening, friendly, and entertaining. After every episode my daughter is in such a great mood, haha. Its almost like a secret weapon...
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Gumball fan
kid, 11 years old
kid, 11 years old
It just doesn't make any sense
It gives kids positive messages, good role models and very educational but I am too old to like it.
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