CHILDREN STORY: Before the Icecaps Melted

This is a story of a Polar Bear mom and her 2 cubs. Please print it for your kids to introduce them to the Polar Bear conservation efforts and to inspire them to save animals. Enjoy! *Click here if you would like to print a coloring page.

Gather around, little ones! It’s time for a bedtime story.” Mama polar bear said to her two cubs. The two younger bears laid down in front of their mother. “What story are you going to tell us, mama?” One cub asked. “Tonight, I’m going to tell you a story about how wonderful the icecaps were when I was a cub!” She exclaimed in response. “Are the icecaps bad now? What’s changed?” The cubs asked.

“Well, when I was a cub, the icecaps were HUGE! There was more polar bears around too! We were thriving. There was thousands of fish in the ocean! Everything was perfect until…” Mama polar bear paused. “Until what, mama?” One cub asked. “Until global warming began.” Mama polar bear explained. “What’s that?” The cubs asked. “Global warming is when the temperature slowly starts to get hotter. It’s caused by humans and their cars and factories… Because of them, our icecaps started melting. Suddenly, our homes were smaller and there was not as many fish. Many of my friends were forced to move away because their homes had melted away.” She explained.

“Grr!” The cub growled, “Humans are the worst!” “No, no. Not all of them! Only a few are bad. Some humans know about what’s going on here in Antartica and are trying to help!” She replied. “How are they helping us, mama?” Her cub questioned. “Well, some of them carpool! For example, some human parents take their kids and their kid’s friends to school in order to save gas! Or, some human parents walk their children to school! Other ways they help is by conserving water by taking shorter showers and by turning off the water when they brush their teeth!” Mama polar bear answered. “Does that really help us?” The cubs asked. “Yes, it does! If every human made subtle changes, our icecaps could come back and there would be more of us!” Mama polar bear shouted. “Now, get to bed, little ones. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow!” Mama polar bear said. “But mama?” One of the cubs asked. “Yes, dear?” Mama polar bear replied. “Do you think that every human will try to help us?” The cubs asked. “I know they will! Some humans just don’t know about what’s happening to us yet. But they tell their friends and family about the ways they can help! Then, those people tell THEIR friends and family and the cycle continues! We just have to hope that everyone who hears our story tells the people around them about ways to help.” Mama polar bear answered. “So there’s hope?” The cubs asked. “Yes, my loves, there is. Goodnight, now!” Mama polar bear said before kissing her cubs on their foreheads.