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Winnie the Pooh: Canadian Roots

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Winnie the Pooh: Canadian Roots Winnie The Pooh: Canadian Roots Colton Thomsen Henry Braun School Mrs. Kot (Grade 6) Winnie The Pooh: Canadian Roots By Colton Thomsen Grade 6 (Mrs. Kot), Henry Braun School Introduction We all know about Winnie the Pooh the character, but have you ever wanted to learn about who inspired Winnie the Pooh and the connection to Canada? I did. In my research, I learned about Winnie the bear, how she got her name, and how she inspired A.A Milne to write children’s books about her. The stories written about Winnie have been read by children all over the world since 1926 and have affected our childhood ever since. Did you know Winnie is from Ontario? In my report, I will tell you more about where she came from and other interesting things and fun facts. Who is Winnie the Pooh The character, Winnie the Pooh, was inspired by an American black bear cub, who became an orphan once a hunter killed her mother. In August 1914, the bear cub was found by a trapper who brought her to White River, Ontario, a place where people can have pet bears. It was there the cub was met by a soldier Lieutenant Harry Colebourn from Winnipeg, who adopted her and named her Winnie for his hometown Winnipeg. A couple of months later, Coleburn had to go to World War I and had to leave Winnie. He left her to live in the London Zoo until he came back. “Take good care of Winnie for me” Harry explained, to the other soldier the soldier asked “Why Winnie?” and Harry said, “For my home town Winnipeg”. Ten years later she was still in the London Zoo where Winnie was so kind to kids they could ride her, and she would not get mad at them. A little boy named Christopher Robin loved coming to the London Zoo with his father, Alan Alexander (A.A.) Milne to visit Winnie from 1928 to 1929. Christopher asked, “Dad can't we just keep Winnie?” His dad laughed and said, “Tell you what I will do. I will write books about Winnie and my friend will draw the pictures”. Then Christopher said, “ we should name it Winnie the Pooh. ( from the swan he was taking care of and the sound he made when he blew on its feathers). 1 The Books About Winnie the Pooh The books were written by A.A Milne after his son Christopher inspired him to write books. His first book was written in 1926 based on a bear named Winnie and the adventures that he was going to take. The stories are set in the 100 Acres Woods based on the Ashdown Forests, East Sussex, England. A. A Milne has written four ​ books called Winnie the Pooh in 1926, and When we were Six in 1927, and The House at Pooh Corner in 1928, plus a children’s verse book in 1924. One of the Winnie the Pooh books was about A.A Milne's son's birthday. A.A. Milne got all his animal ideas from the London Zoo like the tiger who is Tigger. Winnie the Pooh books have been written for each season (winter, fall, spring, summer). In 1961, the rights to Winnie the Pooh books were bought by Disney. Becoming Famous Winnie inspired A.A Milne to write kids' books for his son and the children in London, making Winnie famous by the poems and stories. Winnie started to get very famous by the t.v. show Winnie the Pooh in 1952 and the movies. In 1977, Disney started to turn the books into kid's movies. There would be no Winnie without Harry Colebourn and A.A Milne. Winnie would also not be famous without her shows. How Did She Affect Our Childhood Winnie has been one of the best-known children characters since making her debut with A.A Milne. Winnie appeared in the show the Pooh Corner from 1983 to 1986 and again in the 2018 movie Christopher Robin and many more. The story of Winnie did not become famous until 1980 where she got famous. Winnie our childhood with her show she made when we were kids. Winnie the Pooh has shown us how to be a good person in life and enjoy life. A.A Milne's stories about Winnie have impacted our childhood by teaching us about how to be grateful, friendship and kindness. Some of the many lessons Winnie has shown us include: ○ Hard Work - Stories about Winnie the Pooh taught us if we want to achieve something we have to work hard for it. This means that if you want good grades or to do well at sports or make new friends you have to put in the work, try your best and not give up. 2 ○ Gratitude - Winnie taught us to be thankful for the things we have like our house and food, and for the people in our lives. Being grateful can help you have a happier life. ○ Friendship- Winnie the Pooh and friends have taught us that you have to ​ work hard to keep your friends because life without friends can be pretty difficult and lonely. ○ Kindness- Winnie has taught us to be kind because it can make ​ someone's day, by showing someone a little kindness you can make someone's bad day into a good day. For example, if they were being bullied and they are sad you could ask if they wanted to eat lunch with you or play with your friends. ○ Don't judge - Winnie taught us how to not judge people by how they look or how they speak. She also taught us to accept who people are and be friends with them. ○ Patience - Winnie the Pooh stories taught us about not rushing through things, slowing down and taking your time to enjoy life. ○ Love - Winnie the Pooh and friends taught us not to take love for granted. You have to work for it, be patient, be kind, and be honest. Conclusion Winnie the Pooh is an American black bear from White River, Ontario, named after Harry's hometown of Winnipeg. Winnie lived at the London Zoo where she met Christopher Robin and his father, A.A Milne. Winnie inspired A.A Milne to write children's books about her. The first book of Winnie the Pooh was published in 1926. The stories about Winnie the Pooh have taught us to be grateful, to be kind and to value friendship and more. If this small gentle bear, from a Canadian town never lived at the London Zoo, we never would have met and enjoyed the stories about Winnie the Pooh. 3 Bibliography 1. “90 Weird and Wonderful Facts about Winnie-the-Pooh | CBC Books.” CBCnews, ​ ​ CBC/Radio Canada, 18 Jan. 2019, www.cbc.ca/books/90-weird-and-wonderful-facts-about-winnie-the-pooh-1.4089859 . 2. 10 Fun Facts About Winnie The Pooh. (2017, January 11). Retrieved from https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/61099/10-fun-facts-about-winnie-pooh 3. Klein, C. (2016, October 13). The True Story of the Real-Life Winnie-the-Pooh. Retrieved from http://history.com/news/the-true-story-of-the-real-life-winnie-the-pooh 4. Winter, C. (2019, April 10). 6 Life Lessons We Can Learn From Winnie-the-Pooh And Friends. Retrieved from https://www.aconsciousrethink.com/4571/life-lessons-from-winnie-pooh-and-friends 5. 20 profoundly important things we learned from Winnie the Pooh. (2017, April 15). Retrieved from https://brightside.me/inspiration-relationships/20-profoundly-important-things-we-lea rned-from-winnie-the-pooh-102455/ 6. Lowne, C. (2018, November 26). Winnie-the-Pooh. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/Winnie-the-Pooh-childrens-stories-by-Milne 7. IImportant Lessons and Teachings from Winnie Pooh. (n.d.). Retrieved from ​ https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/happiness-is-state-mind/201810/importa nt-lessons-and-teachings-winnie-pooh 4 .
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