THE BERENSTAIN BEARS AND THE GOLDEN RULE

Mike Berenstain continues his parents’ franchise with an evangelical emphasis in books and now in apps. Sister Bear has just received a golden locket from her parents, but she doesn’t understand what it says inside: “Do to others what you would have them do to you.” Soon enough, Sister learns the lesson when her friends at school mistreat a new student, a bear with thick glasses, braces and the wrong kinds of clothes. The app makes good use of white space on the iPad’s large screen for its text. The narration and unobtrusive navigation—just a small arrow on the bottom-left of the screen to return to the Main Menu, as in other apps from developer Oceanhouse Media—make for a reading experience without too many distractions. While some of the illustrations (particularly of clothing styles that the story directly references) seem dated, especially considering the hardware they’re being viewed on, the overall lesson is ever-timely. The issues of peer pressure and bullying are addressed with a light, skillful touch, which is reinforced at the close with the “Do unto others” verse from Matthew. (iPad storybook app. 4-8)