It all started in the wilderness.

The couple went camping, and to occupy their time in the tent, they told each other stories. Inspired by the natural world they encountered, the stories revolved around the imagined adventures of various animals.

Who knew that this knack for sharing stories would become an educational business enterprise?

Langley residents Catherine and David Scherer are the authors of “The Adventures of Simon and Barklee,” a third- and fourth-grade series that features the intelligent and operatic canary Simon T. McTwill and Barklee, the endearing and fearless flop-eared terrier who is his loyal companion.

Together these globetrotting best friends star in this series of books that takes children through a world of exploration and adventure.

The Scherers became interested in creating the Simon and Barklee books after Catherine published “The Internationalists, Business Strategies for Globalization,” a book that provides a field map for people working in all aspects of the international business world.

While researching that book, which required extensive world travel, Catherine was struck by the complete lack of awareness that she saw among many Americans regarding other countries.

“I realized that if we are to survive in a global economy, then we need to find a way to grow global thinkers,” Catherine Scherer said.

Thus began the pair’s quest to educate young Americans about the rich variety of people, places and cultures around the world.

The first book was published in 2001, and to date the team has created a series that includes, “Simon and Barklee in France,” “Simon and Barklee in England,” “Simon and Barklee in Germany,” “Simon and Barklee in West Africa,” “Simon and Barklee in Egypt” and “Simon and Barklee in Mexico.”

Besides designing the books with plot lines that include the edge-of-your-seat predicaments of a fussy bird and his compassionate dog companion, the books also include colorful and action-packed illustrations by Oregon artist Kara Richardson.

Traveling with Simon and Barklee, students learn the reality of New World regions and countries, discover new vocabulary and how to pronounce foreign-language phrases. They learn about currency exchange, geographic facts and the animals of the region, time zones, the history of foreign lands, and get an overall sense of all that’s happening in distant parts of the world.

“I’m an international businesswoman,” Scherer said. “Recently, I set out to see what had changed in the 10 years since writing my first book.” (Scherer has been commissioned to write a second edition of “The Internationalists,” which will be released in the spring.)

“I wanted to see if it was still important to want to further the idea of global thinking. What I found was that it is more important now than ever before,” she said. “And the most important thing is curiosity. That’s the big driver of these books — building curiosity in global thinkers.”

The Scherers have decided the market is no longer ripe for paper books and have decided to continue the series only in a CD format. Catherine Scherer has already finished the manuscripts for “Simon and Barklee in Central America” and a three-disc series of “Simon and Barklee in China.”

“The wonderful thing is that these books start from the standpoint of the animals,” David Scherer said. “Simon is very smart and Barklee is all heart.”

The Scherers said the characters are observers who make no judgements about what they see. There is no stereotyping of foreign customs and cultures. The lesson plans that are included in each book invite teachers and homeschoolers to enter into a discussion with students to form opinions about what they’ve learned.

Each book is offered with an optional activity package. The “FunBook” extends the story, with projects in reading and writing, world currencies, mapping skills and culture and traditions.

The books have been sold nationally, mainly to schools, in 12 states, and the Scherers are looking forward to partnering with a technology company for the digital series.

The response from teachers from across the country has been overwhelmingly positive, and many remarks point to the sheer entertaining quality of the series that manages to spark children’s imaginations and a desire to know more about the world.

Jennifer Gandarias, a third- and fourth-grade teacher at South Whidbey Elementary School, was impressed with the books when she introduced them several years ago.

“My class started the ‘Simon and Barklee in Germany’ book today, and I have to tell you that they are on fire. I couldn’t get them to stop reading and move on to other things,” she said.

Thanks to the advances in technology and the shrinking global culture, Catherine Scherer said worldly research is much easier to do these days. She uses Skype — the software application that allows users to make voice calls over the Internet — to conduct interviews, eliminating the need to transcribe from a dictaphone or to get on an airplane often.

Basically, the Scherers, who are grandparents actively involved in the developing minds of young people who are close to them, are passionate about raising the level of education.

“We want kids to recognize the customs of other cultures, to understand other parts of the world, and most important, to accept it,” David Scherer said.

To learn more about the Scherers’ books, to visit their Web site, click here.