Sharing – Toddler Storytime

Posted on March 8, 2017 by jeninthelibrary

This is another storytime theme inspired by one book. When I discovered Blocks by Dickson, I just knew I had to share it at a storytime.

SONG: Welcome Song

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE: sign for “Share”
sign found on Lifeprint.com

BOOK:

Mine! by Sue Heap

MOVEMENT: “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” from It’s Toddler Time by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNT & RHYME SONG:

10 Hearts (because sharing is from the heart)

Counting time, it’s counting time
So let’s all sing a simple rhyme

Ten little hearts here we go
Let’s all count them as I put them in rows.
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little hearts. again we go
Now let’s count them nice and slow
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little hearts, in neat rows
Let’s count them as away they go
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

FLANNELBOARD:
It’s So Much Fun to Share

(Adapted from A-Hunting We Will Go Flannelboard from The Flannel Board Storytelling Book by Judy Sierra. She also has a version in her Mother Goose’s Playhouse. Templates for this story found here.)

(to the tune of “The Farmer in the Dell”)
It’s so much fun to share
It’s so much fun to share
I have a hat
I’ll share with a cat
It’s so much fun to share.

Other verses:
box – fox
log – frog
boat – goat
pail – whale
wig – pig
chair – bear

I put up each item first, to give the kids and parents a chance to guess what animal we would be sharing with.

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

BOOK:

Blocks by Irene Dickson

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

VIDEO:

“The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog!” from The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog! …and more stories by Mo Willems. Based on the book by Mo Willems

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Bear and Hare Share! by Emily Gravett
Book: Banana! by Ed Vere

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS:
Read Rabbit Read – Flannel Friday: Sheila Rae’s Peppermint Stick by Kevin Henkes
Perry Public Library Storytime – Sharing and Giving
Story Time Secrets – The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins
Strathcona County Library – Storytime Themes: Kindness and Sharing

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
I was stressing out a bit about what to do as my flannelboard story, but I remembered using A-Hunting We Will Go not too long ago, and I thought that would be an easy one with just a few tweaks. ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 51 people 11 am: 42 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Shoes – Toddler Storytime

Posted on February 23, 2017 by jeninthelibrary

Shoes are super. They protect your feet, can come in fun patterns, and sometimes even light up! Our toddler storytime this week celebrated this sole superhero.

SONG: Welcome Song

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE: sign for “Shoe”

taken from Costello, Elaine Ph.D. Random House Webster’s American Sign Language Dictionary. 1994.

BOOK:

My New Shoes by Leilani Sparrow, illustrated by Dan Taylor

MOVEMENT: “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” from It’s Toddler Time by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNT & RHYME SONG:

10 Shoes

Counting time, it’s counting time
So let’s all sing a simple rhyme

Ten little shoes here we go
Let’s all count them as I put them in rows.
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little shoes, again we go
Now let’s count them nice and slow
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little shoes, in neat rows
Let’s count them as away they go
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

FLANNELBOARD:
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes

Based on the story by Eric Litwin, with art by James Dean
To make my Pete, I used the cover image as my template. The white shoes are removeable though, so Pete has cat feet.

Pete the Cat has a new pair of white shoes that he loves, but as he sets about his day, he encounters many different things that change the color of his shoes.
First, a large pile of strawberries turns his shoes red! (I placed the red colored shoes on top of the white ones.)

Next he walks through a pile of blueberries! (I know they look white in this picture, but the felt is really a light blue color. (The blue shoes go on top of the red ones.)
Oh no! Now he walks through a puddle of mud, turning his shoes brown! (brown shoes go on top of the blue shoes.)

Then he walks through a bucket of water, which gets rid of all the brown, blue and red on his shoes. They are white again. But now they are wet! (take off all the other color shoes, so only the white ones remain.)
Here’s all the pieces in one photo.

During my first storytime, all the shoes piled on top of each other worked really well, and none of them fell off. I did misplace one of the red shoes though. During my second storytime, things were not quite as smooth and the shoes toppled a bit. Thankfully a helpful parent picked them up. When you tell this story as a flannelboard, do you replace one pair of shoes with another? Or pile on top?

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

BOOK:

Whose Shoe? by Margaret Miller

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

VIDEO:

“Blue Suede Shoes” and “I’m Walking” from Baby Songs: Rock & Roll

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: New Shoes, Red Shoes by Susan Rollings
Book: Shoes Shoes Shoes by Ann Morris
Book: Shoe Baby by Joyce Dunbar and Polly Dunbar
Book: Baby Shoes by Dashka Slater, pictures by Niroe Nakata
Book: One Two That’s My Shoe! by Alison Murray
Book: Shoes by Elizabeth Winthrop, illustrated by William Joyce
DVD: “Edward’s New Shoes” from Baby’s First-Word Stories: Get Dressed
DVD: “Ruby’s New Shoes” from Max and Ruby: A Visit with Grandma
Flannelboard: All Kinds of Shoes
Flannelboard: Counting Feet

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS:
Sunflower Storytime – Shoes!
Storytime Katie – Socks and Shoes
Literacious – Toddler Storytime Theme: Socks & Shoes
Jen in the Library – Feet – Toddler Storytime

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
There are lots of good stories about shoes for toddlers. As I mentioned in the flannelboard section, I did have some technical difficulties since this was my first time telling Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes as a flannelboard story. But it was fun that some of the kids and their older siblings knew the story and were super excited about it.

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 41 people 11 am: 47 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Polar Bears – Toddler Storytime

Posted on February 11, 2017 by jeninthelibrary

Polar bears seemed a fitting theme for a Winter storytime. Plus, there are a lot of good books about them!

SONG: Welcome Song

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE: sign for “Bear” and “White”

taken from Costello, Elaine Ph.D. Random House Webster’s American Sign Language Dictionary. 1994.

BOOK:

Polar Bear Night by Lauren Thompson, pictures by Stephen Savage

MOVEMENT: “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” from It’s Toddler Time by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNT & RHYME SONG:

10 Snowflakes (since Polar Bears live where it snows)

Counting time, it’s counting time
So let’s all sing a simple rhyme

Ten little snowflakes here we go
Let’s all count them as I put them in rows.
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little snowflakes, again we go
Now let’s count them nice and slow
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little snowflakes, in neat rows
Let’s count them as away they go
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

FLANNELBOARD:

Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?

Flannelboard from Little Folk Visuals, based on the book by Bill Martin Jr., and illustrated by Eric Carle

Polar bear, polar bear
what do you hear?
I hear a lion
roaring in my ear

Repeat with :
hippopotamus – snorting
flamingo – fluting
zebra – braying
boa constrictor – hissing
elephant – trumpeting
zookeeper – all the animals talking in my ear!

The set (and story) have more animals, but this is the number that I used for the toddler audience. Before starting the story, I put the polar bear up and asked what sound he made (growl) so that at the end of the story we could talk about the different sounds all the animals made.

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

BOOK:

Polar Bear’s Underwear by tupera tupera

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

VIDEO:

“Little Polar Bear” from Little Bear: Winter Games

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Cub’s Big World by Sarah L. Thomson, illustrated by Joe Cepeda (this one might be better for preschool)
Book: Hush Little Polar Bear by Jeff Mack
Book: Follow the Leader pictures and words by Miela Ford
Book: Polar Bear Morning by Lauren Thompson, pictures by Stephen Savage
Book: Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? by Bill Martin Jr, illustrated by Eric Carle
Book: Treasure by Suzanne Bloom
Book: Snow Babies by Laura Ellen Anderson

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:

Polar bears are a fun theme! For the video portion of the storytime, I wanted to share a clip that had real polar bears playing — you know, the ones where it’s just set to music or something and the animals frolic? But the videos I found were either too long, or not good film quality. I’ll keep looking, because I want to incorporate more nonfiction in my storytimes, either through books or films.

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 33 people 11 am: 37 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Groundhogs & Shadows – Toddler Storytime

Posted on February 1, 2017 by jeninthelibrary

Many years ago, I had done a groundhogs and shadows themed storytime around this time of year for toddlers. When I saw the new book A Greyhound a Groundhog I decided I wanted to try it again.

SONG: Welcome Song

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE: sign for “Shadow”

taken from Costello, Elaine Ph.D. Random House Webster’s American Sign Language Dictionary. 1994.

BOOK:

Guess Whose Shadow? by Stephen R. Swinburne

MOVEMENT: “Roll Your Hands” from Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett & Elaine Bueffel

COUNT & RHYME SONG:

10 Groundhogs

Counting time, it’s counting time
So let’s all sing a simple rhyme

Ten little groundhogs here we go
Let’s all count them as I put them in rows.
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little groundhogs, again we go
Now let’s count them nice and slow
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little groundhogs, in neat rows
Let’s count them as away they go
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

FLANNELBOARD:

Shadows

Pattern and Rhyme taken from Felt Board Fingerplays by Liz & Dick Wilmes, art by Janet McDonnell

Look to the left. (Look left)
Look to the right. (Look right)
Always keep the whale’s
shadow in sight.

Repeat with :
shark
snake
frog
fish
alligator

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

BOOK:

A Greyhound a Groundhog written by Emily Jenkins, illustrated by Chris Appelhans

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

VIDEO:

“Max’s Shadow” from Max & Ruby’s Halloween

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Shadowville by Michael Bartalos
Book: Shadows by April Pulley Sayre, illustrated by Harvey Stevenson
Book: I Have a Friend by Keiko Narahashi
Book: Hooray Parade by Barbara Joosse, illustrated by Hyewon Yum
DVD: “Shadows” from Peppa Pig: The Golden Boots

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
While I think groundhogs might be a better theme with more stories for preschool, I thought this storytime went pretty well. The kids seemed to enjoy guessing along with the first book we read, as well as the flannelboard.

The first storytime group was a little more antsy this time around, so I threw in a few other rhymes and songs there to keep them a little more engaged.

I wish I had been creative enough to think of some sort of shadow puppet story or some sort of storytelling with shadows before this. It just occurred to me now that would be an awesome addition. Any suggestions?

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 44 people 11 am: 47 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Hello! – Toddler Storytime

Posted on January 17, 2017 by jeninthelibrary

I usually keep a list of new books that come in that I think would be good picks for infant/toddler storytimes. Then, when it’s time for me to lead a session, I go back and look at that list for inspiration for themes and books. Today’s theme was inspired by one of the books I wrote down, and I thought HELLO! would be a great storytime for the first one of the ten week session.

SONG: Welcome Song

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE: sign for “Hello”

taken from Costello, Elaine Ph.D. Random House Webster’s American Sign Language Dictionary. 1994.

BOOK:

Say Hello Like This! by Mary Murphy

MOVEMENT: “Roll Your Hands” from Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett & Elaine Bueffel

COUNT & RHYME SONG:

10 Hands

Counting time, it’s counting time
So let’s all sing a simple rhyme

Ten little hands here we go
Let’s all count them as I put them in rows.
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little hands, again we go
Now let’s count them nice and slow
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Ten little hands, in neat rows
Let’s count them as away they go
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

FLANNELBOARD:

Can We Find?

Idea take from Sunflower Storytime, who found it at storytime katie. I used the houses and the gray mouse from my Little Mouse, Little Mouse flannelboard set, and then the bear and bird are from ArtFelt.

(to the tune of “Do You Know the Muffin Man?”)
Can we find the brown bear
brown bear, brown bear?
Can we find the brown bear?
We want to say “Hello”!

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

BOOK:

How Hippo Says Hello! by Abigail Samoun, illustrated by Sarah Watts

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

VIDEO:

“Hello Little Cat” from Baby’s First-Word Stories: Pets

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Hello, Hello by Miriam Schlein, illustrated by Daniel Kirk
Book: Hello World by Michael Foreman
Book: Hello World! Greetings in 42 Languages Around the Globe by Manya Stojic
Book: Hello, Day! by Anita Lobel
Book: Hello Baby! by Mem Fox, illustrated by Steve Jenkins
Book: Hello, Sun! by Dayle Ann Dodds, illustrated by
Book: “Hi, Pizza Man!” by Virginia Walter, pictures by
Book: Say Hello! by Rachel Isadora (probably better for preschoolers)
DVD: “Hello Snow” from Little Bear: Winter Games
DVD: “Max Says Hello” from Max and Ruby: Sweet Siblings

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS:
Literacious – Family Storytime Theme: Say “Hello”
The Wielded Pen – Hello, Goodbye – A Storytime Outline
storytime katie – Toddlers: Hello – storytime
storytime katie – Hello, Goodbye!
Literary Hoots: Hello/Goodbye Songs

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
This was a really fun one! The kids and parents all enjoyed making animal sounds along with Say Hello Like This! so that was a hit. And, even though Hippo says Hello was a board book, I thought it was large enough so that kids could see the illustrations. And I wanted to put that multicultural spin on it as well, but I thought Isadora’s book might be too long for the first storytime of the session (I figure listening ability grows throughout the session.)

I was a little worried about doing a new counting song, but I wanted to try something different. I’m not sure it’s perfect, but I’ll continue to adjust as necessary – stay tuned!

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 58 people 11 am: 45 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Bears – Toddler Storytime

Posted on September 6, 2016 by jeninthelibrary

I filled in for our last storytime of our Summer session at the last-minute, so I just pulled this Bear storytime together quickly.

SONG: Welcome Song

MOVEMENT: “Clap Everybody and Say Hello” by Kathy Reid-Naiman from Sally Go ‘Round the Sun: Songs and rhymes from the parent-child Mother Goose program

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

BOOK:

Oliver Finds His Way by Phyllis Root, illustrated by Christopher Denise

MOVEMENT: “Reach for the Ceiling” from Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNTING SONG:*

10 Teddy Bears

FLANNELBOARD:

Bears

(to the tune of “Mary Had a Little Lamb”)
Grizzly bears are big and brown,
Big and brown, big and brown.
Grizzly bears are big and brown,
And live in the woods.

Polar bears are soft and white,
Soft and white, soft and white.
Polar bears are soft and white,
And live in the cold.

Teddy bears are just my size,
Just my size, just my size.
Teddy bears are just my size,
To cuddle with at night.

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

BOOK:

Bear & Hare: Where’s Bear? by Emily Gravett

VIDEO:

“Follow the Leader” from Little Bear: Rainy Day Tales

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Don’t Worry Bear by Greg Foley (or the other Bear books by Foley
Book: Old Bear by Kevin Henkes
Book: Bears on Chairs by Shirley Parenteau, illustrated by David Walker (or others in this series)
Book: Bear and Hare: Go Fishing by Emily Gravett

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
Bear & Hare: Where’s Bear? was the reason I decided to go with this theme for storytime. When books in the Bear & Hare series came in, I thought they would be so perfect for Toddler storytime — and it worked really well! Especially because I had the kids join in for the hide & seek countdown.

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 44 people 11 am: 30 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Swimming – Toddler Storytime

Posted on July 19, 2016 by jeninthelibrary

It’s hot here in the summer, and so doing a storytime about swimming felt like the coolest thing to do. Especially since I don’t have a pool.

SONG: Welcome Song

MOVEMENT: “Clap Everybody and Say Hello” by Kathy Reid-Naiman from Sally Go ‘Round the Sun: Songs and rhymes from the parent-child Mother Goose program

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

BOOK:

Elephants Swim by Linda Capus Riley, illustrated by Steve Jenkins

MOVEMENT: “Reach for the Ceiling” from Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNTING SONG:*

10 Whales

FLANNELBOARD:

Fish Swimming in the Water
Idea and Song taken from “All the Fish” by Caspar Babypants on I Found You!

(start with 1 fish on the board)I
One little fish is swimming in the water, (put palms together, make hands swim)
swimming in the water,
swimming in the water.
One little fish is swimming in the water.
Bubble (wiggle fingers up)
Bubble (wiggle fingers up higher)
Bubble (wiggle fingers up higher)
Pop! (clap hands overhead as you say Pop)

Repeat by adding or taking away fish as you’d like.

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

BOOK:

Brownie and Pearl Take a Dip by Cynthia Rylant, pictures by Brian Biggs

VIDEO:

“Swimming” from Peppa Pig Cold Winter Day

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Maisy Learns to Swim by Lucy Cousins
Book: Swim, Duck, Swim! by Susan Lurie, photographs by Murray Head
DVD: “Pool” from Play Time Maisy

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS
Flannel Friday! Five Swimming Fishies from My Storytime Life
Flannelboard Flashback: CSLP 2010 from Storytime Katie

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
Yay for swimming! Reading Elephants Swim was a lot of fun because we acted out how the different animals interact with water. It did seem a little big long, so I shorted it, but I still think it worked really well. I loved our flannelboard song – while I just sang a capella to the melody of the Caspar Babypants song, it’s really worth a listen. I first learned of that one when I was planning for a dance program.

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 46 people 11 am: 49 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Dads – Toddler Storytime

Posted on June 21, 2016 by jeninthelibrary

I stepped in to for an ill coworker last week to do infant toddler storytime. While I am not glad she was sick, I’m glad I got a chance to do a Dad storytime, since I did one featuring Mothers a month ago. It felt like it evened things out a bit.

SONG: Now it’s Time to Say Hello*
taken from jbrary

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

BOOK:

Daddies by Lila Prap

MOVEMENT: “Reach for the Ceiling” from Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNTING SONG:*

10 Ties (even though not all dads, or only dads, wear them)

FLANNELBOARD:

D-A-D-D-Y
Idea taken from What Happens in Storytime.

(to the tune of “B-I-N-G-O)
There is a man I love a lot
And Daddy is his name-o.
D-A-D-D-Y
D-A-D-D-Y
D-A-D-D-Y
And Daddy is his name-o

For the next verse, replace the D with a hand to represent a clap.
There’s someone who takes care of me
And Daddy is his name-o.
clap-A-D-D-Y
clap-A-D-D-Y
clap-A-D-D-Y
And Daddy is his name-o.

Repeat until you are clapping for all 5 letters.

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

VIDEO:

“Daddy Loses his Glasses” from Peppa Pig Flying a Kite and Other Stories

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Oh, Daddy! by Bob Shea
Book: The Daddy Book by Todd Parr
Book: Piglet and Papa by Margaret Wild, illustrated by Stephen Michael King

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS
Jen in the Library – Dads Toddler Storytime 07-14-2015

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
Dads are fun for storytime, I just wish I had more time when planning so I could have gotten some of the other great books that are out there and perfect for this age group.

I only did one book at this storytime so I could sign kids up for our Summer Reading Program that had started earlier that week. Daddies was a great book, though and we had fun acting like all the different animals mentioned in the story.

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 40 people 11 am: 48 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Geese – Toddler Storytime

Posted on June 21, 2016 by jeninthelibrary

When I started thinking of storytime themes, I thought there might be enough books out there to do a storytime about geese. This storytime was presented on 5/31/2016.

SONG: Now it’s Time to Say Hello*
taken from jbrary

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

SIGN: ASL sign for “GOOSE”

taken from Costello, Elaine Ph.D. Random House Webster’s American Sign Language Dictionary. 1994.

BOOK:

Silly Suzy Goose by Petr Horácek

MOVEMENT: “Reach for the Ceiling” from Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNTING SONG:*

10 Geese

FLANNELBOARD:

Goosey Goose Colors
taken from Magical Library Book Bug

Goosey, goosey gander

Please come play with me.

Goosey, goosey “red” goose

Join the flock and me.

Pass out geese to all the children. Then, recite the rhyme and have the children holding that color goose come up and place it on the flannelboard. When they are done, recite the rhyme again, substituting the color red for another color. Continue this until you’ve gone through all the colored geese that you have.

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

BOOK:

Duck & Goose Let’s Dance by Tad Hills, Original Song by Lauren Savage and Ross Gruet

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

VIDEO:

“Duck, Duck, Goose” from Max & Ruby: Everybunny Loves Winter!

MOVEMENT: Now it’s Time to Say Goodbye taken from jbrary

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Gossie by Olivier Dunrea (the Padded Board Book version, it’s bigger)
Book: Look Out, Suzy Goose by Petr Horácek
Book: Silly Little Goose! by Nancy Tafuri
Book: A Splendid Friend, Indeed by Suzanne Bloom (or any of the Bear and Goose books by Bloom)
Flannelboard: Three Eggs in a Basket (but change the duck to the goose. The pieces look similar enough that I don’t think anyone would notice.)

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS
Magical Library Book Bug – Duck, Duck, Goose Preschool Storytime
Librarian vs Storytime – Down by the Bay Flannelboard (I think this one might be fun to use with preschoolers, if I ever repeat the theme.)

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
Duck & Goose Let’s Dance is a board book, but I thought since I could do an activity with it (have the kids dance as instructed by the book), the size might not matter. It seemed to work pretty well, and I would do it again.

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 33 people 11 am: 29 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Cats – Toddler Storytime

Posted on June 21, 2016 by jeninthelibrary

Toddler Storytime for 5/24/16. I planned this storytime a little late in the game. Thank goodness for all the wonderful blogs out there that help with storytime planning! Be sure to check out the ones I mention in the more resources section.

SONG: Now it’s Time to Say Hello*
taken from jbrary

MOVEMENT: “Wake Up Toes” from Morning Magic by Joanie Bartels

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

SIGN: ASL sign for CAT

taken from Costello, Elaine Ph.D. Random House Webster’s American Sign Language Dictionary. 1994.

BOOK:

I See Kitty by Yasmine Surovec

MOVEMENT: “Reach for the Ceiling” from Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

COUNTING SONG:*

10 Cats

FLANNELBOARD:

Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons
based on the book by Eric Litwin, illustrated and created by James Dean

MOVEMENT: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

BOOK:

Cat Nap by Toni Yuly

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

VIDEO:

“Meow” from Good Night Maisy

MOVEMENT: Now it’s Time to Say Goodbye taken from jbrary

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Mama Cat has Three Kittens by Denise Fleming
Book: Kitty’s Cuddles by Jane Cabrera
Book: Meeow and the Little Chairs by Sebastien Braun (or any Meeow book)
Book: I Don’t Want a Cool Cat! by Emma Dodd
Book: Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Going to Sleep? by Bill Martin Jr and Michael Sampson, illustrated by Laura J. Bryant (This would be a good book for 2 voices)
Book: Cat Skidoo by Bethany Roberts, illustrated by R. W. Alley
Book: Matilda’s Cat by Emily Gravett

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS
Jen in the Library – Toddler Storytime – Cats – 10-16-2014
Library Village – Preschool Storytime Cats
Welcome to Storytime – Cats!
Literary Commentary: Toddler Storytime – Cats
storytime katie – cats!
Abby the Librarian – Spring Storytime: Cats
Rachel Kohl Library – Storytime with Ms. Katie Cats

ATTENDANCE: 10 am: 37 people 11 am: 32 people

* For these songs, please see my Storytime Movements & Music page

Jen in the Library

Storytimes, Programs and Library Thoughts

Category Archives: Toddlers

Shoes – Toddler Storytime

Polar Bears – Toddler Storytime

Groundhogs & Shadows – Toddler Storytime

Hello! – Toddler Storytime

Bears – Toddler Storytime

Swimming – Toddler Storytime

Dads – Toddler Storytime

Geese – Toddler Storytime

Cats – Toddler Storytime