Tag Archives: beach

Beach – Preschool Storytime

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This week I was presenting infant, toddler, and preschool storytimes.  I decided to use the same theme – the beach – for each one.  I tried to keep things fresh with the preschool storytime by choosing some different books.

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

MOVEMENT: “Can’t Wait to Celebrate” from Jim Gill’s Irrational Anthem by Jim Gill

BOOK:

Penguin on Vacation by Salina Yoon

MOVEMENT:
Sand Castle
Sand castle on the beach,
I built you big and strong (raise arms high)
A wave washed in upon the sand.
Whoosh! You were gone (swing hands down, then up)
(taken from PreK Fun)

FLANNELBOARD:
Fish with the Deep Sea Smile
Fish with the Deep Sea Smile Flannelboard logo cropped
(poem by Margaret Wise Brown, patterns and poem taken from The Flannel Board Storytelling Book by Judy Sierra.)

MOVEMENT: “This is the Way We Play at the Beach”
(to tune of: “Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush”)

This is the way we play at the beach
Play at the beach, play at the beach
This is the way we play at the beach
On a hot sunny day.

Other verses:
This is the way we dig in the sand…
This is the way we play in the surf…
This is the way we lie in the sun…
Any other activity that your audience comes up with!
(taken from PreK Fun)

BOOK:

Beach Day! by Patricia Lakin, pictures by Scott Nash

MOVEMENT: “If You’re Happy and You Know It” from Walt Disney’s Children’s Favorite Songs Volume 3

VIDEO:

“Getting Crabby at the Beach” from Max and Ruby: Perfect Pumpkin

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over*

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
  

Book: Noni the Pony Goes to the Beach by Alison Lester
Book: Sea, Sand, Me by Patricia Hubbell, illustrated by Lisa Campbell Ernst
Flannelboard: The Waves at the Beach

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
I was worried that since I was planning this a little last minute I wouldn’t find enough good beach books for preschoolers.  But everything turned out fine.  Yay!

ATTENDANCE: 28 (adults and children)

*To see the words to these movements and activities I use frequently, please visit my A-capella Movements Section on my Storytime Movements and Music Page

Summer at the Beach – Toddler Storytime

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When I was prepping for this storytime, I wasn’t sure if I would have enough books to just make it about the beach.  So I was going to use the Summer idea as a back up — but I really didn’t have to.

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

MOVEMENT: “Clap Your Hands, Clap Your Hands” from Tickles and Tunes by Kathy Reid-Naiman

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

BOOK:

Noni the Pony Goes to the Beach by Alison Lester

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

COUNTING SONG:*
10SunsFlannelboard
10 Suns

FLANNELBOARD:
Waves at the Beach
Waves at the Beach flannelboard cropped logo
Lyrics adapted from Preschool Education.  Templates for pieces taken from various online coloring pages and clip art.  (Sorry for the weird perspective on this photo.  All the flannelboard pieces are about the same size.)

To the tune of: ” Wheels on the Bus”

The waves at the beach go up and down, (bounce baby up and down on knees smoothly)
up and down, up and down,
the waves at the beach go up and down, all day long.

The sun at the beach goes shine, shine, shine… (open and close hands)
The crabs at the beach go pinch, pinch, pinch… (make pinchy motion with hands)
The jellyfish at the beach go wibble wobble wibble….. (wiggle arms like a jellyfish up)
The seals at the beach go arf, arf, arf… (clap hands and bark like a seal)
The seagulls at the beach go skwak, skwak, skwak…
The children at the beach have fun fun fun… (gently lap with hands)

You could continue this for any additional flannelboard pieces you would like to make

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

MOVEMENT: Grandma’s Spectacles*

BOOK:

Sea, Sand, Me! by Patricia Hubbell, illustrated by Lisa Campbell Ernst

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

VIDEO:

“At the Beach” from Peppa Pig: My Birthday Party

MOVEMENT:  Storytime’s Over*

HOW IT WENT:
Noni the Pony at the Beach was a really fun read and the audience seemed enchanted by it, judging by the “awww”ing at the end of the story.  Sea, Sand, Me! seemed a little long, so I did the paperclip trick with just one double page spread.

Unlike the week before, I did remember to go through the guidelines for storytime as a reminder, and that seemed to help during the storytime.

ATTENDANCE:  10 am:  55 people      11 am: 45 people

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

Summer at the Beach – Infant Storytime

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Time for the seasonally related storytime of the session!

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

MOVEMENT: Peek-a-Boo*

BOUNCE: Roly Poly*

BOOK:

Beep, Beep, Let’s Go! by Eleanor Taylor

MOVEMENT: “Clap, Tap and Bend” from It’s Toddler Time by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

FLANNELBOARD:
Waves at the Beach
Waves at the Beach flannelboard cropped logo
Lyrics adapted from Preschool Education.  Templates for pieces taken from various online coloring pages and clip art.
(Sorry for the weird perspective on this photo.  All the flannelboard pieces are about the same size.) 

To the tune of: ” Wheels on the bus”

The waves at the beach go up and down, (bounce baby up and down on knees smoothly)
up and down, up and down,
the waves at the beach go up and down, all day long.

The sun at the beach goes shine, shine, shine… (open and close hands)
The crabs at the beach go pinch, pinch, pinch… (gently and lovingly “pinch” baby)
The jellyfish at the beach go wibble wobble wibble….. (rock baby on lap from side to side)
The seals at the beach go arf, arf, arf… (clap baby’s hands as you make seal sound)
The seagulls at the beach go skwak, skwak, skwak…
The children at the beach have fun fun fun… (gently pat baby’s lap)

You could continue this for any additional flannelboard pieces you would like to make

BOUNCE: “Smooth Road to London Town” from A Smooth Road to London Town: Songs from the Parent-Child Mother goose Program by Kathy Reid-Naiman. 

MOVEMENT: Patty Cake*

BOOK:

Sun by Carol Thompson

TICKLE: Chicken in the Barnyard*

SONG: “Babies Little Self” from the album Here I Am! by Caspar Babypants

NURSERY RHYME FLANNELBOARD:
Baa Baa Black Sheep
BaaBaaBlackSheepFlannelboard
Flannelboard pattern taken from Mother Goose’s Playhouse by Judy Sierra.

Baa baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir. Yes, sir.  Three bags full.
One for the master, and one for the dame.
One for the little boy that lives down the lane.
Baa baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir. Yes, sir.  Three bags full.
BOOK:

Wiggle! Like an Octopus by Harriet Ziefert & Simms Taback
MOVEMENT: “Itsy Bitsy Spider” from Children’s Favorite Songs Volume 3 from Walt Disney

MOVEMENT: “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” from Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over*

 

HOW IT WENT:
Because the second book I read, Sun, was a board book, and therefore really short, I had enough time to add the third book, Wiggle! like an Octopus in to the storytime.  I think if I had thought this through ahead of time, it probably would have been better to switch the order of those two books.  But it worked pretty well.

ATTENDANCE: 34 people

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

Under the Sea – Preschool Storytime

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For storytime around the 4th of July it felt fitting to do a beach theme.  When I started putting together the books I wanted to share it tweaked to be more of an Under the Sea group of stories, except for the video.

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

MOVEMENT: “Jump Up, Turn Around” from Jim Gill’s Irrational Anthem by Jim Gill

BOOK:

I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean by Kevin Sherry

MOVEMENT: Once I Saw an Octopus

Once I saw an octopus in the deep blue sea (put hand over eyes, as if searching)
I called, “Mr. Octopus, won’t you swim with me?” (hands around mouth to call)
Then out came his tentacles, so very long and straight.
(link thumbs with fingers out, as if making a bird shadow puppet, but make more of a circle for the head)
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. (count 8 fingers)

FLANNELBOARD:
We’re the Family of the Sea
We're the Family of the Sea Flannelboard
(rhyme from: Totline Magazine July/August 2001 p. 29.  patterns from clip-art/web search)

(to tune of: “Old MacDonald had a Farm”)
We’re the family of the sea,
The ocean is our home.
And in the seas there lives a whale
Who loves to play and roam.
With a spout spout here and a spout spout there.
Here a spout, there a spout,
Everywhere a spout, spout.
We’re the family of the sea,
The ocean is our home.

Other verses:
Fish – swish swish
Crab – pinch pinch
Seal – bark bark
Octopus – wibble wobble

BOOK:

This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen

MOVEMENT: Octopus, Octopus

Octopus, octopus turn around
Octopus, octopus touch the ground
Octopus, octopus reach up high
Octopus, octopus swimming by

from Caitlin Peterson’s Sea Life storytime idea found here

VIDEO:


“At the Beach” from Peppa Pig: My Birthday Party 

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over*

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Wiggle! Like an Octopus by Harriet Ziefert & Simms Taback (also a good app)
Book: Thank You, Octopus by Darren Farrell
Book: Beach Day by Karen Roosa, illustrated by Maggie Smith
Book: Scuba Bunnies by Christine Loomis, pictures by Ora Eitan
Book: Tippy-Tippy-Tippy, Splash! by Candace Fleming and G. Brian Karas
Book: Beach Feet by Kiyomi Konagaya, illustrated by Masamitsu Saito
Book: Penguin on Vacation by Salina Yoon
Song: “Octopus (Slippery Fish)” by Charlotte Diamond from 24 Carrot Diamond: The Best of Charlotte Diamond

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
Originally, I thought it would be fun to do an octopus/squid storytime, which is why some of my additional ideas are cephalopod themed.  However, after reading the stories I did, I’m thinking this turned into more of a food-chain themed storytime, since there was a lot of eating of animals in what I picked.  I seemed to have a good mix of older preschool aged children today, and some of them had already read This is Not My Hat so it was fun to hear them kind of narrate along with me.  I wish I had downloaded the Charlotte Diamond track to use today — I meant to but forgot.

ATTENDANCE: 33 (adults and children)

*To see the words to these movements and activities I use frequently, please visit my A-capella Movements Section on my Storytime Movements and Music Page