Tag Archives: toddlers

Moon – Preschool (But also Infant/Toddler) Storytime

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This is another adapted from one of our system storyboxes.

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

MOVEMENT: “Clap Your Hands” from Wiggleworms Love You by Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

BOOK:
 
Come Back, Moon by David Kherdian, illustrated by Nonny Hogrogian

MOVEMENT:
Climb Aboard the Spaceship
(to the tune of “Itsy Bitsy Spider”)

Climb aboard the spaceship, (pretend to climb ladder into spaceship)
We’re going to the moon.
Hurry and get ready,
We’re going to blast off soon.
Put on your helmets (pretend to put on helmet)
And buckle up real tight. (pretend to put on seatbelt)
Here comes the countdown (squat down low to the ground)
Let’s count with all our might:
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
BLAST OFF! (jump up into the air)

The group had so much fun with this one, we did the countdown/blast off part twice.

MOVEMENT: “Shake My Sillies Out” from More Singable Songs for the Very Young by Raffi

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Music Together

BOOK:
 
The Moon is Going to Addy’s House by Ida Pearle

MOVEMENT:
We’re Flying to the Moon
(to the tune of “The Farmer in the Dell”)

We’re flying to the moon
We’re flying to the moon
Blast off, away we go
We’re flying to the moon

We’re landing on the moon
We’re landing on the moon
Here we go, we’re on the moon
We’re landing on the moon

We’re collecting moon rocks
We’re collecting moon rocks
Here we go, we’re on the moon
We’re collecting moon rocks

At this point, I asked the kids what else we could do on the moon, here are some of their suggestions:

jumping up and down…
hear a bird…
are searching for a kitty…
saying “hi” to aliens…

Then we resumed with:

We’re flying back to Earth
We’re flying back to Earth
Blast off, away we go
We’re flying back to Earth

We;re landing on the Earth
We’re landing on the Earth
Here we go, we’ve come home
We’re landing on the Earth

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Music Together

VIDEO:
 
“Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me” from The Very Hungry Caterpillar and other stories, based on the book by Eric Carle

CRAFT: Plane Paper Craft
idea taken from Mommy’s Bundle

Materials:
– Black construction paper
– scissors
– yellow paper
– aluminum foil
– star stickers
– glue

Cut a circle out of aluminum foil. This will be the moon.  Create a quarter circle out of the yellow paper to represent the sun.  Have kids glue the sun in one of the top corners of the black construction paper.  Have them (gently) crumple up the aluminum foil to make craters and texture on the moon.  Smooth the moon out, glue onto the black paper.  Embellish with star stickers.

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
  

Book: One Moon, Two Cats by Laura Godwin, illustrated by Yoko Tanaka
Book: The Moon’s Almost Here by Patricia MacLachlan, illustrated by Tomie dePaola
Book: Kitten’s First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
DVD: “Happy Birthday Moon” from Good Night, Gorilla…and more Bedtime Stories, based on the book by Frank Asch

HOW IT WENT:
I loved how much the kids got into our space-themed movements at this storytime.

PRESENTED: Wednesday, September 19, 2018 at SR Branch

ATTENDANCE: 28 people (adults and children)

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

Flight – Preschool (But also Infant/Toddler) Storytime

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This is another adapted from one of our system storyboxes.

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

MOVEMENT: “Clap Your Hands” from Wiggleworms Love You by Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

BOOK:

North, South, East, West by Margaret Wise Brown, pictures by Greg Pizzoli

MOVEMENT: “Shake My Sillies Out” from More Singable Songs for the Very Young by Raffi

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” from Music Together

BOOK:

A Plane Goes Ka-Zoom by Jonathan London, illustrated by Denis Roche

MOVEMENT:
Airplane Song
(to the tune of “The Wheels on the Bus”)

The pilot on the airplane says fasten your seatbelts (pretend to fasten seat belt)
Fasten your seatbelt, fasten your seatbelt
The pilot on the airplane says fasten your seatbelts
When flying through the sky.

Other verses:
The children on the airplane go bum pity bump… (move up and down)
The babies on the airplane go waa, waa, waa… (rub eyes and pretend to cry)
The signs on the airplane go ding, ding, ding… (pretend to push sign button above head)
The drinks on the airplane go splish, splash, splish… (pretend to hold a glass and move it)
The luggage on the airplane goes up and down… (move hands up and down)
The exits on the airplane are here, here, here… (using two fingers on each hand, point in front, to side, and behind)

MOVEMENT: “Clap Along with Me” from Wee Sing for Baby by Wee Sing

BOOK:

Planes Go by Steve Light

VIDEO:

“Miffy Wants to Fly” from Miffy and Friends: Miffy’s Adventure

CRAFT: Plane Paper Craft

Kids had these two pieces of an airplane, with a small slit cut into the body so they could put the wings through.  They could decorate it with crayons and stickers.  The template is below:
Airplane_Cutout_Template

This idea was inspired by Mom Unleashed and Hands On as We Grow

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
 

Book: Flight 1-2-3 by Maria van Lieshout
Book: Hooray for Birds by Lucy Cousins

HOW IT WENT:
It’s still rather new to have to pick and plan a craft for storytime, since I didn’t used to do that at my other location.  I’m still learning what works best, but one thing I have learned is that a craft doesn’t have to be super-complicated to entertain the kids.

PRESENTED: Wednesday, August 29, 2018 at SR Branch

ATTENDANCE: 29 people (adults and children)

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

Fur, Feathers, Scales and Hair – Preschool (But also Infant/Toddler) Storytime

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This theme is brought to you thanks to our system storyboxes.

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

MOVEMENT: “Clap Your Hands” from Wiggleworms Love You by Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

INTRODUCTION: with very furry/hairy dog

BOOK:

Don’t Splash the Sasquatch! by Kent Redeker, illustrated by Bob Staake

MOVEMENT: “Shake My Sillies Out” from from More Singable Songs for the Very Young by Raffi

MOVEMENT: Fishy Pokey
(to the tune of “The Hokey Pokey”)
You put your fins in, you put your fins out
You put your fins in and you wiggle them all about
You do the fishy pokey and you turn yourself around
That’s what it’s all about! Glub! Glub!

Other verses:
Your tail
Your scales

BOOK:

Do Frogs Have Fur? A Book about Animal Coats and Coverings by Michael Dahl, illustrated by Jeff Yesh

MOVEMENT: “Shake My Sillies Out” from from More Singable Songs for the Very Young by Raffi

MOVEMENT: 2 Little Blackbirds (a capella)

MOVEMENT: Twinkle Twinkle (a capella)

VIDEO:

“I like My Hair Completely the Way it is” from Charlie and Lola Five: But I am an Alligator and more stories!

CRAFT: Fur, Feathers, Scales sheet

Kids put feathers on the bird, “scales” (cut up tissue paper squares) on the snake and “fur” (large pom poms) on the wombat.  I don’t know where this page was taken from, but I am including a pdf of it here: Feathers Fur Scales Craft Sheet

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: Hair by Leslie Patricelli
Book: Does a Yak Get a Haircut? by Fred Ehrlich M.D., pictures by Emily Bolam
Book: Feathers: Not Just for Flying by Melissa Stewart, illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen

Movement:
Scales, Feathers or Fur
Scales, feathers or fur.
Scales, feathers or fur.
Scales, feathers or fur.
Each animal has one of these.
Will you tell me, if I ask you, please
If the animal I name has scales, feathers or fur.

Stand up tall, like a bear.
Wave your hairy paws in the air
I’m covered with this; so is his mate
It keeps us warm when we hibernate.
FUR!

Flap your arms like abird for me.
Now set yourself down in a tree.
These help a bird so I can fly.
The help me soar in the sky.
FEATHERS

Can you make a fishy face?
move like a fish in your place
These are shiny and slippery too.
Fish move quickly; they really do.
SCALES

What about you?  You’re an animal you know.
Hair on your skin does grow.
Your hair is not a feather and it’s not a fin.
What should we call that hair you’re in?
FUR

HOW IT WENT:
This was an ok storytime, but I had a hard time keeping all the members in the audience engaged.  Last week I ended up with more preschoolers, so I picked titles today with that in mind, and then I think I had more infants this time around.  You really can never have too many books in your storytime bag for a variety of ages.  So, I did change-up my presentation on the fly, and just read 2 books instead of the three I had planned.  But.. I still felt like I could have done something differently.  And, I think the Charlie and Lola video was a little too long for my group.

PRESENTED: Wednesday, September 5, 2018 at SR Branch

ATTENDANCE: 29 people (adults and children)

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

Shapes – Preschool Storytime

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Another storytime that originated from our system-wide storyboxes…

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

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

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

BOOK:

City Shapes by Diana Murray, illustrated by Bryan Collier

MOVEMENT: “Clap Along with Me” from Wee Sing for Baby by Wee Sing

PROP SONG:
This is a… Shape Song
(to the tune of “Frere Jacques”)
 
This is a circle, this is a circle
How can you tell?  How can you tell?
It goes round and round
No end can be found
It’s a circle.  It’s a circle.

This is a triangle, this is a triangle
How can you tell?  How can you tell?
It has three sides that join to make a point
It’s a triangle.  It’s a triangle.

This is a square, this is a square
How can you tell?  How can you tell?
It has 4 sides
all the same size
It’s a square.  It’s a square.

This is a rectangle, this is a rectangle
How can you tell?  How can you tell?
It has 2 short sides
and it has 2 long sides
It’s a rectangle.  It’s a rectangle.

MOVEMENT: “Wheels on the Bus” from Wiggleworms Love You by Old Town School of Folk Music

BOOK:

Shape by Shape by Suse MacDonald

MOVEMENT: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

VIDEO:

“Spots” from Good Morning Maisy: Color and Shapes

CRAFT:
 
Shape Rocket Ship
I got this idea for a craft from Toddler Approved!

We used a rectangle for the body, 3 circles for the windows, a triangle for the top, 2 triangles for the wings, and a square with the ends frayed for the flame.  Of course, you could just give the kids shapes and have them make their own artwork (like the second picture on here!).

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
  

Book: Zoe and Zack: Shapes by Jacques Duquennoy
Book: All Year Round by Susan B. Katz, pictures by Eiko Ojala
Book: Go, Shapes, Go! by Denise Fleming
Book: Baby Party by Rebecca O’Connell, illustrated by Susie Poole

HOW IT WENT:
This was a slightly older crowd than I’ve gotten at the this branch in the past, but there were still a few younger kids.  So I tried a slightly older story at the beginning, and then a shorter one second.  It went pretty well, but I did have a heckler tell me, “I don’t like shape stories!”  🙂  It’s nice to have honesty from the audience, but we all seemed to be having fun by the end.  Everyone seemed really into the shape song, so much so I was a little surprised by it! Also, the Maisy video wasn’t the best for shapes — but it was what I had on hand.  I’ll have to search for something better next time.

PRESENTED: Wednesday, August 22, 2018 at SR Branch

ATTENDANCE: 32 people (adults and children)

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

Food – Signs ‘n Storytime

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This is the outline of my second Signs ‘n Storytime!

For this storytime, I use a basic storytime pattern that my colleague created. I don’t sign the whole thing, or even a whole book.  I’m not fluent.  Instead, I first pick a theme I think would be useful for a parent and their child.  Then, I try to pick books that have words that would be useful for a toddler to know.  When I come across this word in the book, I show and describe the sign.  Then, if it repeats throughout we all do the sign together.  At the end of the book, we practice again all the words in that book.  Finally, at the end of storytime, we review all the signs we learned from all the books

SONG: “Hello Friends” in ASL

taken from Jbrary
I changed this one a little so instead of doing it time to “say” Hello, I sing, “it’s time to Sign Hello” and use the ASL word for sign

BOOK:

Brownie and Pearl Grab a Bite by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Brian Biggs

Signs used with the story:
cheese
apple
cracker
milk

MOVEMENT: Hokey Pokey

BOOK:

Who’s Hungry? by Dean Hacohen & Sherry Scharschmidt

Signs used with story:
hungry
fish
banana
cheese
chicken

MOVEMENT: If You’re Happy and You Know It

BOOK:

Lunch by Denise Fleming

Signs used with story:
hungry
corn
peas
grapes
apple
watermelon

VIDEO:
 
“Duckling Gets a Cookie!?” from The Duckling Gets a Cookie!? …and More Stories by Mo Willems

Before watching, we learned the sign for:
cookie

 

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
   

Book: Guess What? – Food by Yusuke Yonezu
(signs to use: bread, cheese, corn)
Book: Orange Pear Apple Bear
(signs to use: orange, pear, apple, bear)
Book: Guess What? – Fruit by Yusuke Yonezu
(signs to use: apple, banana, orange, grapes)
Book: The Big Blue Bowl: Sign Language for Food by Dawn Babb Prochovnic, illustrated by Stephanie Bauer (this would make a good flannelboard)

I also found this video from LifePrint useful when planning my program.

HOW IT WENT: I had a larger group for this program, so that was exciting.  Some patrons mentioned that they wish this was on a weekly basis, but it does take a while to prep for, and since I am not fluent, I don’t know if I would be able to sustain that many sessions.  We shall see how it progresses.

PRESENTED: Thursday, August 9, 2018

ATTENDANCE: 13 people (adults and children)

Balloons – Preschool (But Kind of Toddler) Storytime

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This is another storytime that depended on our system’s Storyboxes.

MOVEMENT: Welcome Song*

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

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

INTRO WITH BALLOON

I blew up about balloon and we talked about it.

BOOK:

Emily’s Balloon by Komako Sakai

FINGERPLAY:
The Balloon

I’m going to blow up this balloon (put fist in front of mouth).
And never ever stop I’ll blow (blow into fist, expand fist larger)
And I’ll blow (blow into fist, expand fist larger)
And I’ll blow (blow into fist, add other hand to make a circle)
And I’ll blow (blow into fist, expand hands larger)
Until…POP! (break hands apart and clap on pop)

MOVEMENT: “Clap Along with Me” from Best of Wee Sing by Wee Sing

BOUNCE: “Ladies Ride” from Wiggleworms Love You by Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: “Shake My Sillies Out” from More Singable Songs for the Very Young by Raffi

BOOK:

Come Back, Ben by Ann Hassett and John Hassett

MOVEMENT: “Two Little Blackbirds” by Music Together (download from iTunes)

MOVEMENT: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

VIDEO:

“The Balloon Ride” from Peppa Pig: The Balloon Ride

CRAFT:
Hot Air Balloon Coloring Page

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

Book: See Pip Point by David Milgrim
Book: Perfectly Percy by Paul Schmid
Book: Balloons Balloons Balloons by Dee Lillegard, illustrated by Bernadette Pons
Book: Buzzy’s Balloon by Harriet Ziefert, illustrated by Emily Bolam

HOW IT WENT:
Better than the first storytime I presented at the branch last week.  Now that I knew the layout of the room, and had a better idea for the audience, I felt like I could prepare better.  Also, I couldn’t get my iPhone connected to the stereo system last time, so this week, I brought in my bluetooth Urban Ears speaker, and it worked so well!

PRESENTED: Wednesday, August 1, 2018

ATTENDANCE: 19 people (adults and children)

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

Food – Infant & Toddler Storytime

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This was my first time doing Infant Toddler Storytime at one of my new branches!  It’s different here than I am used to, because we just do it in the Children’s area (instead of a special storytime room, mostly because it can get large), and it’s a mix of Infants and Toddlers together at the same time.

To ease myself into (and to have continuity for the families that come, I followed a routine that was closer to my Library Technician’s formula:

SONG: Welcome Song*

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

MOVEMENT: “Shake My Sillies Out” from More Singable Songs for the Very Young by Raffi

MOVEMENT:  Open Shut Them*

MOVEMENT: Roly Poly
(to tune of Frere Jacques) – taken from jbrary

Roly poly, roly poly
up up up,
up up up
Roly roly poly roly roly poly
down down down,
down down down.

Other verses:
out / in
fast / slow

As you sing, do the motions with your arms for the verses, or you can do it with your little one’s legs.

BOUNCE: Dickery Dickery Dare*

BOOK:

Lunch by Denise Fleming

BOUNCE: “Ladies Ride” from from Wiggleworms Love You by Old Town School of Folk Music

MOVEMENT: “2 Little Blackbirds” from Fingerplays and Footplays by Rosemary Hallum and Henry “Buzz” Glass

BOOK:

Guess What? – Fruit by Yusuke Yonezu

SHAKER SONGS: For this portion, I used some songs from a cd my library tech had, and we shook our shakers all to the beat.

MOVEMENT: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (acapella)

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over*

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
  

Book: Banana by Ed Vere
Book: Early Bird by Toni Yuly
Book: Orange Pear Apple Bear by Emily Gravett

HOW IT WENT:  Even though I’ve been presenting storytimes for quite some time, I was nervous about this one since it was my first time in front of a new group.  I think it went well.  I feel like I can learn a lot of great new techniques from my Library Technician here, and I’m excited about that!

PRESENTED: Thursday, July 19, 2018 at LM Branch

ATTENDANCE: 41 (adults and children)

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

Monkeys – Toddler Storytime

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This was another storytime theme inspired by a single book.  I saw Spunky Little Monkey by Bill Martin Jr. and Michael Sampson, illustrated by Brian Won, and just KNEW I needed a toddler storytime with it.

SONG: Welcome Song

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

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

LETTER FLANNELBOARD:
M is for Monkey

Today we reviewed the sound the letter M makes, drew it with our fingers, and talked about a magnifying glass, a mouse, the moon, and a monkey!

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE SIGN: “Monkey”

BOOK:

Spunky Little Monkey by Bill Martin, Jr. and Michael Sampson, illustrated by Brian Won

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

COUNTING FLANNELBOARD:
Monkeys

We counted 7 monkeys

Sing:
It’s counting time, it’s counting time
so let’s all count while I put these in a line.

Then we count the whatevers as they go up.

Sing:
It’s counting time, it’s counting time
so let’s all count as they go bye-bye

FLANNELBOARD:
Five Yellow Bananas

Rhyme and idea taken from one little librarian.  Template found via Google image search.

5 yellow bananas, and not one more.
The monkey ate one, & then there were 4
4 yellow bananas, so yummy to see.
The monkey ate one, & then there were 3
3 yellow bananas, & he knew what to do.
The monkey ate one, & then there were 2
2 yellow bananas, hanging in the sun.
The monkey ate one, & then there as 1
1 yellow banana, well for goodness sake.
The monkey ate that one, & he got a tummyache
Now there are no little bananas hanging on the tree
Monkey, your tummy wouldn’t hurt if you shared them with me!

Have a monkey puppet “eat” the bananas as you take them off the board

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

MOVEMENT: The Itsy Bitsy Spider*

BOOK:

Little Monkey Calms Down by Michael Dahl, illustrated by Oriol Vidal

MOVEMENT: Two Little Blackbirds*

VIDEO:

“Mitzi’s Mess” from Little Bear: Rainy Day Tales

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over*

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
    

Book: Two Little Monkeys by Mem Fox, illustrated by Jill Barton
Book: Monkey See, Look at Me! by Lorena Siminovich
Book: Monkey and Me by Emily Gravett
Book: Banana by Ed Vere
Book: Swing Otto Swing! story and pictures by David Milgrim

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS:
the librariann – Monkey See, monkey… Do this storytime!
Library Village – Toddler Story Time – Monkeys!
one little librarian – toddler time: monkey business
storytime katie – Monkeys!
sunflower storytime – monkey business!
Verona Story Time – Money Story Time – Toddler

Jen in the Library – Monkeys & Apes: Wonderful Primates – Toddler Storytime (November 7, 2012)

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
I loved Spunky Little Monkey just as much as I thought it was.  I did add a repetition of the moves a few more times though, so the toddlers could get the hang of it.

I wasn’t originally planning on doing Little Monkey Calms Down as my second book, but attention spans had started wandering and I liked how short it was, while still having a story.  I was surprised at how well it went over!  Sometimes I think I have to have fun, goofy, loud books for toddlers to keep them engaged, but softer, quiet books can work as well.  It was interesting how quiet I could be when reading this and kids were still paying attention.

For the DVD, I remembered that Mitzi was some sort of primate, and I did some research online and everything said she was a monkey.  But watching the DVD again, I think she’s more of an ape.  I’ll have to find a different DVD for the next time I do monkeys only.

PRESENTED: Tuesday, November 14, 2017

ATTENDANCE:  10 am:  37 people      11 am: 46 people

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

Rain – Toddler Storytime

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Today was all about rainy day toddler tales.

SONG: Welcome Song

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

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

LETTER FLANNELBOARD:
R is for Rain 

Today we reviewed the sound the letter R makes, drew it with our fingers, and talked about a road runner, a rocket, a raccoon, a rabbit, and a raindrop!

To make a lot of the pieces for my letter flannels I’ve been using an Ellison die cutter.  But sometimes the thick felt makes it difficult to cut, so my R ended up looking really wonky.  We didn’t have a lot of dies of things starting with R, so I added in some other flannel pieces I already had.

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE SIGN: “Rain”

BOOK:

The Rainy Day Puddle by Ei Nakabayashi

For the 10am storytime, I only read half of the book.  For 11am storytime I read the whole thing.

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

COUNTING FLANNELBOARD:
Gray Rain Clouds

We counted 5 rain clouds.  Then we tried to count the different ways  we could get to five, like 2 and 3, or 4 and 1.

Sing:
It’s counting time, it’s counting time
so let’s all count while I put these in a line.

Then we count the whatevers as they go up.

Sing:
It’s counting time, it’s counting time
so let’s all count as they go bye-bye

10 AM: MOVEMENT: I know I did a movement here for this group, but since I changed my storytime on the fly, I forgot to write down what I did, and now I can’t recall.

11 AM: FLANNELBOARD:
Color Umbrellas

Five umbrellas stood by the back door.
The red one went outside, and then there were four.

Four umbrellas pretty as can be
The blue one went outside, and then there were three.

Three umbrellas with nothing to do
The green one went outside, and then there were two.

Two umbrellas not having much fun
The yellow one went outside, and then there was one.

One umbrella sad and all alone.
Decided to go join his friends and that left none.

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

10 AM & 11 AM – MOVEMENT: Itsy Bitsy Spider

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

11 AM: BOOK:

Rain Dance by Kathi Appelt, pictures by Emilie Chollat

 

MOVEMENT: Two Little Blackbirds*

VIDEO:

“The Rainy Day Game” from Peppa Pig: Sun, Sea and Snow

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:

 
  

Book: Rain by Manya Stojic
Book: Bunny Fun by Sarah Weeks, illustrated by Sam Williams
Book: Who Likes Rain? by Wong Herbert Yee
Book: Thirsty Thursday by Phyllis Root, illustrated by Helen Craig (this would also make a good flannelboard)
Book: Raindrops Fall All Around by Charles Ghigna, illustrated by Laura Watson
Book: Raindrop, Plop! by Wendy Cheyette Lewison, illustrated by Pam Paparone
Book: Red Rubber Boot Day by Mary Lyn Ray, illustrated by Lauren Stringer
Book: Rabbits & Raindrops by Jim Arnosky
Book: The Big Storm: A Very Soggy Counting Book by Nancy Tafuri

GREAT RESOURCES FOR MORE IDEAS:
storytime katie – Rainy Days!
yogibrarian – “Rain” Toddler Storytime 
State Library of Iowa – “Puddle Jumpers” Storytime Kit

Jen in the Library – Rain – Toddler Storytime (Feburary 3, 2014)
Jen in the Library – Rain – Toddler Storytime (December 2, 2014)

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
Lesson Learned from today’s storytime:  Storytime after a Daylights Saving time change is going to be difficult.  Kids don’t pay attention to time, so of course they would have a hard time adjusting!  I think the 10am group had a harder time of it because 11 am is usually naptime for so many of them.

So, I decided to change things up from my usual and do mostly songs and movements with the 10 am group, while I stuck to my more traditional storytime schedule for the 11 am group.

PRESENTED: Tuesday, November 7, 2017

ATTENDANCE:  10 am:  31 people      11 am: 40 people

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

Halloween – Toddler Storytime

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Happy Halloween everyone!

SONG: Welcome Song

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

MOVEMENT: Open Shut Them*

LETTER FLANNELBOARD:
H is for Halloween  (not pumpkin)

Today we reviewed the sound the letter H makes, drew it with our fingers, and talked about a hand, horse, hen, heart and Halloween.  (I didn’t have a good cutout for Halloween, so I just did a pumpkin, which we discussed does NOT start with H), but the saying on it does!.

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE SIGN: “Halloween”

BOOK:

Plumply, Dumply Pumpkin written by Mary Serfozo, illustrated by Valeria Petrone

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

COUNTING FLANNELBOARD:
Pumpkins / Jack-o-Lanterns

Pumpkins from ArtFelt

Today we counted 9 pumpkins!

Sing:
It’s counting time, it’s counting time
so let’s all count while I put these in a line.

Then we count the whatevers as they go up.

Sing:
It’s counting time, it’s counting time
so let’s all count as they go bye-bye

FLANNELBOARD:
Mouse’s Halloween House

(Pattern & story from Mother Goose’s Playhouse by Judy Sierra)

One day in the fall, a little gray mouse found a big orange house.
She nibbled a hole in the middle to make the door.
She nibbled 2 holes near the top to make windows.
She nibbled a wide hole near the bottom so her children could run in and out.
Then she put a candle inside so the house was never dark.

The mouse’s little house
was a sight to be seen.
It was a jack-o’-lantern —
Happy Halloween!

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

MOVEMENT: Itsy Bitsy Spider

FLANNELBOARD (10am Storytime):
 
Felt Pieces from ArtFelt

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate.
The first one said, “Oh, my, it’s getting late!” (Hands beside face in surprised look)
The second one said, “There are witches in the air!” (hand flies overhead)
The third one said, “Well, I don’t care!” (shake pointer finger)
The fourth one said, “Let’s run, and run, and run!” (run with feet)
The fifth one said, “I’m ready for some fun!” (point to self)
Then WHOOOOOOSH went the wind (make sound and whoosh hands back and forth.)
and OUT (clap) went the lights.
And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight.  (Roll hand over hand.)

BOOK (11am Storytime):

Pumpkin Trouble by Jan Thomas

MOVEMENT: Two Little Blackbirds*

VIDEO:

“Bat” from Good Night Maisy

MOVEMENT: Storytime’s Over

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL IDEAS:
    

 

Book: It’s Halloween Night! written by Jennifer O’Connell, illustrated by Jennifer Morris
Book: Duck & Goose Find a Pumpkin by Tad Hills
Book: Sheep Trick or Treat by Nancy Shaw, illustrated by Margot Apple
Book: What Am I? Halloween by Anne Margaret Lewis, illustrated by Tom Mills (make this into a flannelboard)
Book: Pumpkin Eye by Denise Fleming
Book: Ten Orange Pumpkins by Stephen Savage
Book: Mouse’s First Halloween by Lauren Thompson, illustrated by Buket Erdogan
DVD: Tucker’s Spooky Halloween based on the book by Meslie McGuirk
DVD: Max & Ruby’s Halloween
DVD: Little Bear: Halloween Stories

THOUGHTS ON THIS STORYTIME:
Halloween is an exciting day, and in my 10am storytime it was a little hard to keep the excited toddlers focused on a book.  I started, as I usually do, reading a second book, but quickly realized that that was no going to hold their attention.  So I stopped reading about two pages in, put the book down, and pulled out the Five Little Pumpkins flannelboard instead.  My tip for parents was, “If you realize that your child is not interested in a book, you don’t have to keep reading it!  Find a better time.”  Some times we need to take our own advice. 🙂

11am storytime was a little more focused (after nap time), so I was able to read two books with them.

PRESENTED: Tuesday, October 31, 2017

ATTENDANCE:  10 am:  48 people      11 am: 46 people

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