Babies: Food

For more information on how I plan and prepare my baby storytimes, check out this introduction post. And for a complete list of the baby rhymes/bounces/lifts/etc., visit this post. I starred the materials used in the plan; multiple stars indicate use for more than one session.

The Plan

Books
For baby time, my library passes out individual copies of board books to each caregiver/child pair. I typically keep two or three to the side of me in case a baby tries to grab my copy. I read face out; caregivers read to their children.

Max’s Breakfast by Rosemary Wells*
Pat-a-Cake by Tony Kenyon**
Yummy Yucky by Leslie Patricelli**

Early Literacy Tip

When you give your children positive reinforcement by clapping or telling them that they did a great job, you are encouraging them to act both independently and cooperatively.

Flannelboard: Shape Game

I used the red apple from my “Five Little Apples” set. I flipped it down so the babies just saw a bright red, full apple. I went with red since I figured it would be a great contrast on our black board, but also because it was likely the most recognizable apple color.

Repeating Extension Activities

• Icka Bicka Soda Cracker**
• Milkshake, Milkshake**
• Pat-a-Cake*
• Popcorn, Popcorn**
• A Smooth Road**

How It Went

Tuesday morning
Food is such a fun theme for babies! They are just starting to discover food and this was a great way to explore it. “Milkshake” was easily today’s biggest hits. I brought out shaker eggs (which I don’t always do in baby storytime), but I wanted to give the babies a treat today. They definitely tried to “eat” the eggs!

Thursday morning
This is the class where I decided I wanted to do some more research and add more rhymes to my baby repertoire. My wiggly babies just wanted to sing more songs and do more bounces/lifts. At the very last minute, I threw in a “Tick Tock” to keep them entertained. But we went to bubble a little early because the kiddos were so restless. Immediately afterwards, I began to search the internet for more movement activities to memorize!