storytime katie

For more information on how I plan and prepare my toddler storytimes, check out this introduction post. And for a complete list of the repeating extension activities, visit this post. I starred the materials used in the plan; multiple stars indicate use for more than one session.

The Plan

Books

Little Bitty Friends by Elizabeth McPhee**
Lulu’s Busy Day by Caroline Uff**
Now I’m Big! by Karen Katz**
What Shall We Do with the Boo-Hoo Baby? by Cressida Cowell

Early Literacy Tip
Giving your children paper and crayons, markers, or pencils even when they can only scribble is the beginning of early writing. Posting your child’s work on the refrigerator or around the house will show them how proud you are of their efforts.

Theme Extension Activities

Featured CD: Songs for Wiggleworms***

Featured Track: #18 “The Milkshake Song”***

Flannelboard: Ten Little Babies

Repeating Extension Activities

• Egg Shakers Up***
• Put Your Shake On Your***
• Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear
• This Is Big***
• Tick, Tock***

How It Went

Monday morning (9:30)
I read Lulu’s Busy Day and Now I’m Big! and both of them were great hits. I talked with the toddlers and caregivers about being big kids and the different things that we can do now that we’re big! (I did paperclip the diaper/potty spread in Now I’m Big! since the younger toddlers are often still in diapers and I didn’t want anyone to feel left out!) Since this was my last class with this group, I did THREE shaker songs, using Songs for Wiggleworms “The Milkshake Song” as my finale piece.

Thursday morning (9:30)
Since this is a quieter group, I read both Lulu’s Busy Day and Little Bitty Friends. Little Bitty Friends just barely ties into the theme of growing up, but I loved the soft illustrations and calming effects of the book on the group! This group did AMAZING with “Put Your Shaker On” and I stretched us by adding in new body words like: shin, thigh, heel as an example to caregivers on how to stretch vocabulary.

Thursday morning (10:30)
Both Now I’m Big! and Little Bitty Friends were wonderful. I especially made sure to read Now I’m Big! in this class because I have several friends who are expecting little siblings to join them within the next few months or so and I love how the book ends. I also did more body parts vocab with this group and it worked out just as well as the last!

For more information on how I plan and prepare my toddler storytimes, check out this introduction post. And for a complete list of the repeating extension activities, visit this post. I starred the materials used in the plan; multiple stars indicate use for more than one session.

The Plan

Books

Dini Dinosaur by Karen Beaumont
I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont**
Time for a Bath by Phillis Gershator
Uh-Oh! by Rachel Isadora**

Early Literacy Tip
Ribbons are very versatile and can be almost anything. Today we are going to use our ribbons to show directions like up, down, in, and out.

Theme Extension Activities

Featured CD: Hot Dog! (Caspar Babypants)

Featured Track: #6 Messy Face

Flannelboard: Five Clean and Squeaky Pigs**

Flannelboard: Five Elephants in the Bathtub

Repeating Extension Activities

• Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes
• Roly Poly**
• These Are the Colors**
• This Is Big, Big, Big**
• Zoom, Zoom, Zoom**

How It Went

Monday morning (9:30)
I was sick this morning and didn’t see my Monday class.

Thursday morning (9:30)
This group’s favorite book was definitely I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More. I invited the toddlers and caregivers to play along with the book and pretend to paint each other. It was really fun to see the interaction between the grown-ups and their kiddos. I loved the ribbons early literacy tip and thought that it was received well by caregivers.

Thursday morning (10:30)
Uh-Oh! was a big hit in this group because I asked caregivers to talk while I panned the book, talking about messes and whether or not our toddlers were still messy kids. I liked that this book talked about other uh-ohs/messes rather than just being dirty. This group was FASCINATED when I did the flannelboard “Five Clean and Dirty Pigs” — their faces lit up with amazement/glee when the pigs became suddenly dirty or clean.

For more information on how I plan and prepare my toddler storytimes, check out this introduction post. And for a complete list of the repeating extension activities, visit this post. I starred the materials used in the plan; multiple stars indicate use for more than one session.

The Plan

Books

Big Fat Hen by Keith Baker**
One Family by George Shannon*
Swallow the Leader by Danna Smith
Ten in the Bed by Jane Cabrera***

Early Literacy Tip
The use of small percussion instruments such as bells, rhythm sticks, shakers, and drums help children with muscular development and coordination.
** Notice how this early lit tip has nothing to do with today’s prop of scarves? Whoops! I turned it into a “it’s okay to make mistakes” tips for caregivers.

Theme Extension Activities

Featured CD: ABCs & 123s***

Featured Track: #13 This Old Man

Flannelboard: Five Little Books***

Flannelboard: Picture Windows***

Repeating Extension Activities

• The Elevator Song**
• Everyone Can March
• Popcorn Kernels***
• This Is Big, Big, Big***
• We Wave Our Scarves Together***

How It Went

Monday morning (9:30)
I flip-flopped this week and read my quieter book for the first book, One Family, and it worked really well! The kids were nice and calm after our introductions and our opening song and it was an easy segue. We counted each family in the illustrations and I kept asking if the kids thought the family could grow bigger. I, of course, had some kids that were convinced that it would and some that were adamant that the family could not get bigger. What I really loved was hearing the caregivers have conversations: “That’s the size of our family.” “We have a grandma in our house.” “Oh, look, twins like us.”

Thursday morning (9:30)
This class was packed — I had nearly everyone in attendance on my list — and the class was a bit chaotic because of it. I knew that I needed more active stories, so I went with Big Fat Hen and Ten in the Bed. I did more verses of “We Wave Our Scarves Together” (normally it’s wave, shake, and hide). Today, I added toss and peek-a-boo to help keep everyone’s attention. Remarkably, everyone pays really good attention when the manipulatives come out!

Thursday morning (10:30)
My quiet class! This group needed both active stories Big Fat Hen and Ten in the Bed to draw them into the storytime. I really loved watching a few of the more tentative kiddos play along with the books and activities. I was especially proud of a friend that has struggled with our bubble time at the end. This friend prefers to wait for the bubbles to come to them instead of joining the group in the middle of the rug. But not today! Today, my friend went right into the fray and their caregivers were so thrilled!