Category: Music and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 7/17

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

igottherhythm
Book
I Got the Rhythm by Connie Schofield-Morrison
This was a new book in the library and after I read it to determine where it was going to go in our picture book collection, I knew that it was going to be a Shake, Shimmy group. Lots of opportunities to dance, beautiful illustrations, and an energetic little girl to convince all the kids it was time to dance! I wish it had worked as well as it should have.

Props
Shaker Eggs!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Jump, Jump — Joanie Leeds and the Nightlights
Clap It! — Bari Koral Family Rock Band
The Hokey Pokey — Traditional
The Milkshake Song — Old Town School of Folk Music
I Know a Chicken — Laurie Berkner Band
Shake Your Shakes Slowly — Kathy Reid-Naiman
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

I had a little girl today turn on the music while I was reading “I Got the Rhythm” and it threw the whole book off which made me very sad. Then “The Hokey Pokey” was kind of a flop. The kids really didn’t know what to do and weren’t dancing like they normally do. Even when they don’t do the motions that I’m doing, they generally keep moving and they just didn’t. But! “The Milkshake Song” saved me and the program. The kids had an amazing time with it and I had three parents request the CD after the program.

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

June 3, 2015 1 Comment Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 7/15

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

hopjump
Book
Hop Jump by Ellen Stoll Walsh
Two sets of frogs: one who wants to jump and the other who wants to dance. Eventually, they come together. It’s a perfect book for a music and movement program. The kids had a really great time jumping around and it definitely got us off to a rocking start for this day’s Shake Shimmy.

Props
Activity Scarves!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Get Ready to Wiggle — The Wiggles
Rocketship Run — Laurie Berkner Band
I Like to Dance — Yo Gabba Gabba
If All of the Raindrops — Old Town School of Folk Music
Dancing Scarf Blues — Carole Peterson
Under the Sea — Georgiana Stewart
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

This program is really serving as a great way for me to get to know a lot of my new families and for them to get comfortable with me. I had another set of siblings really get into dancing today. For the past few sessions, they’ve stayed close to Mom and hung out on the edges. Today, they all walked up and danced right next to me! I think everyone’s favorite activity today was swimming with the scarves during “Under the Sea”.

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

May 20, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 7/10

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

monsterslovecolors
Book
I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More by Karen Beaumont
I sing this book and often invite the kids to sing along with me. I also love the fact that book is a guessing game, teaches body parts, and has an almost inappropriate rhyme! (Sometimes I worry that parents will not like the almost “butt” said. But then I decide that the book is good enough to risk it because it is.)

Props
Parachute! (WARNING: Measure your room before you buy a chute!! This one just fits in our large meeting space, but I almost bought the next size up based on the handles…)

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Head & Shoulders — Ella Jenkins
Hands Are for Clapping — Jim Gill
The Airplane Song — Laurie Berkner Band
Freeze! — Michael Plunkett
Popcorn — Joanie Leeds and the Nightlights
See the Sun — Eric Litwin and Michael Levine
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

The parachute is pure love. The kids loved both popping the paper popcorn I put on the chute by shaking and bouncing it AND “See the Sun” where once again I had the adults help me raise and lower the chute while the kids ran around underneath. (And by run, I mostly mean they walked around the edges until their static hair was making me laugh so hard I thought I would cry.

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

May 6, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 7/8

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

monsterslovecolors
Book
Monsters Love Colors by Mike Austin
Scribble, scribble, mix, dance, and wiggle: what a great chorus and what a great set of new vocabulary for our youngest kiddos to learn! This book gives more than enough opportunity to move around while being read, but also teaches color recognition. One of my favorite new reads of this past year!

Props
Shaker Eggs!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Jumping With Variations — Ella Jenkins
Skip to My Lou — Old Town School of Folk Music
Let’s Dance Now — Jim Gill
Shake Your Sillies Out — The Wiggles
Fruit Salad Salsa — Laurie Berkner
Shake With You — Eric Litwin and Michael Levine
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

I really enjoyed “Skip to My Lou” because the kids decided to play follow the leader and made a line behind me. I was personally exhausted after the first three songs — jumping, skipping, and dancing was a LOT for me to do. And “Jumping With Variations” turned out to be a much longer song in actuality than when I was listening to it in my work space.

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

April 22, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 7/3

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

tankatankaskunk
Book
Tanka Tanka Skunk by Steve Webb
I had never heard of “Tanka Tanka” before coming to my new library and I feel as if I’ve been cheated for my whole librarian life. It’s a great, rhythmic book and I love using it to teach phonetic awareness! I had all of the kids clap along with me for this one. It worked really well, but I left a mark on my arm from clapping my arm since I couldn’t use both hands to clap because of the book.

Props
Activity Scarves!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Loud and Quiet — Caspar Babypants
List of Dances — Jim Gill
Get the Sillies Out — Yo Gabba Gabba
Round & Round — Georgiana Stewart
Scarves Up, Down, & Around — Johnette Downing
Rainbow Dancers — Pam Schiller
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

I made the biggest of big mistakes today — I spread the scarves out on the tables prior to the kids coming in the room. Needless to say, I did not have their attention and their eyes were squarely focused on the scarves and what was to come. And I think it was for that reason that the song “Loud and Quiet” flopped so badly. The kids were not making animal noises, even with the verbal instructions that I prepped them with. I promised to try the song again later on in the summer. And I vowed to keep the props hidden until it was time for props.

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

April 8, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 7/1

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

bequietmike
Book
Be Quiet, Mike! by Leslie Patricelli
Have you ever told a roomful of children that they can bang and stomp along with you? If you haven’t, I recommend getting some earplugs and letting the first floor patrons know ahead of time. This was a very fun and noisy read-aloud. I highly recommend it so long as you prepare ahead of time.

Props
Parachute! (WARNING: Measure your room before you buy a chute!! This one just fits in our large meeting space, but I almost bought the next size up based on the handles…)

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
I Like to Rise — Kathy Reid-Naiman
Gotta Be Good — Ralph Covert
Ups and Downs — Jim Gill
Row the Boat — Robert Jenson
Fast and Slow — Laurie Berkner Band
Ring Around the Rosie — Caspar Babypants
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

My victory for this session was seeing one of my babies from the spring session of Baby Storytime absolutely FLOURISH in Shake, Shimmy whereas in Baby Storytime, she was withdrawn and uncomfortable. While I can’t say exactly what has caused this change, I am so very encouraged and inspired by it! The kids in general are getting so comfortable with the program and our space — I had a couple of kid running warm-up circles around the room before the crowd arrived.

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

March 25, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 6/26

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

chickachickaboomboom
Book
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, Jr.
Besides this being a very familiar book, it also has a great rhythm to the book. Since almost every single person could recite “Chicka Chicka”, I challenged everyone to clap the rhythm with me. That led to a lot of fun and some varied success with keeping a beat! It went about as well as you can imagine — most kids were on the beat, but the few stragglers just couldn’t quite make the connection with the beat.

Props
Shaker Eggs!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Wiggle Your Lah-De-Dah — Ralph Covert
Silly Dance Contest — Jim Gill
Freeze Ball — Michael Plunkett
I Can Shake My Shaker Egg — Eric Litwin and Michael Levine
The Shaker Hop — Carole Stephens
We’re Going to the Market — Kathy Reid-Naiman
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

I did four shaker songs this session instead of the typical three. The kids were so very tired by the end of the day that they had a wonderful clean-up — ha! As always, “Silly Dance Contest” wins a lot of fans and hearts every time I use it. I really love “I Can Shake My Shaker Egg” — the kids enjoyed shaking faster and faster and faster!

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

March 18, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 6/24

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

canyoumakeascaryface
Book
Can You Make a Scary Face? by Jan Thomas
This book is a pure crowd pleaser. I love watching the kids swat at themselves and blow furiously trying to get the bug out. It gave us a great warm-up and I love the first few pages of “get up” and “sit down” that really get a lot of laughs from both caregivers and kids!

Props
Bells!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
I Really Love to Dance — Laurie Berkner
Jump Up, Turn Around — Jim Gill
Play Your Instruments — Ella Jenkins
Oh Children Ring Your Bells & Ring Them On the Floor — Kathy Reid-Naiman
Dance Around — Ralph Covert
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

This was the session where I started noticing that the adults were having just as much fun as the kids. The opening song “Hello & How Are You?” is in English, French, and Spanish and I was so pleased to hear adults singing along with me. It only took five sessions, but they learned it! As previously mentioned, I am very used to being the only one in the room singing, so this was a treat for me!

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

March 4, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 6/19

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

dancingfeet
Book
Dancing Feet by Lindsey Craig
This has been a favorite book of mine since my last library. I love that it’s a guessing game and it was very fun to have the kids make the feet noises with me. I did have a few preschoolers who were trying so hard to answer before everyone else though. I had to ask them to let the littler kids have a chance too!

Props
Bells!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Jump Up, Turn Around — Jim Gill
The Goldfish — Laurie Berkner Band
Dance Around — Ralph Covert
All You Pretty Babies — Caspar Babypants
I Love to Hear the Sounds — Kathy Reid-Naiman
Sunny Day — Elizabeth Mitchell
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

The kids LOVED “The Goldfish” and “Jump Up, Turn Around” — the definite favorites of the day. We played with hand bells during “Dance Around”, “All You Pretty Babies”, and “I Love to Hear the Sounds”. The bells were not a super big hit in terms of the props. I don’t know if it’s because I saved the bells as the last introduction and the competition (shakers/parachute/scarves) were the better draw. “Sunny Day” didn’t really work as a cool-down song but has had great success in our weekly evening storytimes.

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

February 18, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Shake, Shimmy, & Dance: 6/17

For the first time in our library’s history, we ran our own summer reading program — Make Some Noise! What better opportunity to do a bi-weekly music and movement dance party? This program was advertised for ages 0-7 and their families.

shakeshimmyanddance

The Plan

howcanyoudance
Book
How Can You Dance? by Rick Walton
I liked that this book talked about dancing in different ways: tree waving in the breeze, leading/marching in a band, etc. It gave the kids new ideas on how to move and really increased their participation. I also liked that the illustrations were diverse.

Props
Activity Scarves!

The Playlist

Hello & How Are You? — Old Town School of Folk Music
Clap Your Hands — They Might Be Giants
Jumping & Counting — Jim Gill
We Are the Dinosaurs — Laurie Berkner Band
Wave Your Ribbons in the Air — The Wiggles
Twist & Shout — Old Town School of Folk Music
Let’s Go Fly a Kite — Georgiana Stewart
Very, Very Tall — Old Town School of Folk Music
Shake Hands With Friends — Ella Jenkins

How It Went

For the first time in my life, “We Are the Dinosaurs” was a flop. The kids weren’t really into marching and I led a very small parade of only ten or so kids around the room. Luckily, the kids loved the scarves and I found that the parents really enjoyed “Twist and Shout”! My favorite memory of the day is three of my little girls shaking hands together during the closing song. Absolutely adorable!

(For an example of the Powerpoint and handouts that I made for each Shake, Shimmy please visit the original post.)

February 4, 2015 0 Comments Short URLMusic and Movement

Newer Entries
Older Entries