Today’s Flannel Friday came way of a Pinterest pin, which I free-cut out, just by looking at the picture.
I used these finger puppets with my Owls storytime this past year. I did do the traditional “Two Little Blackbirds,” just modified. Super simple, very pleasing for the kids!
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Library Quine is hosting this week’s Flannel Friday; visit her blog to link up your post! To find out more about Flannel Friday, please visit the Flannel Friday website!
Books
Foxy by Emma Dodd
Mouse’s First Day of School by Lauren Thompson
Pete the Cat: Rocking In My School Shoes by Eric Litwin
Wow! School! by Robert Neubecker
Extension Activities
Flannelboard: “Mary Had a Little Lamb”
Flannelboard: “The Wheels on the Bus”
Fingerplay: “Way Up High in the Apple Tree”
Way up high in the apple tree
I saw two apples looking at me
I shook that tree as hard as I could
And down came the apples
And mmm, they were good!
Song: “Come to School” (Tune: Farmer in the Dell)
We like to come to school
We like to come to school
Our school is such a happy place
We like to come to school
Craft
This was one of my favorite crafts of all time! It was super cute, very easy to make, and it served a purpose! Some of my parents were planning on using this to store love notes for the first day! The craft and template came from Danielle’s Place.
I did a special storytime in the morning, apart from the summer session, for the preschoolers that would be moving on to big-kid school this year. It was my hope that I’d be able to help alleviate some concerns through stories, let parents talk about which teachers their kids would have to find some ST friends that had the same class, and for me to say goodbye to them as my ST kids.
It was a great time for all. By the end of the storytime, I had all of the kids geared up and ready for kindergarten. I had picked books that talked about all the new and neat things they would see, so the kids were chanting “WOW FRIENDS, WOW TEACHER” and “I’m rocking in my school shoes” all the way out of the room.
At the end, I had giant hugs from a lot of kids that have been in storytime since I started way back in 2010. (Which isn’t *that* long ago, but it feels like a lifetime to them!) It was a wonderful send-off and I hope they started school with confidence!
Five little monsters jumping on the bed…
These adorable monsters were inspired by this Pinterest pin! I used them during Monster Storytime with the familiar song “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed.”
I used puffy paint for the eyes, since I didn’t feel like doing French knots! I tried to make them look a little ambiguous so that I could maybe use them as aliens and other creatures. That is, if I ever do an alien storytime!
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Linda is hosting this week’s Flannel Friday; visit her blog to link up your post! To find out more about Flannel Friday, please visit the Flannel Friday website!
Books
Color Zoo by Lois Ehlert
Mouse’s First Snow by Lauren Thompson
Pete the Cat: Rocking In My School Shoes by Eric Litwin
Where Is the Green Sheep? by Mem Fox and Judy Horacek
The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
Extension Activities
Flannelboard Puzzle: “Letter S”
Flannelboard: “Five Red Strawberries”
Five red strawberries, sweet to the core.
Bear came and ate one and then there were four.
Four red strawberries, growing near a tree.
Bear came and ate one and then there were three.
Three red strawberries, for you and you and you.
Bear came and ate one, and then there were two.
Two red strawberries, sitting in the sun.
Bear came and ate one and then there was one.
One red strawberry, left all alone.
Bear came and ate it and then there were none.
Song: “Baby Shark”
Baby shark, do-do doot-doot
Baby shark, do-do doot-doot
Baby shark, do-do doot-doot, doo
(Repeat with Mama Shark, Papa Shark, and Grandpa Shark. Baby Shark is done with two hands, wrists touching to make a shark mouth. Mama Shark is slightly bigger, Papa Shark is bigger than Mama. For Grandpa Shark, fold fingers in and clap with no teeth.)
Song with Props: “Baa Baa Black Sheep”
Baa, baa black sheep, have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full
One for the farmer and one for the dame
And one for the little boy who lives down the lane
Baa, baa black sheep, have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full
(repeat with blue, red, and green sheep)
Song: “Itsy Bitsy Spider”
Craft
We made snakes with squares and stars. All of the foam stickers were left over from previous crafts, so this was kind of up-cycling for us!
Storytime is continuing to be a bit hectic during the daycare transition from old teacher to new teachers, along with the new classroom ages and kids. This week’s was better than last, so I think things are looking up! “Where Is the Green Sheep?” was the hit of storytime, along with my strawberries flannelboard. I had Applesauce, our storytime mascot, eat the berries off of the board and that left the kids in hysterics!
Books
Higher, Higher! by Leslie Patricelli
I Want to Be an Astronaut by Byron Batron
The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers
Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! I’m Off to the Moon! by Dan Yaccarino
Extension Activities
Flannelboard: “Four Little Rockets”
Four little rockets winking at me
One shot off and then there were three!
Three little rockets with nothing to do
One shot off, and then there were two!
Two little rockets afraid of the sun
One shot off, and then there was one!
One little rocket alone is no fun
It shot off, and then there were none!
Flannelboard: “Five Little Men in a Flying Saucer”
Five little men in a flying saucer
Looked around the world one day
They looked left and looked right
But they didn’t like the sight
So one man flew away
Action Rhyme: “Moon Ride”
Do you want to go up with me to the moon? (point to friend, then sky)
Let’s get in our rocket ship and blast off soon! (climb in, blast off)
Faster and faster we reach to the sky (jump and reach)
Isn’t it fun to be able to fly? (spread arms)
We’re on the moon, now all take a look (look)
Sit back down, and I’ll read you a book (sit)
Credit: SurLaLune Storytime
Action Song: “If You’re Going to the Moon”
If you’re going to the moon, wear your boots
If you’re going to the moon, wear your boots
If you’re going to the moon, this is what you have to do
If you’re going to the moon, wear your boots
(gloves, helmet, suit, etc.)
Credit: Mel’s Desk
Craft
You might be able to tell that I was getting tired of thinking of crafts by the end of summer, since this session’s craft was simple foam stickers to make a solar system. But the kids LOVE stickers, so it was definitely well-received even if I didn’t make an amazing creation for them to do.
This was a great storytime session. I am a giant space NERD and get so excited about it — the kids just feed off of that excitement. Their favorite books were “Higher, Higher” and “I Want to Be An Astronaut.” I also snuck in a lot of learning during these books, all about how there’s no gravity in space and that the food has to be packaged funny. I hope that I now have little budding astronauts running around the library!
This week’s Flannel Friday is inspired by Melissa, and her post “5 Strawberries.”
I used a clip art strawberry that I liked and used Publisher to stretch it out to make different sizes. (Melissa does have a template up on her blog that I completely forget about when I pinned the picture to Pinterest! I need to start making better comments!) Like Melissa, I did the seeds with embroidery floss since it was easier for me as my puffy paint stock is black, white, and pink.
When I did this during “Letter S” storytime, I used our storytime mascot to pull off the strawberries in this rhyme:
Five red strawberries, sweet to the core.
Bear came and ate one and then there were four.
Four red strawberries, growing near a tree.
Bear came and ate one and then there were three.
Three red strawberries, for you and you and you.
Bear came and ate one and then there were two.
Two red strawberries, sitting in the sun.
Bear came and ate one and then there was one.
One red strawberry, left all alone.
Bear came and ate it and then there were none.
(Rhyme was modified by one that Abby posted about apples!)
Anyway, you can guess that the kids LOVED seeing a puppet grab pieces off the feltboard! I will definitely be using this flannel again in “Picnic” storytime in a few weeks!
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Lisa is hosting this week’s Flannel Friday; visit her blog to link up your post! To find out more about Flannel Friday, please visit the Flannel Friday website!
Books
Hello, Robots by Bob Staake
Little White Rabbit by Kevin Henkes
My Rhinoceros by Jon Agee
Race You to Bed by Bob Shea
Wow! Said the Owl by Tim Hopgood
Extension Activities
Flannelboard Puzzle: “Letter R”
Flannelboard: “Four Little Rockets”
Four little rockets winking at me
One shot off and then there were three!
Three little rockets with nothing to do
One shot off and then there were two!
Two little rockets afraid of the sun
One shot off and then there was one!
One little rocket alone is no fun
He shot off, and then there were none!
Action Rhyme: “Rain Is Falling Down”
The rain is falling down (flutter fingers down)
SPLASH! (clap loudly once)
The rain is falling down (flutter fingers down)
SPLASH! (clap loudly once)
Pitter patter pitter patter (tap legs softly)
The rain is falling down (flutter fingers down)
SPLASH! (clap loudly once)
(repeat)
Puppets: “Five Little Rabbits”
Hippety hop and hippety hay
Five little rabbits went out to play
Hippety hop and hippety hay,
One little bunny hopped away.
Craft
The daycare now has over 30 kids attending storytime at a single time, so I’ve tried to make the crafts as simple as they can be. This week, they colored their rabbits and we glued cottontails on with cotton balls and glue sticks.
This storytime was a mixed bag. Books were either *HITS* or *FLOPS*! Hits: “My Rhinoceros,” “Wow! Said the Owl,” and “Little White Rabbit.” Flops: “Hello, Robots” and “Race You to Bed.” Honestly, I think the storytime was difficult for several reason. One because one of the classrooms was losing their primary teacher and we had both the new teacher and the old teacher in doing different discipline. Two because the kids had just changed classrooms for the 2012-2013 school year based on their new ages. Add this all up and it made for a bit of a mess. Luckily, my rabbit puppets were giant hits, as well as my rocket pieces on the flannelboard!
Books
Bedtime for Monsters by Ed Vere
If You’re a Monster and You Know It by Rebecca and Ed Emberley
The Monster at the End of This Book by Jon Stone
Shape by Shape by Suze MacDonald
Extension Activities
Flannelboard: “Go Away Big Green Monster”
Action Rhyme: “Monster, Monster”
Monster, monster, turn around
Monster, monster, touch the ground
Monster, monster, reach up high
Monster, monster, touch the sky
Monster, monster, find your nose
Monster, monster, find your toes
Monster, monster, find your knees
Monster, monster, sit down please
Credit: Modified from childhood
Fingerplay/Puppets: “Five Little Monsters Jumping on the Bed”
Five little monsters jumping on the bed
One fell off and bumped his head
Mommy called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monsters jumping on the bed!”
Credit: Modified from childhood
Song: “Monster Pokey”
You put your claws in, you take your claws out
You put your claws in and you shake them all about!
You do the wild rumpus and you turn yourself about!
That’s what it’s all about! (horns, tail, big feet, and hairy self)
Credit: Perry Public Library
Craft
Today’s craft came from Pinterest. I simply put out a ton of cardstock scraps and let the kids make their own monsters. Most of the kids were super happy to rip the paper, but I did have a few parents request scissors and I passed them out to adults only.
Since the CSLP summer theme was “Dream Big, Read,” I decided to do themed storytimes. (I did with 2010’s “Make a Splash” and I did not with 2011’s “One World, Many Stories.” I am planning on using the theme in my storytimes for next year’s “Dig Into Reading.”) I really wanted to make sure that my monster storytime had different stories than the last two times I did monster in 2010 and 2011. At this storytime, it should come as no surprise that “The Monster at the End of This Book” was the most well-received. I’m silly for having omitting it previously! We also had a lot of fun with the finger puppets that I made and making them jump on the bed!
Books
Be Quiet, Mike! by Leslie Patricelli
Little Quack by Lauren Thompson
Mooshka: A Quilt Story by Julie Paschkis
Quarters by Mary Hill
The Recess Queen by Alexis O’Neill & Laura Huliska-Beith
Extension Activities
Flannelboard Puzzle: “Letter Q”
Flannelboard: “Five Little Ducks”
Five little ducks went out one day
Over the hills and far away
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”
But only four little ducks came back
Credit: Childhood
Action Rhyme: “Loud and Quiet”
Quietly, quietly not a sound
I’m listening and I’m listening
As I look around
No sounds as I nod (nod)
No sounds as I clap (clap)
No sounds as I tap my hands on my lap (tap)
Loudly, loudly, stamp and clap (stamp and clap)
Loudly, loudly, stamp and clap (stamp and clap)
Loudly, loudly, stamp and clap (stamp and clap)
All that noise, well fancy that!
Credit: Preschool Storytime Outlines
Fingerplay: “Quiet Mouse”
Here’s a quiet little mouse
Living in a quiet little house (hold thumb in fist)
When all was quiet as could be
OUT! popped he! (pop out thumb)
Credit: Mel’s Desk
Craft
I thought up this craft on my own, making up a quick coloring sheet and using the tissue paper squares to make a quilt!
This was my first storytime back at daycare in over a month! Bad weather combined with a sudden influx of kids made it very hard for everyone to walk over during the summer months. Once summer reading was over, I started driving back to make it easier on us all. The kids were super excited to have storytime back and they listened very carefully to most of the stories. Things got a little wiggly towards the end, so I did leave out some of the extension activities I had planned. Their favorite books were “Be Quiet, Mike” where they joined me on the refrain and “Little Quack” where they helped me count the ducks!
Looking for resources to share with families about school? Over at the ALSC blog, I’ve got a whole slew of school books to keep your eyes out for!
storytime katie 