Letter I!

The Plan

Books

I Love Bugs! by Emma Dodd
Isaac the Ice Cream Truck by Scott Santoro
An Island in the Sun by Stella Blackstone
Look Inside an Igloo by Mari Schuh
Mañana Iguana by Ann Whitford Paul

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “Ice Cream Colors”
We have ice cream, the best in town,
Let us begin with chocolate brown.
Now, let us scoop us some bubble-gum pink,
It is sweet and yummy, the best, some think.
Here is ice cream minty and green,
It is the creamiest I have ever seen.
Yellow ice cream is lemony and tart,
We like its taste from the very start.
Scoops of blueberry would make my day,
Look at all this ice cream, hip, hip hurray!
Red ice cream is a strawberry delight,
All these scoops are a heavenly sight.
Vanilla white is a popular flavor,
It tastes very good to an ice-cream craver.
Purple ice cream really gives me a kick,
Good and yummy till the very last lick.
Ice cream, ice cream, what a cool sensation,
We love ice cream in any combination!

Flannelboard Puzzle: “Letter I”

Fingerplay: “Itsy Bitsy Spider”
The itsy bitsy spider went up the waterspout
Down came the rain and washed the spider out
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain
And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again
(Great big hairy spider, teensy weensy spider)
Credit: Childhood

Craft

I got the idea for this craft (and used their printables) from First School. Teen volunteers again cut everything out and had everything glued down for the daycare. The kids spent their time coloring and making up flavor combinations. I had a lot of rainbow-flavored ice cream cones!

How It Went

With some of the harder letters, I’ve been pulling some of the Pebble Book non-fiction from our collection. I sometimes skip pages and tend to skim over any complicated parts, but I love letting the kids see some photograph-based books. Igloos BLEW their minds! Also, this was the first opportunity I’ve had to read “Mañana Iguana” and it is my very favorite new storytime book! I’ve read it four more times since this storytime.

May 2, 2012 3 Comments Short URL, Outreach Storytime

Clouds and Rainbows!

The Plan

Books

It Looked Like Spilt Milk by Charles G. Shaw
Little Cloud by Eric Carle
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
Wow! Said the Owl by Tim Hopgood

Extension Activities

I used the pieces from another flannelboard to do: Flannelboard: “Magical Rainbow Stew”
Take an apple, put it in the pot
Stir it, stir it, stir it a lot.
Take it out. What will it be?
The prettiest red you ever did see.
Credit: Andrea at Rovingfiddlehead Kidlit

Action Rhyme: “Rain Is Falling Down” (Tune: Farmer in the Dell)
The rain is falling down, (flutter fingers down) SPLASH (clap once loudly)
The rain is falling down, (flutter fingers down) SPLASH (clap once loudly)
Pitter patter pitter patter (tap legs softly)
The rain is falling down, (flutter fingers down) SPLASH (clap once loudly)
Credit: King County Library System

Fingerplay: “Itsy Bitsy Spider”

Song: “What’s the Weather?” (Tune: Clementine)
What’s the weather, what’s the weather,
What’s the weather, everyone?
Is it windy, is it cloudy,
Is there rain, or is there sun?
Credit: Perpetual Preschool

Scarf Rhyme: “Rainbow Dancers”
Rainbow dancers let’s get ready
Hold your scarves nice and steady.
You’ll hear the colors of the rainbow.
Listen for your time to go.

Shake red…
Shake orange…
Shake yellow…
Shake green…
Shake blue…
Shake purple…

Red scarves turn around,
Orange scarves up and down.
Yellow scarves reach up high,
Green scarves fly, fly, fly.
Blue scarves tickle your nose,
Purple scarves touch your toes.

Everybody dance around,
Swirl your scarves up and down.

Shake purple…
Shake blue…
Shake green…
Shake yellow…
Shake orange…
Shake red…

Rainbow dancers dance around,
Scarves swirl up and down.
Our colorful dance is at an end.
Thank you, thank you, all my friends.
Credit: K at Storytime Fun

Craft

The idea for this craft came from 1+1+1=1, who also has a TON of other rainbow activities in this post. I did wind up using streamers though, since we already had those pre-cut from another craft.

How It Went

This was the last week of the Spring I session of storytime, so it was packed with kids! I got called a magician after the “Magical Rainbow Stew” flannelboard, when I pulled out the rainbow, which pretty much made my day. The biggest hit for the kids was when we danced around with the rainbow scarves — the kids just shriek with joy when I pull out scarves/shakers. And as for books, both cloud books went great, and “Planting a Rainbow” was probably the favorite of all the books.

April 30, 2012 13 Comments Short URL, Family Storytime

Flannel Friday: Puppies!

I finished up another set of finger puppets from Floral Blossom’s Etsy shop! I cannot say enough nice things about Widia’s patterns. They are clear, crisp, and so easy to follow! And the kids just absolutely love these pieces.

Anyway, this week I made some puppies!

There’s a lot of rhymes that you can use with these, but the rhyme I plan to use is as follows:

Flannelboard/Fingerplay: “Five Little Puppies”
Five little puppies were playing in the sun. (Hold up hand, fingers extended.)
This one saw a rabbit, and he began to run. (Bend first finger.)
This one saw a butterfly, and he began to race. (Bend second finger.)
This one saw a pussycat, and he began to chase. (Bend third finger.)
This one tried to catch his tail, and he went round & round. (Bend fourth finger.)
This one was so quiet, he never made a sound. (Bend thumb.)

—

K is hosting this week’s Flannel Friday — you can find the round-up at her blog! Melissa is the founder of Flannel Friday! Anne has the archive and schedule of who is hosting Flannel Friday.

And you can also follow the Flannel Friday Pinterest account. And Flannel Friday has its own Facebook page! If you participate in Flannel Friday, Melissa has a button if you want to link up to us here.

April 27, 2012 10 Comments Short URLFlannels

Letter H!

The Plan

Books

Clip Clop by Nicola Smee
Heads by Matthew Van Fleet
Leap Back Home to Me by Lauren Thompson
My Heart Is Like a Zoo by Michael Hall
Say Hello! by Rachel Isadora

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “Where Is Maisy Mouse?”

Flannelboard Puzzle: “Letter H”

Action Rhyme: “How Do You Say Hi?” (Do actions as they are said.)
Hey! Hi! Howdy! Yo!
There are many ways to say hello!
Wave your hand. No your head.
Smile big or wink instead.
Blow a kiss. Tip your hat.
Shake your hands. Give a pat.
Of all the ways to say hello,
Here’s the way I like to go…HELLO!
Credit: Transitional Songs

Action Song: “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes”

Fingerplay: “Houses”
Here is a nest for robin (cup both hands)
Here is a hive for bee (fists together)
Here is a hole for bunny (make a circle)
And here is a house for ME! (make a roof)
Credit: Perry Public Library

Craft

I found this WONDERFUL letter craft at Totally Tots. I haven’t been doing every craft with the letter in the craft, but have been instead striving for the easiest craft possible at the daycare setting!

How It Went

This was probably my last easy letter before a couple of ones I’ll struggle with (I and J), so I made sure to have a lot of fun picking books for letter H! I’ve had “Heads” in our storytime collection for over a year at the library and haven’t used it in a storytime until now — the group went NUTS for this interactive board book. It was definitely the hit of the day. (Really, all of the books went amazing because I LOVE all of the books so!) It’s been a while since I played “Little Mouse” with this group, but they still remember/love the Maisy flannelboard when it comes out. All in all, just another perfect storytime with this group.

April 25, 2012 10 Comments Short URL, Outreach Storytime

Art!

The Plan

Books

The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse by Eric Carle
Blue Chicken by Deborah Freedman
I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More by Karen Beaumont
I’m the Best Artist in the Ocean by Kevin Sherry

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “Mouse Paint”

Action Song: “This Is the Way…”
This is the way we stir the paint, stir the paint, stir the paint
This is the way we stir the paint so early in the morning
(dip our brush, paint the paper, blow it dry, frame the picture)
Credit: Modified from several other sources.

Folder Story: “Scat the Cat”
I’m the Scat the Cat and I’m sassy and fat
And Miss Katie can change my color just like that!
Credit: Modified from Tell Me a Story, but originally I heard about Scat from Anne at So Tomorrow

Song: “I Know the Colors”
I know the colors for painting fun
Green like grass and yellow sun
An orange pumpkin and white snow
A red rose and a black crow
Blue like a mailbox, brown like an ape
A pink pig and some purple grapes
Credit: Preschool Education, many thanks to K at Storytime ABCs for suggesting this one!

Craft

I came up with this idea on my own. I just had my teen volunteers print off palettes and provided the kids with TONS of materials (left-overs) to put all over. Mostly, we had very crazy-looking palettes, not the kind of control you see in my examples!

How It Went

This was a FUN theme! I was so excited about all of the book choices and I think the kids REALLY picked up on that. (I basically drove around to three different libraries to get the books I wanted; that’s how dedicated I was to this theme!) Twitter came through for me big time with extension activities, and I got to use my Mouse Paint flannelboard again! Also, this was my first time ever using Scat the Cat and the whole room was just…mesmerized by it. I will definitely be looking at more folder stories in the future!

April 23, 2012 16 Comments Short URL, Family Storytime

Flannel Friday: Lunch!

Today’s post was inspired by three Flannel Friday participants: Sarah, Anne, and Sharon! It’s a flannelized version of “Lunch” by Denise Fleming.

Sarah provided the template for these pieces and I made them on the plane back from ALA Midwinter.

I will be using these tasty looking veggies and fruits during Letter L storytime and will also be bringing a mouse puppet to eat them off of my flannelboard. The kids get a HUGE kick out of puppets eating felt pieces (like in “Ouch”) and I knew that I would definitely do it again with this flannelboard.

ALSO! I used these pieces during my clouds/rainbow storytime a la Andrea in a “Magical Rainbow Stew” flannel. All I needed to do was made a separate rainbow piece and I was set to go!

—

Cate is hosting this week’s Flannel Friday — you can find the round-up at her blog! Melissa is the founder of Flannel Friday! Anne has the archive and schedule of who is hosting Flannel Friday.

And you can also follow the Flannel Friday Pinterest account. And Flannel Friday has its own Facebook page! If you participate in Flannel Friday, Melissa has a button if you want to link up to us here.

April 20, 2012 8 Comments Short URLFlannels

Construction!

The Plan

Books

Construction Countdown by K.C. Olson
The Construction Crew by Lynn Meltzer
Road Work Ahead by Anastasia Suen
Tip Tip Dig Dig by Emma Garcia

Extension Activities

Action Rhyme: “Cranes”
Cranes reach up,
Cranes reach down,
Cranes reach out,
And all around.
Credit: Pre-K Fun

Fingerplay: “Five Little Nails”
Five little nails, standing straight and steady
Here I come with my hammer ready!
Bam, bam, bam! That nail goes down.
Now there’s just four nails to pound.
(count down)
Credit: Mel’s Desk

Song: “Construction Worker Song”
This is the way we pound our nails, pound our nails, pound our nails
This is the way we pound our nails, so early in the morning
(saw the wood, turn the screwdriver, drill a hole, stack the bricks, stir the paint, paint the walls)
Credit: Pre-K Fun

Song: “Dump Truck” (Tune: Ten Little Indians)
Bumpity-bumpity comes the dump truck,
Bumpity-bumpity comes the dump truck,
Bumpity-bumpity comes the dump truck,
Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuump out the load.
Credit: Pre-K Fun

Craft

This craft was found on Pinterest, but originally was developed by the Texas State Library for their summer reading program, Dig Up a Good Book!

How It Went

This was a requested outreach storytime that I did at a local daycare. Their learning theme for the month was construction, so I was asked to tie into that. I had visited them last year around this time and done a Very Hungry Caterpillar re-telling on the feltboard at a parent’s night, so I was familiar with their site, but not with the classrooms. I did two separate storytimes — one in their Pre-K classroom and one in their two-year-old room. So, I want to spend a little bit of time talking about how I tweaked the same plan to fit two age groups.

Pre-K

I did all the activities in this room, except for the “Dump Truck” song. The reason why is that the whole class set very attentive throughout storytime and we didn’t need to bounce out any sillies. Since this was the first time I had worked with this group, I had actually planned a lighter storytime — I could have brought a fifth book! (And a flannelboard would have worked with this group as well.) This group has breakfast scheduled immediately after storytime, so I did not see them do their craft, though I left enough behind.

Two-Year-Old Room

In the two-year-old room, I only read 3 out of the 4 books I had with me. We skipped “Construction Countdown.” I chose “Tip Tip Dig Dig” because of the sounds, which the kids repeated after me. I really liked “Road Work Ahead” for the storyline — I kept their interest by continually asking “Do you think we can make it Grandma’s house?” and waiting for their responses. And “The Construction Crew” was a natural progression after we sang “This Is the Way.” In this room, I did not do the “Five Little Nails” rhyme and instead brought out the “Dump Truck” song. And I was able to hang out while the kids did their crafts before their scheduled outdoor time.

All in all, both groups were successful outings and I’ve already secured an invitation to return for next month’s theme — Gardening!

April 18, 2012 10 Comments Short URLOutreach Storytime

Trains!

The Plan

Books

And the Train Goes by William Bee
Freight Train by Donald Crews
I Love Trains! by Philemon Sturges
A Train Goes Clickety-Clack by Jonathan London

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “Clickety-Clack”

Flannelboard: “This Little Train” (tune of This Old Man)

Action Rhyme: “This Is a Choo-Choo Train”
This is a choo choo train
Puffing down the track
Now it’s going forward,
Now it’s going back,
Now the bell is ringing
Now the whistle blows
What a lot of noise it makes
Everything it goes.
Credit: SurLaLune Storytime

Fingerplay: “This Little Train”
The little train ran up the track (run fingers up arm)
Toot, toot, toot (make train noises)
And then it came toot-tooting back (run fingers down arm)
Toot, toot, toot (make train noises)
Credit: SurLaLune Storytime

Song: “Down By the Station”
Credit: Childhood

Crafts

I bought this craft from Oriental Trading and the kids used glue dots to attach all of the foam pieces. The parents liked this one a lot because it was a picture frame and a magnet craft all in one! The kids liked it because they got to drive their train around once it was done!

How It Went

This was the largest parent/child storytime I have ever done. We had nearly fifty bodies in the room and it was crowded, loud, and energetic. The best books were “I Love Trains” and “A Train Goes Clickety-Clack.” This is the first group that didn’t really respond to “Freight Train,” which surprised me because they are normally a huge fan of any books with colors. (Next week’s theme was “art” which made me super nervous, but I am pleased to say they regained their love of color books between sessions.) After storytime, I had a mom ask me about where she could buy the flannel pieces, and I got the BEST compliments ever when I told her I had made them!

April 16, 2012 13 Comments Short URL, Family Storytime

ALSC: Taking a Break!

newalscblog

Do you take storytime breaks at your library? Right now, I’m on a storytime break at my library and I’m looking for some support at the ALSC blog!

April 13, 2012 0 Comments Short URLALSC Post

Kids Art: Dr. Seuss

For the program, I started off by reading my very favorite Dr. Seuss book, which is the classic “Green Eggs and Ham.” Ideally, I would have like to have feed them green eggs and ham, but we’re only allowed pre-packaged food or food that we prepare in the library. The kids really enjoyed chanting the refrain along with me, and I still think it is one of the few Dr. Seuss books that work in a storytime setting.

After the book, the kids went to the table and began painting the hats of the Dr. Seuss craft that I had found at Brilliant Beginnings Preschool, via Pinterest.

The kids had a great time painting their hats. I used clothespins with sponges cut into small squares as our paintbrushes. This (mostly) cut down on the mess.

While we waited for our hats to dry before assembling, we met back up on the storytime rug to play two games: Build-a-Lorax flannelboard and One Fish Two Fish fishing. (I bought a set of One Fish Two Fish cut-outs at Michaels, laminated them, and attached magnets. We already have a fishing set, so this was a super simple insta-game that the kids went CRAZY for.)

And then, we returned to assemble our Cat in the Hats. The hats were almost completely dry and the moms around just blotted the paint that was still too wet. This was a fun way for the littlest kids to participate in our “Celebrate Seuss” week, and I had a lot of positive responses (especially to the craft) that ensures that I’ll likely do this program again someday!

April 11, 2012 0 Comments Short URL, Special Programming

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