Tag: opposites storytimes

Fast & Slow!

The Plan

Books

fastandslow

Faster, Faster by Leslie Patricelli
I’m Fast by Kate McMullan
Max on His Tricycle by Max Genechten
Slow Snail by Mary Murphy
Slowly, Slowly, Slowly Said the Sloth by Eric Carle

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “The Tortoise and the Hare”

Flannelboard: “Green Says Go”
Green says, “Go!” (march quickly)
Go! Go! Go!
Yellow says, “Slow!” (march slowly)
Slow…slow…slow
And red says, “Stop!” (stop and freeze)
Go! Go! Go! (march fast)
Slow…slow…slow (march slowly)
and STOP! (stop)
Credit: Toddler Storytime

Action Rhyme: “This Is Big”
This is big, big, big (stretch hands far to sides)
This is small, small, small (cup hands together)
This is short, short, short (hold palms close vertically)
This is tall, tall, tall (hold palms far apart vertically)
This is fast, fast, fast (roll hands quickly)
This is slow, slow, slow (roll hands slowly)
This is yes, yes, yes (nod head)
This is no, no, no (shake head)
Credit: Mel’s Desk

Action Rhyme: “We Can Jump”
We can jump, jump, jump
We can hop, hop, hop
We can clap, clap, clap
We can stop, stop, stop
We can nod our heads for yes
We can shake our heads for no
We can bend our knees a little bit
And we can sit down really slow
Credit: 1234 More Storytimes

Fingerplay: “Two Little Snails”
Two little snails sitting on a hill
One named Jack, the other named Jill
Run away Jack, run away Jill
Come back Jack, come back Jill
(cloud/quiet & loud, pole, fast & slow)
Credit: Modified from Childhood

Craft

I’ve had this snail craft pinned on Pinterest since my very first Pinterest week.

How It Went

Well, it didn’t! This was a planned storytime from before I left my old job. I thought since I did the work and made the plan that I would just go ahead and post it anyways.

July 23, 2014 1 Comment Short URLOutreach Storytime

Hot & Cold!

The Plan

Books

hotcold

Hot Cold by Apple Jordan
One Cool Friend by Toni Buzzeo
One Hot Summer Day by Nina Crews
Today is Cold by Martha Rustad
Today is Hot by Martha Rustad

Extension Activities

Flannelboard Song: “Sunny/Snowy” (Sung to: “BINGO”)
There was a day, when it was hot and sunny was the weather
S U N N Y
S U N N Y
S U N N Y
And sunny was the weather.
Other Verses
There was a day when it was cold and snowy was the weather.
Credit: Preschool Education

Action Song: “Mister Sun”
Oh, mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, please shine down on me
Oh, mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, hiding behind a tree
These little children are asking you to please come out so we can play with you
Oh, mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, please shine down on me
Credit: Childhood

Nursery Rhyme: “Pease Porridge Hot”
Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold
Pease porridge in the pot nine days old
Some like it hot, some like it cold
Some like it in the pot nine days old
Credit: Childhood

Puppet Song: “The Penguin Went Over the Iceberg”
The penguin went over the iceberg,
The penguin went over the iceberg,
The penguin went over the iceberg,
To see what he could see,
To see what he could see,
The penguin went over the iceberg,
The penguin went over the iceberg,
The penguin went over the iceberg
To see what he could see.
The other side of the iceberg,
The other side of the iceberg,
The other side of the iceberg,
Was all that he could see,
Was all that he could see,
The other side of the iceberg,
The other side of the iceberg,
The other side of the iceberg,
Was all that he could see.
Credit: Best Kids Book Site (though they appear to have taken down all their songs…)

Craft

I got this idea from A Cupcake for the Teacher and was thrilled to find that she had a pattern available on Teachers Pay Teachers.

How It Went

Well, it didn’t! This was a planned storytime from before I left my old job. I thought since I did the work and made the plan that I would just go ahead and post it anyways.

July 21, 2014 0 Comments Short URLFamily Storytime, Outreach Storytime

In & Out!

The Plan

Books

inandout

If All the Animals Came Inside by Eric Pinder
Inside Outside by Lizi Boyd
Inside Outside Dinosaurs by Roxie Munro
One Ted Falls Out of Bed by Julia Donaldson

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “Dear Zoo”

Fingerplay: “Won’t You Come Out?”
Jack-in-the-box
You sit so still (close hand with thumb inside)
Won’t you come out?
Yes, I will! (pop out thumb)
Credit: Preschool Express

Song: “Hokey Pokey”
Credit: Childhood

Song: “In and Out the Window”
Go in and out the window
Go in and out the window
Go in and out the window
As we have done before
March all around the village
March all around the village
March all around the village
As we have done before
Credit: Jbrary

Craft

This adorable Jack-in-the-Box craft came from Leah at Sunflower Storytime. I had the boxes prepped and the kids decorated with stickers and colored the clown!

How It Went

If you don’t know the magical storytime book that is “Inside Outside Dinosaurs”, you are missing out. The kids sat mesmerized while I turned the pages and the text — dinosaur names — is ridiculously simple and effective. I asked them to tell me the story of “Inside Outside” and while it wasn’t absolutely perfect, the preschoolers really enjoyed that activity.

May 22, 2014 0 Comments Short URL, Outreach Storytime

Big & Little!

The Plan

Books

biglittle

Big Hugs, Little Hugs by Felicia Bond
Every Little Thing by Cedella Marley
Little Mouse by Alison Murray
Maria Had a Little Lamb by Angela Dominguez
Meeow and the Big Box by Sebastien Braun

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: Go Away Big Green Monster

Action Rhyme: “Little Birds”
Little birds, little birds, jump up and down
Little birds, little birds, don’t make a sound
Little birds, little birds, tip-toe to me
Little birds, little birds, bend your knees
Little birds, little birds, peep, peep, peep
Little birds, little birds, sleep, sleep, sleep
Little birds, little birds, fly to the leaves
Little birds, little birds, sit down please
Credit: Greatest Resource Education Child Care

Action Rhyme: “This Is Big”
This is big, big, big
This is small, small, small
This is short, short, short
This is tall, tall, tall
This is fast, fast, fast
This is slow, slow, slow
This is yes, yes, yes
This is no, no, no
Credit: Mel’s Desk

Fingerplay: “Little Turtle”
There was a little turtle (put hands on top of one another)
He lived in a box (make box)
He swam in a puddle (swimming motion)
He climbed on the rocks (climbing motion)
He snapped at a mosquito (clap)
He snapped at a flea (clap)
He snapped at a minnow (clap)
And he snapped at me (clap)
He caught the mosquito (cup hands together)
He caught the flea (cup hands together)
He caught the minnow (cup hands together)
But he didn’t catch me! (shake finger “no”)
Credit: Childhood

Craft

I let the kids work on scissor skills since only the preschool class does the craft. (The twos & threes goes back to their classrooms and I’m left with the fours & fives for the activity.) I had cardstock circles print out on paper and the kids cut them out. Then they sorted them by size to string into rainbow necklaces. I had pre-punched the circles with a hole punch prior to arriving. Then, the kids strung the circles with yarn that I had taped at the ends for stability. This amazing idea came from Hands On As We Grow.

How It Went

This was a great opposite set storytime. The kids loved “Meeow and the Big Box” and “Little Mouse.” Doing “Go Away, Big Green Monster” as a flannelboard is always a crowd-pleaser. The kids absolutely adored this craft though and it was easily the hit of storytime. I loved seeing the kids wearing their necklaces as I left the classroom.

May 15, 2014 1 Comment Short URL, , Outreach Storytime

Night and Day!

[From my daycare storytime set last spring, I discovered a few that I had never transferred from write-ups to the blog. Previous entries in the Opposites series are here: Stop & Go and Up & Down and Loud & Quiet.]

I decided to do this storytime as almost a “day” block and a “night” block of activities. Naturally, we started with greeting the morning with “Hello, Day!” by Anita Lobel.

Animal noises are a wonderful way to start off storytime! The kids really participated with this book, eagerly repeating the animal noises after I read the page. Then, we stood up to greet the day ourselves with a song:

Action Song: “Mister Sun”
Oh, mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, please shine down on me
Oh, mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, hiding behind a tree
These little children are asking you to please come out so we can play with you
Oh, mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, please shine down on me
Credit: Childhood

Then we read the book that I was dying to read, hoping that they would love it as much as I do: “Yes Day!” by Amy Krouse Rosenthal.

This is a fun, imaginative story about a little boy who has a day where every question that is asked is answered with a “yes!” This book is definitely for preschoolers, in my opinion. I don’t think that two-years and under would necessarily understand what was going on without a lengthy explanation. But my group was hugely amused by this one. Afterwards, I had a lot of questions about when we could have a yes day at the library!

Then it was time to switch to night with our flannelboard: “Ten Teddy Bears Sleeping in the Bed,” followed by an action rhyme:

Action Rhyme: “Going to Bed”
This little child is going to bed (point to self)
Down on the pillow he lays his head (rest head on hands)
He wraps himself in covers tight (wrap hands across body)
And this is the way he sleeps all night (close eyes, nod head)
Morning comes, he opens his eyes (raise head, eyes open wide)
Off with a toss the covers fly (fling arms wide)
Soon he is up and dressed and awake (jump up)
Ready for fun and play all day (clap hands and turn in a circle)
Credit: Best Kids Book Site

And then it was time to read some sleep stories. I started with “A Book of Sleep” by Il Sung Na.

I have loved this book since it first came out and we purchased it for the library. It has such gorgeous illustrations! It was a natural fit with this theme. As was…”Kitten’s First Full Moon” by Kevin Henkes.

Another book that I adore. The kids kept reminding that Kitten was wrong — that the moon was NOT a bowl of milk. I loved that this book was a bit of an adventure book to remind the kids that nighttime isn’t always so quiet! Speaking of being not quiet…our next action song was hysterical:

Action Song: “Ten In the Bed”
There were ten in the bed and the little one said, “Roll over, roll over.”
So they all rolled over and one fell out! Boom! (count down until…)
There was one in the bed and the little one said, “All to myself!”
Credit: Childhood

The kids had a lot of fun rolling, clapping their hands, and counting down with me. But I saved the best for last: “Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me” by Eric Carle.

The pop-ups in this book are stunning! I love the full moon spread, the variety of how the pages open up. This is a great storytime book. (Though it doesn’t always fare well in the collection — lots of rips and tears!) I would have to say that this was definitely the favorite book of the day at storytime.

We ended storytime with another flannel of “Hey Diddle Diddle” and an extra closing song of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” before moving on to our craft:

We made “Night and Day” door hangers. The other (less interesting) side was a big sun and said “Day.” My daycare teachers were in love with this craft, and I was super proud because I came up with it myself!

October 12, 2011 5 Comments Short URL, Outreach Storytime

Loud and Quiet!

[From my daycare storytime set last spring, I discovered a few that I had never transferred from write-ups to the blog. Previous entries in the Opposites series are here: Stop & Go and Up & Down.]

This was by far my favorite opposites pairing. The kids had a great time being extra noisy, but were also super attentive and very good at being quiet when I asked.

I started off storytime with “Noisy Nora” by Rosemary Wells.

This is a classic from my childhood, and from one of my favorite authors. The group laughed a lot during this one, especially given all the mischief that Nora gets into. Afterwards, I asked them if they were ever noisy at home and I had a lot of nods. But then I asked if we could be quiet mouses and taught them our next fingerplay:

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

And that led up to another noisy book, “Katie Loves the Kittens” by John Himmelman.

This is a great book about a dog who is too loud and winds up scaring the new kittens at her house away. Katie (the dog…not me) learns to be quiet and the kittens become her friends. I really liked that this book had both loud/quiet moments. The kids really liked that the dog was named Katie (MISS KATIE, HER NAME IS YOUR NAME) and my “Arooooooooooooooooos!”

It was time to practice some jumping in our flannelboard for the day, “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed.” I let the kids get up and jump while the monkeys were jumping, too.

To transition between activity and book, we had a discussion about bedtime and if you should be noisy at bedtime. Most of the kids told me that bedtime was quiet time. Then, I introduced them to “Stop Snoring, Bernard!” by Zachariah Ohora.

This book was a little gem that I found while looking at the shelves at my local bookstore. I absolutely fell in love with it and bought it for our downstairs storytime collection. It’s about an otter who has a bit of a snoring problem at the zoo and needs to find a new place to sleep. The kids and I are big fans of any books that require me to snore dramatically.

Since everyone was so pleased with themselves, we wound up singing “If You’re Happy and You Know It.” This is a very noisy song which led up to “The Noisy Counting Book” by Susan Schade and Jon Buller.

We have the giant board book version of “The Noisy Counting Book” and it was a big hit — the kids loved counting along with me. Then, we got up to stretch and do this action rhyme:

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

And then it was time for our last book of the day: “Who Said Coo?” by Deborah Ruddell.

This is a funny book about a pig who cannot sleep because someone is saying “coo!” It was an excellent way to end storytime…except it wasn’t the end! I brought out our shakers and led everyone in this action rhyme before our craft:

Action Rhyme: “Shaking Your Shaker”
Shaking your shaker
Shaking it up high
Shaking it down low
Shake it side to side
Tap it on your foot
Tap it on your knee
Shaking your shaker
Very quietly // Very loudly
Credit: Preschool Storytime Outlines

And what noise storytime would be complete without a shaker craft?

This is the same craft that I did for “Shake Your Sillies Out” but instead I had the shakers pre-made and the kids just colored them. I didn’t want to be pouring beans into plates for thirty plus kids without parents to help me!

October 5, 2011 12 Comments Short URL, Outreach Storytime

Stop and Go!

My next opposite storytime theme this week was stop and go! The “go” part was very easy to find material for, but the “stop” definitely presented some creative storytime solutions. (I really like challenging myself to find *good* books to fit!)

First up, I read “Watch Me Go” by Rebecca Young.

This is a much smaller book than I ever thought that I would use in storytime, but I love the moving pictures so much! Anyways, reading this one definitely had a lot of panning involved, but the kids were so excited about this book that I didn’t mind the extra work for me. We talked a lot about different kinds of transportation (since the book has so many different examples) and launched straight into singing “Down By the Station.”

The next book was a “stop” book — “The Bus Stop” by Janet Morgan Stoeke.

A sweet story about kids getting ready to go to the bus stop. And throughout their school day, they all can’t wait to get back to the bus stop. After I finished reading, the kids and I talked about why it’s called a stop.

For the flannelboard, I got to use some ideas from the Michaels flannelboard I purchased either this month. I had to re-do some of the pieces because the felt wasn’t sticking very well. (Super thin felt and while it had no problem sticking to my board, it did have a problem sticking to itself.) Using the astronauts, I got to do this rhyme I learned in library school:

Flannel: “Zoom Zoom Zoom”
Zoom, zoom, zoom, we’re going to the moon!
Zoom, zoom, zoom, we’ll be there very soon!
So, if you’d like to take a trip
Just step inside my rocket ship
Zoom, zoom, zoom, we’re going to the mon!
Zoom, zoom, zoom, we’ll be there very soon!
Credit: Library School

And I followed it up with another space-themed activity:

Action Rhyme: “Bend and Stretch”
Bend and stretch, reach for the stars
There goes Jupiter, here comes Mars
Bend and stretch and reach for the sky
Stand on tip-e-toe, go so high!
Credit: Preschool Kids

The next book was “Go to Bed, Monster!” by Natasha Wing.

This was a pretty hysterical read. My daycare teachers were cracking up, and because they were really into the book — so were their classes! While this book has always worked well for me in storytime, today’s reading of it will be particularly memorable.

Then, we shook things up with an action rhyme:

Action Rhyme: “If I Were a Monster”
If I were a happy monster, I’d go ha! ha! ha! (laugh)
If I were a sad monster, I’d go boo, hoo, hoo! (rub eyes)
If I were a mad monster, I’d go stomp, stomp, stomp! (stomp feet)
If I were a scared monster, I’d go AHH! AHH! AHH! (scream)
But I’m just me, you see, so I’ll just read, read, read (sit down)
Credit: Perry Public Library

And then it was onward to “The Going to Bed Book” by Sandra Boynton.

This is another title that we have multiple copies of in a board book form. This was the first time that I used these books in a daycare format, and while the kids were good with sharing — they didn’t have the same interaction as my parent & kid sets. I don’t know if I would do this again. That being said, they definitely enjoyed the book!

The last book for today was “Red Light, Green Light” by Anastasia Suen.

I love that this book talked about stop and go; it was perfect for this theme — and the kids never get tired of transportation books. But this one especially worked because it led us straight through our action rhyme and then onto our craft.

Action Rhyme: “Green Says Go”
Green says, “Go!” (march quickly)
Go! Go! Go!
Yellow says, “Slow!” (march slowly)
Slow…slow…slow
And red says, “Stop!” (stop and freeze)
Go! Go! Go! (march fast)
Slow…slow…slow (march slowly)
and STOP! (stop)
Credit: Toddler Storytime

And then I borrowed this craft from Sarah at Awesome Storytime. This craft was a super simple one for the kids — they just glued down the circles and then wrote their names at the bottom, but I knew that the two teachers wouldn’t be able to help twenty two kids tie their necklaces, so I did it ahead of time.

June 13, 2011 11 Comments Short URL, , Outreach Storytime

Up and Down!

This was my first week of opposite pairs with my daycare kids. I have four weeks of opposites planned, and then summer reading programming begins. Since I’ve got so much going on, I’ll be repeating storytimes for the first time ever. It’s looking like I will be doing two-three storytimes a week (Thursday mornings, Friday mornings, and maybe Friday afternoons).

Our first book for the day was “Up, Down, and Around” by Katherine Ayres.

We have this book in big book form, so the kids are always very involved because the book is so large. While I was reading this one, they caught on to the up, down, and around refrain, chiming in with me after I named the vegetable on the page.

Next, a book that is kind of pushing the theme limit, but that I love nonetheless: “Fish, Swish! Splash, Dash!” by Suse MacDonald.

Whenever I read this book, all the kids join in the counting with me and it’s such a great experience to read with the kids. I choose this book because at the end you flip the book upside down and begin again. We wound up flipping the book a total of four times before I called it quits!

Then it was on to a very successful fingerplay:

Fingerplay: “Up the Hill”
Here goes a turtle up a hill, creepy, creepy, creepy, creepy (crawl up arm)
Here goes a rabbit up the hill, boing, boing, boing, boing (bounce up arm)
Here goes an elephant up the hill, thud, thud, thud, thud (clap up arm)
Here goes a snake up the hill, slither, slither, slither, slither (slither up arm)
Here comes a rock down the hill, boom, boom, boom, boom, CRASH! (bounce down, clap hands for crash)
Credit: Bright Spot — Brighton Memorial Library

And then it was time for our flannelboard: “Wheels on the Bus.” This is a set that we had from before I was even at the library! It’s a build-able flannelboard that you build as you go along in the song. By the end, you have a completed bus on the board. Obviously, I choose this flannel for the “people on the bus go up and down” part.

Our next book was “Up Above & Down Below” by Sue Redding.

I fell in love with this book after Inter-Library loaning it for this week’s storytime. What really captured me was that it showed a ton of different kinds of up and down. My favorite spread was the theater page. I am a Broadway geek after all.

Next up, was a traditional action rhyme:

Action Rhyme: “Noble Duke of York”
The noble Duke of York, he had ten thousand men
He marched them up to the top of the hill & marched them down again
And when you’re up, you’re up, and when you’re down, you’re down
And when you’re only halfway up, you’re neither up nor down
Credit: Library School

I always forget how exhausting it is for me to do “Noble Duke” but that’s because I do it normal, slow, fast, and super fast to exhaust the kids. Afterwards, I sang “London Bridge” with the kids and was surprised that they knew the song. Thankfully, they sang with me and I was able to catch my breath.

Next, an “up” book with “I Love Planes” by Philemon Sturges.

This is a super easy book, but my kids are always really happy to have books that showcase items that they love — and living so close to O’Hare, we have a ton of plane lovers!

After that, we did another action rhyme:

Action Rhyme: “Merry Go Round Ride”
Ride with me on the merry-go-round
Around, around, around, around
Up go the horses, up
Down go the horses, down
You ride a horse that’s white
I’ll ride a horse that’s brown
Up and down, up and down
Around, around, around, around
Credit: Perry Public Library

I just added in actions, up, down, twirling, and pointing to me/them. They really liked spinning! Then it was on to the last book of the day, “Subway” by Anastasia Suen.

Since we do live in a suburb of the city, I did have to explain that subways were trains that ran under the ground. Only one of the kids had been on the El in the city before. But as much as the kids love familiar books and objects, they also love unfamiliar transportation!

We played our traditional flannelboard game, “Can We Find?,” at the end of storytime and then sorted what we found into up (kite, balloon, bird) and down (car, cat, mouse).

And then it was on to the craft:

My teens cut out the butterflies, I folded and taped them to popsicle sticks to make the puppets. The kids got to make some beautiful colored butterflies and really loved making the wings go up and down! I got the craft from: Preschool Corner.

June 1, 2011 6 Comments Short URL, Outreach Storytime