Green!

Storytime for daycares during March: Green/St. Patrick's Day

Opening: Open, Shut Them

Book: Snip Snap! What's That? by Mara Bergman

Movement Activity: Stand up and stretch

Transition Song: Touch your ears and touch your nose

Book: The Wide-Mouthed Frog by Keith Faulkner

Game: Searching for our Pot of Gold

This was our St. Patrick's Day activity!  First, we named the object/color as I placed each item on the flannel board.  Then I told them that the leprechaun had hidden a pot of gold under one of the objects and it was our job to find it.

We found it under the flower!

Movement Activity: We're going on a dragon hunt; From Sturgis Kids

This is just like Michael Rosen's "We're Going on a Bear Hunt."  The lyrics that I used can be found here.  At the end, after we tiptoe into the dragon cave, I brought out our dragon puppet to show the kids!

Book: Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Song: A Tooty Ta from Johnny Only's CD "Kids Music You Can Dance To!"

Closing: Skinnamarink

Soup!

One of the preschools that I visit on Tuesdays is talking about food this month, so I thought I'd bring a "soup" themed storytime along with me.  I also used this theme for my in-house storytime on March 11th.

Opening: Open, Shut Them

Book: The Wolf's Chicken Stew by Keiko Kasza

Song: Five Fat Peas; From Preschool Rainbow

Five fat peas in a pea pod pressed (hold hand in fist)

One grew, two grew, so did the rest (thumb and fingers up one by one)

They grew and grew (raise hands in air slowly)

And did not stop

Until one day

The pod went POP! (children clap their hands and jump)

Transition Rhyme: Touch your ears and touch your nose

Book: To Market, To Market by Anne Miranda

Flannel Board Activity: The Soup is Boiling Up; From librerin

The soup is boiling up

The soup is boiling up

Stir slow, around we go

The soup is boiling up.

First we add the carrots, 

First we add the carrots,

Stir slow, around we go

The soup is boiling up.

(Add carrot to pot)

Continue singing the song, substituting different veggies each time.

Here's our empty pot

Here's the pot full of vegetables!

Song: Sticky Bubble Gum from Sticky Bubble Gum...and Other Tasty Tunes by Miss Carole

Activity: Me Want Cookie; from Miss Sarah's Storytime

This is more a veggie activity than a soup activity, but it's fun and the kids loved it.  

We start with Mr. Bear.  Mr. Bear is hungry and really wants a cookie.  He lets me know this by saying, "Me want cookie!"

Well, all I have are vegetables, so I hold up a felt carrot and he begrudgingly eats that. (There's a little hole in the back of the bear's mouth, so it actually looks like he's eating the carrot!)  Of course, he's not satisfied, and he says to me, "Me want cookie!"

We go through this, using five or six different vegetables, until finally, I tell him that I found a cookie, only he needs to say the magic word if he wants it.  

So he says "Please" and "Thank you" and he gets the cookie!

Book: Chicken Soup by Jean Van Leeuwen

Closing: Skinnamarink 

Craft: We did a craft for our in-house storytime and made vegetable soup.  I gave the kids soup bowls and vegetables, and the kids colored them and glued the veggies in the soup.

Dr. Seuss Party

Theme for March 4: Dr. Seuss!

Opening: Open, Shut Them

Book: Are You My Mother? by P. D. Eastman

Movement Activity: Stand up and stretch

Transition Rhyme: Touch your ears and touch your nose

Fingerplay: One Little Cat; From Mel's Desk

One little cat on a sunny day
Put on his hat and went out to play
Two little cats when the sky turned dark
Put on their hats and went to the park.
Three little cats when the sky turned blue
Put on their hats and went to the zoo
Four little cats by the kitchen door
Put on their hats and went to the store
Five little cats on a sunny day
Put on their hats and they all ran away

Book: Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? by Dr. Seuss

Flannel Board Game: Eggs! From Mel's Desk

We started with eight yellow eggs on the flannel board.  Then we recited this rhyme:

Sam-I-am, Sam-I-am
I so do like ____(insert color) eggs and ham.

I flipped the eggs over one by one, revealing the color on the other side of the egg!

Flannel Board Activity: Dr. Seuss Hats

This is one of my favorite activities!

The cat starts out with a missing hat.  Where could it be?

Is this it? Nope, it's a leprechaun hat!

 

Is this it? Nope - these are earmuffs!

Is this it? Yes! 

Book: My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss

Song: Shake Your Sillies Out; From the Wiggles' CD "Yummy Yummy"

Craft: Cat in the Hat; From Teach Preschool

We made cat in the hat picture by gluing on the cat's face, whiskers, hat, and bow to a piece of construction paper.  Then the kids colored the cat's face and decorated the hat and bow.  I put out red strips of paper so they could glue those onto the hat!

My Five Senses

Theme for Wednesday, February 25: Five Senses

I did this theme yesterday for my outreach visits at a preschool, and also today for my in-house preschool storytime.  It was lots of fun!

Opening: Open, Shut Them

Book: My Five Senses by Aliki

Movement Activity: Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes

Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes, Knees and Toes (2X)
Eyes and Ears and Mouth and Nose
Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes, Knees and Toes

Transition Rhyme: Touch your ears and touch your nose

Book (outreach): Creek Said the Bed by Phyllis Root

I hadn't read this book to either preschool class yet, and I thought it would be a fun opportunity to talk about the different noises that we hear in the book.

Book (in-house): I Feel a Foot by Maranke Rinck

Activity: 5 Senses; From The Lion is a Bookworm

I asked the kids to help me put each of the five senses up on the flannel board.

Then I brought out an object (bear, apple, beanbag, and play dough) and asked the kids some questions about each object:

1. Can you see it?  What does it look like?
2. Can you hear it? What does it sound like?
3. Can you smell it? What does it smell like?
4. Can you taste it? What does it taste like?
5. Can you touch it? What does it feel like?

I passed the objects around the room so the kids could have a chance to feel each thing and tell me what they felt like.

Song: Icky Sticky Bubblegum

Flannel Board Rhyme: Way up high in the apple tree; From Jen in the Library

Way up high in the apple tree (point to tree)
Five little apples smiled at me (hold up five fingers, pretend to smile)
So I shook the tree as hard as I could (pretend to shake tree)
Down came an apple...mmm it tastes good! (pretend like an apple is falling, rub stomach)
(continue with 4, 3, 2, 1)

Book: Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld

Craft: Pie with Cinnamon

We made pies tonight!  The kids decorated their pies any way they wanted to, and then they added a cotton ball for whipped cream and sprinkled on some cinnamon!

Teeth

Theme for Wednesday, February 4: Teeth!

Opening: Open, Shut Them

Book: Snip Snap! What's That? by Mara Bergman

Fingerplay: Five Little Teeth; From Storytime With Miss Mollie

There were five little teeth in my teeny, tiny mouth

I pulled and I twisted and one popped out!

Now there are four!

(continue with 4, 3, 2, 1)

I used our giant fuzzy hand for this fingerplay!

Transition Song: Touch your ears and touch your nose

Book: Clarabella's Teeth by An Vrombault

Activity: Happy Tooth, Sad Tooth; From Storytime With Miss Mollie

Happy Tooth

Sad Tooth

We talked about which foods make our teeth happy and sad and then taped up the pictures accordingly!

Song: We had a request this week, so we did the Penguin Dance from Jack Hartmann's CD "Get on Board the Transition Train"

Flannel Board Game: Little Tooth, Little Tooth, Where Are You? (I got this one from my coworker!)

We played the "Little tooth, little tooth, where are you?" game.  The kids had to guess which pillow the tooth was hidden under!

Book: Whose Teeth are These? by Joanne Randolph

Craft: Mouth with Teeth! From: Totally Tots

The kids colored in the lips and then glued the pink smile on top of the lips.  Lastly, they glued on the teeth!

Bedtime!

Storytime Theme: Time for bed!

Opening: Open, Shut Them

Book: Tiger Can't Sleep by S. J. Fore

Movement Song: Five Little Monkeys; From DLTK-Teach

Five little monkeys, jumping on the bed

One fell off and bumped his head

Mama called the doctor and the doctor said:

"No more monkeys jumping on the bed!"

(Continue with 4, 3, 2, 1)

Transition Song: Touch your ears and touch your nose

Book: Creak! Said the Bed by Phyllis Root

Song: Penguin Dance from Jack Hartmann's CD "Get On Board the Transition Train"

Flannel Board Story: Bearsie Bear and the Surprise Sleepover Party.

This story is based on the book "Bearsie Bear and the Suprise Sleepover Party" by Bernard Waber.  It was the very first flannel board story that I learned during my field study at the West Allis Public Library!

Here's Bearsie Bear, all tucked into bed.  Just as he's falling asleep, he gets a surprise visit from his friends.  One by one, they show up at his door, wanting a place to sleep.  Pretty soon, he has a crowded bed!

Then he hears another knock on his door, and who should show up but Prickly Porcupine!

Prickly porcupine jumps into bed and, of course, pricks everyone with his quills.  They make prickly porcupine promise to lay very, very still, if he's going to sleepover with them. 

Fingerplay: Five in the bed; From Miss Mary Liberry

There were five in the bed and the little one said, "Roll over.  Roll over."

So they all rolled over and one fell out.

(Continue with 4, 3, 2, 1)

Book: Counting Ovejas by Sarah Weeks

This is one of the few bilingual books where the Spanish is simple enough so that I can read it in both languages!  I also made a flannel board to go with it. From: Storytime Katie

Song: Twinkle, twinkle, little star

Craft: Bear in Bed

We colored bears and added googly eyes.  Then we decorated their sleeping bags and put them to bed!

Let it Snow!

I'm back after a little bit of a break from storytime!

Theme: Let it Snow!

Opening: Open, Shut Them

Book: Froggy Gets Dressed by Jonathan London

Movement Activity: Stand up and Stretch

Transition Rhyme: Touch your ears and touch your nose

Book: There Was a Cold Lady Who Swallowed Some Snow by Lucille Colandro

Flannel Board Activity: Build your own snowman

I cut out different pieces of a snowman from felt and then the kids got to build their own snowman!

Song: Silly Dance Contest from Jim Gill's CD Jim Gill Sings the Sneezing Song and Other Contagious Tunes

Flannel Board Fingerplay: Five Little Snowmen; From Tickle the Clouds

Five little snowmen, all in a row (hold up five fingers)
Each with a hat (pretend to put on hat)
And a big red bow (pretend to tie bow)
Out came the sun (circle arms over head like sun)
And it stayed all day
And one little snowman melted away (remove one snowman).
(Continue with 4, 3, 2, 1)

Book: Snowballs by Lois Ehlert

Craft: Snowmen!

The kids decorated their own snowmen today.  I cut out the snowballs, hat, and nose.  The kids glued them on and added the eyes, mouth, scarf, etc.  Then my coworker gave me the idea to mix shaving cream and glue together and use it as snow!