Preschool Story Time - Flutter by, Butterfly!

YES!  Spring has really arrived in Ohio!  I was getting a little worried about that.  What a perfect time to talk about my all time favorite bugs.  Bug story times are great - there are so many resources!  Today we did mostly butterflies, but we threw in a few flies and other bugs too - mainly because I have a felt set I wanted to use again.  Here we go!

Oh my goodness is this a beautiful book! Its just a year old now, but definitely should be included in every butterfly story time.  AND it is perfect for my craft which you will see later!

These two are the best friends ever!  But one wants to dig, dig, dig, and one wants to climb, climb, climb.  They realize how important they really are to one another.  Cheers and another ovation for a wonderfully written and illustrated book.  I adore this one.

Have you seen my BIG Wide-Mouthed Frog felt set?  I chose to do this story even though there is no butterfly in it - because I just love to tell this story.  I decided that the fact that the frog eats flies was good enough tie-in for me.  I always say, do what you love and the kids will love what you do....and it's true.

After HALFTIME, I pulled out the UKE to keep the party going.  We did the insect song to the tune of Wheels on the Bus:

The fireflies at night go blink blink blink (dont forget to blink your hands!)
blink blink blink
blink blink blink
The fireflies at night go blink blink blink
All summer long....

Continue with:
The bees in the flowers go buzz buzz buzz (move your hand like a darting bee) 
The ants in the grass go march march march  (stomp feet) 
The crickets on the leaves go chirp chirp chirp (make bird beaks with your hands up to your ears) 
The caterpillar in the field goes creep creep creep (move finger like inch worms) 
ALL SUMMER LONG

Do you know the song to this one?  I sang most of the book, but had the kids (and parents) swatting the air and singing "Shoo Fly, Shoo Fly, Shoo"  The entire time, one little boy said "I would just swat it!" So he was thrilled at the end when the fly meets his SPLAT.

Hilarity reigns supreme!  This is possibly the 4th or 5th time I have done this book in story time, and it is a huge hit every time.  The kids and parents were just laughing out loud.  If you are going to do it, GO BIG.  The kids were doing the movements with me, until I did the backside part.  If you read my Bunnies story time, you know this part is a big hit with one of my little fellas.

Finally my craft!  I love this type of craft and probably do it several times a year.  Today's sun catchers were in the shape of butterflies.  First, I made a template and drew it onto wax paper like this:

The kids put glue down, and filled the butterfly with tissue paper squares.  After the paper dries (at home), the parents cut out the butterfly shape, and this is what you get!

One pack of tissue paper and a box of wax paper cost $1 each at the dollar store, but the number of crafts I get out of this idea is numerous.  I figure I could do this craft at least 5 times with these materials, which means a grand total (besides glue already on hand) of about 40 cents per story time, or 2 cents per child.  You simply cannot beat that!  The kids love the fine motor skills practice, and the moms and grandmas love the craft for their windows.

And today we had a bonus!  Look what I found while at the dollar store!  These were in a package of three.  I was going to have a bling-station for the kids to decorate the foam butterflies and bugs with sequins and bobbles, but we were really quite full up today.  Because every good fairy deserves a magic wand, I gave them out to all of my little peeps. (and they don't hurt when the boys are whacking each other with them).  It was my Easter present to my group.

My story times are racing by these days.  I want to go on and on.  I am glad my last ones are so fun though because this transition will be harder than the others.
Thanks for stopping by!!

Flannel Friday - Planting a Rainbow

There is nothing prettier than a rainbow of felt flowers!  I made this set of flowers last spring for Miss Sue's preschool story time.  They are based on the illustrations in Lois Ehlert's book Planting a Rainbow. 

And although the inspiration for this set of flowers comes from a book, there are so many more uses for it!  I love flannel sets that came be adapted to fit more than one story or rhyme.  These flowers can be used to discuss colors, flowers, rainbows, gardening, spring...  The list goes on and on! 

We have some red flowers

Carnation

and orange flowers,

Tulip

and some yellow blooms.

Daisy

We grow something green

Fern

and some blue flowers,

Hyacinth

and some purple flowers, too.

Pansy

I chose to recreate one flower per color of the rainbow.  You could make one flower or a bouquet of flowers to tell this story!  When lined up, they make a beautiful rainbow!

Thank you so much Lisa over at Libraryland for hosting Flannel Friday this week!  Flannel Friday is such a great resource for finding amazing ideas for your next flannelboard!  You can learn more about Flannel Friday here!

Baby Story Time - Spring is Here!

There was a dusting of snow on the ground, but darn it, it is SPRING! I won't let the silly weather mess with my story time!

OPENING SONG: "The Hello Song" *

GREETING SONG: "Hello" (Name Song) *

WAKE-UP RHYME: "Roll, Roll Sugar Babies"
Roll, roll sugar babies
Roll, roll sugar babies
     (roll baby's arms)
*Up, down
     (arms up, arms down)
Clap, clap, clap!
     (clap)

Repeat with alternate verses:
*Out, in
     (arms out, arms in)
*Right, left
     (lean baby right, then left)
*Back, front
     (lean baby back, then front)


1st BOOK: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

We used this amazing pop-up version and everyone loved it!

(Warning: It's a little tricky to hold and read at the same time)

ACTION SONG: "Walking, Walking" (from the cd Songs for Wiggleworms)

I like to sing this song without the cd so I can control the pace and stop to give directions between each verse. This is perhaps a little advanced for babies, but I have lots of walkers who tend to wander around, so this was a way to channel all that energy, and I made their caretakers dance with them!

(to the tune of "Frere Jacques")
Walking, walking,
Walking, walking,
Hop, hop, hop!
Hop, hop, hop!
Running, running, running,
Running, running, running,
Now we stop!
Now we stop!

2nd verse: replace "walking" with "tip-toe"
3rd verse: replace "tip-toe" with "marching"

FINGERPLAY: "In and Out"
I made up a really simple tune to sing with this rhyme because, well, everything's better with music!

In and out, in and out,
Now I roll my hands about.
First up high, then down low,
This is the way my fingers go!

2nd BOOK: Baby Loves Spring! by Karen Katz

Very cute and simple!

COUNTING RHYME: "Five Spring Flowers" (I borrowed this from Miss Sue)

Five Spring flowers all in a row.
The first one said, "We need rain to grow!"

The second one said, "Oh MY, we need water!"
The third one said, "Yes, it's getting hotter!"

The fourth one said, "I see clouds up in the sky!"
The fifth one said, "I wonder why?"

Then BOOM went the thunder and ZAP went the lightning!
     (clap on "BOOM")
That springtime storm was really frightening!

But the flowers weren't worried - no, no, no!
The rain helped them to grow, grow, grow!
     (raise baby's arms on "grow...")
 





We used Miss Kristie's BEAUTIFUL flowers - she made them to go with Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert, but they work perfectly for this rhyme!

3rd BOOK: Peek-a-Bloom! by Marie Torres Cimarusti 

A simple lift-the-flap book!

CLOSING SONG: "If You're Happy and You Know It" *

GOODBYE SONG: "Babies, Bye-Bye" *

CLOSING RHYME: "Thank You" *



*Check out my Baby Story Time page for the words to all of my weekly songs and rhymes.

Happy Spring!

Toddler Story Time - Welcome Spring!

I waited a little bit to do a spring story time this year because, well, it hasn't felt like spring!  But, I felt like I couldn't wait any longer, so on a cold, rainy morning we celebrated spring!  (April showers bring May flowers?)  I have really been looking forward to starting some warmer weather themes in story time.  This week, I even printed my handout on pretty yellow paper.  So springy.

We started off story time with the rhyme, During the Spring from Storytime Katie.  The little ones really liked becoming flowers at the end!

During the Spring

During the spring, it often showers (flutter fingers down)

Or the sun shines for many hours  (form circle in the air with arms)

Both are good for the flowers!  (cup hands and extend arms like a flower)

Because the week had been so raining, I decided to add a book and rhyme at the last minute.  I read Split! Splat! by Amy Gibson.  Such a cute book full of crazy sounds!  Super fun read aloud.  

We also did the fun action rhyme, The Rain is Falling Down from Storytime Katie.

The 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

The rain is falling down,  (flutter fingers doen)

SPLASH  (clap loudly once)

This was a fun addition to my story time theme.  Now back to spring!

The first spring book I read was Wake Up, It's Spring! by Lisa Campbell Ernst.  Such a sweet book!  We added sound effects to the different things waking up so it was even more fun!  

After the book, we pretended to bloom with the finger play, Watch It Bloom from Perry Public Library Storytime.  This rhyme was so sweet.  The little ones looked so cute making their tiny little buds.  We did this one twice!

Watch It Bloom

Here is a green leaf  (hold out one palm)

And here is a green leaf  (hold out other palm)

That, you see, makes two  (hold up two fingers)

Here is a bud  (cup hands together)

That makes it a flower  (slowly open hands)

Watch it bloom for you  (slowly open hands)

For a fun musical interlude, I chose the song Over in the Meadow from Raffi's cd Animal Songs.  I played this song while the little ones still had their egg shakers from singing their ABCs.  We shook the shakers throughout the song, and made the animal noises.  This song also includes counting to five, so it is a great song for story times!  

Before we sat down for another book, we pretended to garden with the song, Planting Time (to the tune of Rown, Row, Row Your Boat) from Perry Public Library Storytime.  This song was a big hit, so we sang it twice!

Planting Time

Dig, dig, dig the earth  (pretend to dig)

Then you plant your seeds  (pretend to plant)

A gentle rain  (fingers flutter down)

The bright sunshine  (arms circle overhead)

And flowers you will see  (open arms wide)

The second spring book I chose was Mouse's First Spring by Lauren Thompson.  I almost always choose a Mouse book if it can relate to the theme I am doing.  Love these books!  This time, Mouse and Momma are exploring a spring day.  In the end, Mouse finds his Momma and gets a hug and a kiss.  My grown ups love books that give them a chance to hug their little ones!

I knew I wanted to include The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle in my story times as soon as Miss Kristen told me how much the babies loved the pop up version we have.  This pop up is amazing!  The pages are beautiful and the little ones loved them!  It is a little difficult to hold and read, so this would be a good book to memorize beforehand.   

Before I read the book, we sang the song, Little Caterpillar, (to the tune of I'm a Little Teapot).  I found this song on YouTube here.  I just recently discovered that there are a lot of great people on YouTube sharing their ideas.  It is a great place to go to hear songs and flannel stories!  The video included the signs for caterpillar, hide, rest/sleep, and butterfly.  It was fun to teach it to the little ones and use those as the motions to this song!

Little Caterpillar

I'm a little caterpillar crawling by

I make a cocoon to go and hide

I rest for a while and sleep inside

When I come out, I'm a butterfly!

After the book, we finished our spring story time with the song, Flutter, Flutter, Butterfly (to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star) from Storytime Katie.  This was such a nice song to end a great spring story time with.  We all flapped our "butterfly wings" and said good bye.

Flutter, Flutter, Butterfly

Flutter, flutter, butterfly

Floating in the spring sky

Floating by for all to see

Floating by so merrily

Flutter, flutter butterfly

Floating in the spring sky 

Everyone made their very own spring flower to take home with them.  I had seen on the Internet people making flowers with cupcake wrappers.  We didn't have any, but we did have coffee filters!  Little ones used the dobbers to add color to their flower (Ink goes right through the filters!  Put down newspaper!)  Then, they glued precut stems, leaves, and their flower to a piece of cardstock.  So simple a cute.  You could even add multiple coffee filters to make a puffy flower.

And because great minds think alike, Miss Sue also used Eric Carle's pop up version of The Very Hungry Caterpillar in her Letter C Story Time!  You can check it out here!

Preschool Story Time - Bunnies

I have a little problem.  It happens when people know their job is ending soon, they are moving, or they are looking forward to any other life altering event.  You start to panic a little.  There are so many books I want to read to kids, so many felt stories I want to do (or do again), and more craft ideas than I know what to do with.  This story time falls into category B.  I have a felt set I just made and wanted to use it!

First of all, Miss Kristie sent her daughter Daisy in with bunny ears and a tail.  So I wore them.  It seemed like a natural thing to do at the time, and the kids just loved it.  (Thanks Kristie!)  Miss Kristen brought her son, Adam to story time too!  It was great to have support but I was a little nervous too.  So here's what we did:

Chloe is the middle child of 21 bunnies.  Everyone wants to sit and watch TV but Chloe has a better idea for Family Fun night.  Will dad understand?

Star of the day!  This new book was a huge hit with the kids and the parents.  I was so happy to read this one.  Make sure you notice that the number of bunnies is growing each day.  Hilarious!

Then it was time for my Flannel Set - Too Many Bunnies!  By Matt Novak.

Too Many Bunnies! Matt Novak

In a green field, there were two holes.  One hole was very empty.

Across the field there was another hold filled with bunnies, Chubby, Fuzzy, Floppy, Whiskers, and Bob.
One Day, Chubby said, “There are too many bunnies in this hole!”
Chubby hopped out of the hole, across the field, and into the big empty hole.
“Big,” said Chubby.
“Chubby is right,” said Fuzzy. “This hole is too crowded.”
Fuzzy hopped out of the old hole, across the field, and into the not-so-empty hole.
“Comfy,” said Fluffy.
“That other hole looks much better,” said Floppy.
Floppy hopped out of the hole, across the field, and into the new hole.
“Nice,” said Floppy.
“It is cold in here,” said Whiskers.
So Whiskers hopped out of the hole, across the field, and into the almost-full-hole.
“Cozy,” said Whiskers.
“I’m lonely,” said Bob.  “Where IS everybody?”
Bob hippity-hopped over to be with the other bunnies.

“There are too many bunnies in this hole,” said Chubby. 
But across the field, there was an empty hole.
“It looks big,’ said Chubby.
“It looks comfy,” said Fuzzy.
“It looks nice,” said Floppy.
“It looks cozy,” said Whiskers.
“Wait for me!” shouted Bob.
And that’s why there are always TOO MANY BUNNIES!

The kids got a big kick out of this once they figured out what was happening.  They started shouting out how this could go on all day, or they would yell "OH NO not again!!"  It was funny.

After Halftime, I kept them standing for another song, accompanied by Moi on the ukulele"
If you're a bunny and you know it twitch your nose.
If you're a bunny and you know it twitch your nose.
If you're a bunny and you know it and you really want to show it
If you're a bunny and you know it twitch your nose.
(Continue with:  Eat a carrot, wiggle your tail, flop your ears, hop around)

Another big hit because, you see, I had on that bunny tail.  No one wanted to wiggle their tail because they were way too busy laughing at me!!!

Then we got into the "Easter" portion of the bunny story time.  There are so many great bunny books, but these I wanted to try out.  By the way - if your whole theme is Easter bunnies, I invite you to check out my other story time with a few more Easter books and references. Click HERE for more.

Funny stuff!  There is only one sentence per page, but the text is as long as a good picture book is, so there are a lot of pages to this book.

I just had to.  I love all of Jan Thomas' books!  This one definitely appeals to the boys in the crowd.

My craft was 'stolen' from Crafty Mama's website - so thanks for that.  I forgot to take a photo of my craft, so here is the inspiration:

However we also made bunny NOSES!  We put spring colored pom poms on pop sticks so everyone would have a nose to twitch.

Hope you enjoyed Bunny story time!  I think the ears and tail made it.  Next week is butterflies - I am thinking it is time for some wings!

Flannel Friday - Owen's Marshmallow Chick!

I made this last Easter when I was filling in for Miss Kristie's Toddler Story Time.  This adorable Kevin Henkes book is just a little too small to read for a big group, so I needed some big visuals!

Disclaimer: My props are not felt! I printed them on cardstock (thank you, ClipArt and Google Images!) and just used a tiny bit of double-sided tape to make them stick.

"Owen's Easter basket was full."

Owen takes out the jellybeans - "My favorite," he says, and he eats them up.

Owen takes out the gumdrops - "My favorite," he says, and he eats them up.

Owen takes out the cream eggs - "My favorite," he says, and he eats them up.

Owen takes out the chocolate bunny - "My favorite," he says, and he eats it up.

Owen takes out the marshmallow chick.  It's the same color as his favorite blanket. Owen plays with his chick all day, and at bedtime says, "My favorite," and kisses it goodnight. :o)

I pulled this set out this year with the intention of turning it into a felt set, but I just couldn't figure out a good way to make the basket, the jellybeans, or the gumdrops out of felt.  I've decided to keep the paper version for now.  Hopefully I can get them laminated so they last longer.  The toddlers LOVED this last year, so I'm excited to share it with the babies this year!

Happy Easter!

Thanks to Anna at Future Librarian Superhero for hosting Flannel Friday this week!  Flannel Friday is for anyone interested in finding and sharing great flanneboard ideas!  You can learn more about Flannel Friday and how to participate here.

Kindergarten Story Time - Birds!

A Kindergarten class came to visit us today and we had a great time celebrating spring with a lively story time! (Miss Kristen can do something other than Baby ST, you say?? Yes, yes, she can!)

Action Rhyme: "My Hands Upon My Head I Place"

My hands upon my head, I place.

On my shoulders, on my face.
On my knees, and at my sides.
Then behind me they will hide.
Then I reach them up so high,
'Til they nearly reach the sky!
Now I clap them: one, two, three!
Now I fold them quietly.

Now are hands are in our laps - ready for a story! Pretty clever, huh? ;o)

1st Book: Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems

Is there a child alive who doesn't LOVE this pigeon?

We used Miss Sue's fantastic Pigeon flannel set - each child got to hold the word "No."  I just had them hold the pieces up every time they shouted "No!" to the pigeon.  This was great fun!  See how she used this set with Preschoolers here.

Action Song: "Shake My Sillies Out" (from Raffi's cd More Singable Songs)
I gotta shake, shake, shake my sillies out,
Shake, shake, shake my sillies out,
Shake, shake, shake my sillies out,
And wiggle my waggles away!

2nd verse: Clap my crazies out
3rd verse: Jump my jiggles out
4th verse: Yawn my sleepies out
5th verse: Shake my sillies out

2nd Book: Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard

This book and its mate, Boo Hoo Bird, are both hillarious!

Action Song: "I've Got Two Hands" (from Peter Allard's cd Sing It! Say It! Stamp It! Sway It! Vol. 3)
I've got two hands that I can clap,
I can clap a song for you,
I've got two hands that I can clap,
Clap a song for you!
Clap, clap a song for you,
Clap, clap a song, it's true,
Clap, clap for me and you,
Clap, clap a song!

2nd verse: I've got two hips that I can wiggle
3rd verse: I've got two legs that I can march
It goes on and on - a really fun song! I've done this with toddlers as well, and just stopped after 3 verses.

Fingerplay: "Wiggle Your Fingers"
Wiggle your fingers just like so,
Wiggle them high, wiggle them low.
Wiggle them left, wiggle them right.
Wiggle your fingers out of sight!

3rd Book: There is a Bird on Your Head by Mo Willems

The kids had never read this book, but they predicted the ending - little smarties!

Rhythm Time: Rhythm Sticks!

"Mama Duck" (from Peter Allard's cd Sing It! Say It! Stamp It! Sway It! Vol. 3)
We tapped our sticks every time we said "Quack!"

Here comes the Mama duck - Quack! (one tap)
Here comes the Mama duck - Quack! (one tap)
Here comes the Mama duck and 1 little duckling - Quack! (one tap)

Here comes the Mama duck - Quack! Quack! (two taps)
Here comes the Mama duck - Quack! Quack! (two taps)
Here comes the Mama duck and 2 little ducklings - Quack! Quack! (two taps)

The song goes up to five, which we discovered is pretty tricky to do! I always sing this song without the cd, so I can control the speed, and stop for directions between each verse.  It's lots of fun! See how I do this song with babies here.

"We are Tapping" (to the tune of "Clementine") (from 101 Rhythm Instrument Activities for Young Children by Abigail Flesch Connors - you NEED this book!)
We are tapping, we are tapping,
We are tapping with our sticks.
We are tapping, we are tapping,
We are tapping with our sticks.

It's as easy as that! Try more verses:
-We are scraping...
-We are drumming...
-We are pounding...
-We are rolling...

Action Song: "If You Wanna Hear a Story" (borrowed this from Miss Sue!)
If you wanna hear a story clap your hands.
If you wanna hear a story clap your hands.
If you wanna hear a story, if you wanna hear a story,
If you wanna hear a story clap your hands.

4th Book: Spring is Here by Will Hillenbrand

Not about birds, but a wonderful spring book! I was worried it would be a little too young for them, but they really enjoyed it! Teachable moment: they didn't know what a mole was!

Letter Box: The letter "B"
What was inside??
A bird!
You can buy these from Lakeshore Learning, but the bird was something I added - it was supposed to be a beach ball.

Closing Song: "List of Dances" (from Jim Gill's cd Jim Gill Makes It Noisy in Boise, Idaho)
Make your own list to display while you dance to this great song!

What a fun group! A big shout out to Miss Carol, our teen librarian, from whom I stole the "bird" theme for story time!

Want to see a "bird" themed story time for babies? Check out mine here.