Baby/Toddler Story Time, 5/17

The theme of this morning's story time was Miss Katie Has Laryngitis! Literally. I can't speak more than a sentence without going completely mute. So this was a true exercise in resourcefulness, and I really owe a huge debt of gratitude to some of my regular story time goers who jumped right in and kept the singing going, even without a leader.

Because I couldn't speak, I chose three audiobooks, and played the CDs while turning the pages. I don't recommend doing story time like that if you don't have to, but it did work like a charm for me in a pinch.

Song: Shake My Silles Out

Book: Clifford the Small Red Puppy by Norman Bridwell (read by Stephanie D'Abruzzo)
This book tells the story of how Emily Elizabeth came to find Clifford, and how he grew from the runt of his litter to the size of a house in only a few days! The kids loved this book. We've never read any Clifford books, since they're a bit lengthy, and I always opt for shorter, more audience-oriented books. But this was a good opportunity to try something new, and it was a definite hit.

Song: The Wheels on the Bus

Song: Monkeys on the Bed

Book: Fire Truck by Ivan Ulz, illustrated by Jill Dubin
This book was on our audiobook shelf, but it's not truly an audiobook. Rather, the CD includes three songs, and when you play the track for this book, it starts right in with the music and doesn't give the title, author, or anything. Still, the catchy refrain of "Fire truck, fire truck, I want to ride in a fire truck" and the deep-voiced, gritty singing that went with it had many of the kids absolutely fixated on this book. I'm not crazy about the Fisher-Price Little People illustrations - they're not very exciting, and they all look the same, but we might do that song again when I get my voice back.

Song: Old MacDonald Had a Farm

Song: Where is Thumbkin?

Book: We All Sing With the Same Voice by J. Philip Miller and Sheppard M. Greene, illustrated by Paul Meisel
I played this CD with this book for my very first family story time back in January, and everyone loved it then. It was less well-received today, but I love the song, and I have been planning to use it for my summer story times, since it fits so well with the One World, Many Stories theme. The song is an old one from Sesame Street (see it on YouTube here), but this book has an updated version, which is even better than the original.

Song: There's a Little Wheel a-Turnin' in My Heart

Song: One, Two, I Love You (Numbers Are Our Friends)

Goodbye Song: Skinnamarink

The biggest challenge of doing story time like this, with laryngitis, is that when adults carry on their own conversations or little ones climb all over everything, you don't have the voice to say no to them. I had a note on the white board about my lost voice and many people were sympathetic and wonderful, but the few who saw it as an opportunity to disregard manners did make it frustrating. Still, though, I have a really understanding and wonderful core group of people in my weekly audience, and I was thankful for them today!