Family Story Time, 5/9

Opening Song: I'm in the Mood by Raffi (from Rise and Shine)

I don't know what I was thinking. This song is long and unwieldy and a terrible opener! This group has a really broad age range - I had babies, and I had first graders today - and this song was not what we needed to set the tone. Sadly, I think the whole thing just unraveled from there. I honestly don't know what to do with a group like this, but I need to figure it out, because it's really growing!


Song: The Wheels on the Bus 

Book: Being Friends by Karen Beaumont, illustrated by Joy Allen (2002)

I may have read this book to guilt some little girls into being nicer to another girl in the front row, who is at least two years younger than they are, and whom they were berating for no reason I could understand. It's also a really positive story about friendship between opposites.


Song: Monkeys on the Bed

Book: Lemons Are Not Red by Laura Vaccaro Seeger (2006)

The bright colors in this book really captivate toddlers and preschoolers, and I saw a lot of fingers pointing at the book as I read.

Book: The Red Lemon by Bob Staake (2006)

My cleverness in pairing these two books was appreciated by exactly no one. I'm going to try it again with the fours and fives over the summer. But this is the story of how a rejected red lemon became the starting point for a red lemon revolution on a little island. I thought it was sweet, but I really couldn't read how the kids liked it.


Song: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes


Song: Turn Around

Thank God for Hap Palmer. I rely on this song in situations of great chaos and stress, and it works like a charm every time!

Song with Flannel Board: The Farmer in the Dell (from Best of Children's Favorites: Pooh's Top 40)

The only version I had of this was sung by Disney's Goofy in a key my voice can't reach, so that was fun. My kizclub.com felt board pieces are cute, but alas, this song did not go over well. I'll do it a cappella next time (tomorrow, most likely.)

Book: Snail Trail by Ruth Brown (2000)

I did not need to read another book, but I panicked when I had a room full of blank faces looking at me, so I grabbed the first available thing. This is actually not a great read-aloud - it moves at a snail's pace and not much happens. Nice illustrations, though!


Goodbye Song: Skinnamarink