Opening Song: If You're Happy and You Know It
Book: Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes (published 2004, 2005 Caldecott Medal)
I was supposed to have a bedtime story time on Wednesday night, but no one showed. So I was left with moon songs and no reason to sing them! I fixed that by reading this book, which was the definite favorite of this session, and which has such lovely, simple moon illustrations. (I especially love those endpapers!) Several kids were excited to see this one, and shouted out that they had it at home.
Song: Moon Moon Moon by The Laurie Berkner Band (from Victor Vito)
I am developing an obsession with Laurie Berkner's music, and I've been dying for something new in my repertoire, so I gave this one a shot. It's a little slow to get started, which is good, usually, for my baby/toddler bunch, but these kids got lost in the spaces between verses. It does have some nice hand gestures, though, provided by Laurie Berkner herself in the liner notes, and it's a really pretty a cappella arrangement with beautiful harmonies. It would do better at bedtime, but I loved it anyway.
Flannel Board Song: Aikendrum by Raffi (from Singable Songs for the Very Young)
I loved this song when I was a kid, but I couldn't tell if these kids liked it or not. Playing upon a ladle is not an easy concept, apparently, and no matter how I try to explain it, even the parents look at me like I'm a bit touched in the head sometimes. But I like making his silly face with my flannel board pieces.
Book: Tony Baloney by Pam Munoz Ryan, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham (January 2011)
This book arrived brand new at our library this week, and I fell immediately in love. I'm probably going to review it on my book blog eventually, but I'll just briefly say it's a silly story about a middle child forced to live with a bossy older sister and "exasperating" babies. His stuffed animal serves as his therapist and best friend, and though Tony doesn't like trouble, it often comes to find him anyway. It's absolutely adorable, and though there were some babies in the crowd who fussed through it, the preschool audience was glued to the book the entire time.
Song: The Wheels on the Bus
Song: Shake My Sillies Out
Book: Ollie the Stomper by Olivier Dunrea (2003)
I admit that I chose this book solely because it had boots in it. I wanted to do Laurie Berkner's awesome dancing song about boots, and wanted a book to go with it. But it is a funny little tale about three goslings - Gossie and Gertie, who have boots, and Ollie, who does not. Gossie and Gertie each give one boot to Ollie, and when he tires of them, all three ditch the boots and go for a swim. And who wouldn't want to be called a stomper?
Song: Boots by The Laurie Berkner Band (from Victor Vito)
Oh, how I love this song. And so did a lot of the little girls in my audience today. They were bopping around in their imaginary black boots, brown boots, frog boots, dancing boots, and rain boots. I made some felt board boots to go over each one before we started, but managed to forget dancing boots, so we ended up doing a hokey-pokey like dance for that verse. I think I might try this again with fours and fives this summer, because it's so much fun.
Song: Turn Around by Hap Palmer (from Getting to Know Myself)
I always do this one when I have a lot of three year olds. They are good at following directions, and they like stomping loudly and softly.
Song: Skinnamarink
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