Thursday, November 8, 2012

Pajama Story Time, 11/7/12

Another week with only two kids! This time it was a regular who was sleepy and a first-timer, who was basically climbing the walls. They both had a good time.

Book: We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury
This didn't go over very well, which was a surprise. 



Book: Sneeze, Big Bear, Sneeze by Maureen Wright, illustrated by Will Hillenbrand
I like this book's unsual approach to teaching kids about the wind. The kids liked it, too - especially when they got to pretend to sneeze!

Song:  Big Bear, Little Bear

Book: You and Me, Little Bear by Martin Waddell, illustrated by Barbara Firth
This is always a nice book to read at a family story time. Parents always "aww" at the ending. 

Rhyme: Two Little Bear Cubs

Song: Goodnight 

I use the same hello and goodbye songs at almost every session. Click here for the tunes and words. For descriptions of each of my story times, click here.

Drop-In Story Time, 11/6/12

This is the first time in a long time I have been able to focus mainly on books. I've almost completely removed the phrase "the end" from my vocabulary. Since I no longer signal to them that the book is done,  the adults now actually pay attention and stick with the story. Because they pay attention, they spend more time pointing things out to the kids and helping the kids engage with the story. I've also noticed many of the one-year-olds (graduates of last year's Baby Lap Time) have really started participating with the motions on a lot of the songs. This was one of the best story times I've had all Fall. 

*Note: I did not have the ukulele for this story time.


Book: First the Egg by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
I get more comfortable with this book the more times I use it in story time. The group seemed really engaged with it this time, and lots of the little ones were pointing at the illustrations.

Rhyme:
Five Eggs and Five Eggs


Book: Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert
I personally do not enjoy Lois Ehlert that much, but I do appreciate that kids are drawn to her brightly colored illustrations, and the text is at just the right level for my toddler-heavy story time groups. I also used this book with great success with a group of three-year-olds during an outreach visit last week.

Flannel Board Song: I Like Soup
I started out thinking I would use Laurie Berkner's "I Feel Crazy so I Jump in My Soup" but then realized it was a little bit too physical for my little guys. So then I played with it a little bit and came up with a similar song to the same tune.


I like carrots, so I put them in my soup.
I like carrots, so I put them in my soup.
I like carrots to I put them in my soup.
And then I stir up my soup!

I printed out some vegetables from kizclub.com's clipart section, found an image of a soup pot on Clker.com and had an instant flannel board. The kids seemed to like stirring. The adults were not very impressed, however, with a soup made of potato, corn, onion, carrot, and mushrooms. Oh well.

Book: A Good Day by Kevin Henkes

Song: Sunny Day

Song: Way Up in the Sky

Song with Puppets: Do You Know...?

Book: Here Are My Hands by Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambeault, illustrated by Ted Rand 

Song: Head and Shoulders

Letter of the Day:
Letter K

Songs: ABCs / Twinkle Twinkle Little Star / Baa Baa Black Sheep

Song: If You’re Happy and You Know It

Song: Where is Big Toe?

I use the same hello and goodbye songs at almost every session. Click here for the tunes and words. For descriptions of each of my story times, click here.

Pajama Story Time, 10/31/12

This was a trickier story time than usual. Most kids were out trick-or-treating, and only two came to story time. One spoke very little English, so his dad tried to translate for him. The other child was a regular, though, so it worked out fine, even if it was a little bit awkward for me. I will say that the spider theme is a good one, and I would like to use it again.

Book: The Eensy Weensy Spider Freaks Out! by Troy Cummings

Book: The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle

Flannel Board Rhyme: Four Colorful Flies

Book: Wilbur Makes a Friend by Jennifer Frantz
I am normally against easy reader adaptations of famous books, but I thought this particular one was a nice introduction to Charlotte's Web, and I made sure to explain that it was taken from a novel and that the novel is great.

Song: There's a Spider on the Floor

Book: Anansi the Spider by Gerald McDermott

I use the same hello and goodbye songs at almost every session. Click here for the tunes and words. For descriptions of each of my story times, click here.
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