Flannel Friday: Pete the Clown and His Five Bright Balloons

Since I read The Grumpalump to a Pre-K class in November, I have been hooked on the idea of a balloon theme at story time. There aren't really enough balloon-related books and songs out there for me to devote an entire week just to balloons, but I did manage to get a few of them into my "Up, Up, and Away!" week back in March. One such activity was this flannel board I wrote for preschool story time based on the Pete the Cat books.

Pete the Clown and his Five Bright Balloons

Pete the Clown bought five bright balloons at the carnival.
He was so excited about them, he sang a song as he walked along.
“I’ve got five balloo-oons! I’ve got five balloo-oons!”  

(The tune for Pete's song is what you would sing if you were part of a conga line. Or if you were Homer Simpson trying to tell his daughter that you don't win friends with salad. Thanks to my husband for the link. Preschoolers get really into it if you also dance in your seat a little bit while you sing it. They will even dance along with you!)
 
But then... POP!
One balloon broke and started to drop.
Now how many balloons did Pete have? 

(Depending on the age of the kids, they might just yell out "Four!", or they might want to count. My group was mostly kindergarteners and they were quick with their subtraction skills!) 

Did Pete cry? No, never.
He knows balloons don’t last forever.
Pete was still so happy to have four balloons, that he kept walking along and singing his song. 

“I’ve got four balloo-oons! I’ve got four balloo-oons!”

(Repeat the same sequence of events until Pete is out of balloons, then add the following ending.)
 
Pete was out of balloons! What could he do? 

Well, he stopped where he was, turned around, and went back to the carnival, where he got five more balloons. 

As he walked along, he sang his song: 
“I’ve got five balloo-oons! I’ve got five balloo-oons!”

This was a huge hit with my fours and fives at story time, whether they were familiar with Pete the Cat or not. How have you adapted Pete the Cat for your story times?

This week's Flannel Friday host is Jane at Piper Loves the Library. For more about Flannel Friday, check out the official site.