10 Flannel Friday Favorites

This week, Flannel Friday celebrates its three-year anniversary! Accordingly, I would like to share my ten Flannel Friday favorites.

These first six items on my list are flannel boards and props I learned about from Flannel Friday and actually used in story times - in some cases, nearly every week.

• Down Around the Corner from Mel's Desk
  Mel's post inspired me to create Down Around the Corner at the Hardware Store for my week of construction-themed story times last year. I have also done Down Around the Corner at the Children's Bookstore and Down Around the Corner by the Big Oak Tree. 
• Blue is the Sky from Mel's Desk
  I have never used this rhyme as a flannel board, but the action rhyme version Mel shared in her post became a staple of my story times - and inspired me to write two versions of my own: Fierce is the Dragon and Frozen is the Lake. 
• The Case of the Missing Shoe from Read It Again
  Finding this story on Sarah's blog was a lifesaver during my last few weeks at the library. I'd been wanting to do a shoe theme forever, but had trouble finding quality materials. I wound up telling the story on a clothesline and it was a big hit!
• Did You Ever See a Turkey? from Read It Again
  Sarah also inspired my favorite holiday story time prop of all time - the turkey stick puppet with the wacky feathers. 
• Purple Little Bird from Recipes for Reading
  There are not enough purple stories in the world, and my library didn't even own this one, but thanks to Katie, I was able to get the gist of the story and tell my own version.
• The Magic Envelope from Rain Makes Applesauce
  Sharon made it possible for me to delight my story time audiences with a brand-new trick just when things were getting a bit stale last summer. I shared 9 magic envelopes between May and August, and I'll never forget the mom who told me that her twins played story time at home and used junk mail as their magic envelope. This is a true story time gem.

These last four links are Flannel Friday contributions I have always admired and someday hope to use.

• Are You a Horse? from Thrive After Three
  I love so many of Lisa's videos, but this is one I return to again and again. I love her casual way of incorporating the puppets, and her storytelling style. If I had the budget, I'd buy a set of animal puppets just so I could tell this particular story.
• The Ants Go Marching from In the Children's Room
  Lucy's approach to singing this song with the flannel board is so perfect. Instead of lining up ten individual ants on the board, she created pieces with multiple ants on them. I am more of a clip art kind of gal, but if I were to make something out of felt, this would be at the top of my list.
• Roll a Storytime! from So Tomorrow
  Anne's idea for using giant dice to roll a song or movement activity is something I always meant to try before leaving the library to have my daughter and I never did. I'm seriously considering making a pair of these for home when my daughter is a little older! 
• Fall is Not Easy from Storytiming
  This is one flannel board I wish I had the artistic ability to make. There have been many Flannel Friday adaptations, but Cate's was the first, and she was the one who introduced me to the book, and to its highly flannelizable qualities. Again, if I were to start making pieces from felt, this is one of the felt sets I'd want to make.

For more on how I feel about Flannel Friday, check out last year's birthday post, What Flannel Friday Means to Me. Also don't miss the round-up for this week, hosted by Anne at So Tomorrow. For more on Flannel Friday, check out the official website, Facebook page, and Pinterest account.