Music! Music! Music! Preschool Story Time

 Music! Music! Music! Preschool Story Time

This was a smaller story time, but a very nice one. Seven kids attended in all - one preschool boy with a toddler brother (and their mom), one preschool girl with a toddler sister (and their nanny), one of the girls from the Catholic school Pre-K and her first grader sister (and their nanny), and a little boy who always comes with his mom. Our theme was music, so we did some listening, singing, and dancing.

Book: This Jazz Man by Karen Ehrhardt
As I have in the past, I had the kids say  the nicknames of the various jazz musicians. They did okay with the book, but they didn't like it as much as the groups of past years.

Song: Hands Are for Clapping
Since I already had this on hand from the morning story time, I used it again with these guys. They got surprisingly into it - especially when we started snapping our fingers.The first grade big sister also got really into whistling.

Audiobook: Zin! Zin! Zin!A Violin by Lloyd Moss
I downloaded the audio version of this book from Overdrive onto one of our branch iPads and used my old laptop speakers to make the sound loud enough. I held the book and turned the pages as the audio played so the kids would still have the benefit of  the picture book, but they would also get to hear the different musical instruments. The slow pace could have made this story a flop, but the kids loved it. By the end, they were conducting and applauding in accordance with the soundtrack, as though they were part of a real concert.

Song: Shake My Sillies Out

Book: Violet’s Music by Angela Johnson
I'm not that fond of this book, but the kids were crazy about it.

Craft: Paper plate maracas
My coworker and I stapled shut paper plates and filled them with beads, then gave them to the kids to color with markers. This was a hugely successful craft, which inspired lots of loud shaking and dancing and lots of bewildered smiles from the poor grown-ups who had to take those noisemakers home.

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.

Music! Music! Music! Toddler Lap Time, 4/19/13

 Music! Music! Music! Toddler Lap Time, 4/19/13

I wasn't planning to do this story time, but my co-worker who was going to do it lost her voice! So I pulled some tried and true books and stepped in at the last minute to take over. This was the largest afternoon toddler group we've had in a while, which is nice, and it was a great story time!

Book: Knick Knack Paddy Whack by Steve Songs and Christiane Engel
As we did this morning, we read the verses and sang the chorus. 

Song: One Little Finger
This is a song I used to use all the time, but that I haven't broken out in a few months. It seemed to drag on a lot longer than usual, but the kids were very attentive.

Book: The Babies on the Bus by Karen Katz
Personally, I am so sick of this song, but the kids love it, and this book makes it somewhat palatable because I love the illustrations. The grown-ups were wonderful about singing every verse. 

Rhyme: Dance Your Fingers

Rhyme: The Rhythm in My Feet 
I was iffy about using this one. It was on my agenda for this morning, and I skipped it, and I almost skipped it again. But I'm glad I didn't. I took it very, very slow, and all of the grown-ups did a great job modeling for their kids. We might try this one again for a few weeks to see if it becomes a favorite.

Song: Sing a Happy Song
It was too humid in the room to be dancing around and singing this song, but we did it anyway.

Songs with Shakers: 

• Shake My Sillies  Out 
• Can You Shake Your Egg With Me?
• Where is Shaker?

Song: Itsy Bitsy Spider

Song: Row Your Boat

Song: ABCs

Song: If You're Happy and You Know It

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.

Music! Music! Music! Drop-In Story Time, 4/19/13

 Music! Music! Music! Drop-In Story Time, 4/19/13

Book: Knick Knack Paddy Whack by Steve Songs and Christiane Engel
I normally sing this book all the way through, but since I was using three singable picture books, I decided to read the verses and ask everyone to sing the chorus. It was my best story time experience with this book, and since I have to step in and do the toddler story time this afternoon, I'll be using it again then.

Flannel Board Rhyme: There is Music
See yesterday's Baby Lap Time post for the words to this simple flannel board rhyme.

Book: The Wheels on the Bus  by Maryanne Kovalski
This song is a perennial favorite, and the end of the textual part of the story, where they sing so much they miss the bus got a good laugh.

Song: Hands Are for Clapping
I used the recording of this song because of the instrumentals and whistling at the end of each verse. It used to be a favorite back when I regularly used recordings, but it was not as well received today as I would have expected. I think there were just more people here than usual.

Book: Old MacDonald Had a Farm by Jane Cabrera
This one also has a great surprise ending that everybody liked. The only problem is that there are so many verses and I never know whether to skip a few in the middle.

Letter of the Day: S

• Song: Shake My Sillies Out
• Song with foam stars: Stars Shining Bright
• Song with puppet: Mr. Sun

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

Song: If You’re Happy and You Know It

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.

Outreach Round-Up, 4/8/13 - 4/18/13

Psychiatric Institute: Monday, 4/8/13
Books: Make Way for Ducklings, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Matilda's Humdinger, Heroes of the Surf 
Notes: This was the smallest and youngest group of kids I have had at this location thus far, and they were not as attentive as the previous two groups. Still, it was a treat to introduce them - and their teachers - to Make Way for Ducklings for the very first time. I would not have read four books ordinarily but an administrator came in to see my story time, and she was late, so she requested one last book.

Catholic School 5th Grade: Thursday, 4/11/13
Poems: "Instructions" by Neil Gaiman, "The Adventures of Isabel" by Ogden Nash, "maggie and milly and molly and may" by e.e. cummings
Notes: I asked the students to rate each poem from 1 to 3. The scale they were given was as follows: "1= This was a great poem! 2 = This poem was just okay. 3 = I never want to hear this poem again!" After tallying their votes, The Adventures of Isabel was the winner. After three weeks of reading and rating poems, I will reveal their overall results and give them copies of the poems to keep.

Catholic School Kindergarten & First Grade (Two Separate Sessions): Friday, 4/12/13
Book: Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover  
Notes:  The kids in both classes liked this book, though they had some issues with suspending their disbelief. ("Um, Miss Katie, Rabbits don't talk.") They didn't laugh out loud as much as I expected, but they were quiet and engaged the whole time, which is very rare for them. The kindergarteners, who have a special affection for George and Martha, enjoyed it somewhat more than the first graders.

Rec. Center Cooperative Play Program: Wednesday, 4/17/13
Books: A Sick Day for Amos McGee, May I Bring a Friend?, ABC Zooborns
Songs: Shake My Sillies Out, Cuddly Koalas
Rhyme: This is Big, Big, Big
Notes: This was a much smaller group than usual - only five kids! They loved the first two books, and were interested in and confused by the ABC Zooborns book. I think their teacher enjoyed it even more than they did!  Also, apparently, in two years, I have never used Shake My Sillies Out at the rec. center because the  teacher said she loved it and had never heard it.

Catholic School Pre-K: Thursday, 4/18/13 
Books: May I Bring a Friend?, A Sick Day for Amos McGee, Quiet! There's a Canary in the Library 
Songs: If You'd Like to Read a Book, Monkeys on the Bed, Shake My Sillies Out, These Are My Glasses 
Notes: I used two of the books from the Rec. Center story time, but added the Don Freeman title as both a tribute to library week and a third example of "zoo animals in unusual places." This was one of the best class visits I've ever had with this group. 

Catholic School 5th Grade: Thursday, 4/18/13
Poems: "Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright by Stephen Vincent Benet, "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost, "How to Change a Frog into a Prince" by Anna Denise
Notes: The group was pretty vocal about how much they disliked each of these poems, but the last one did get a five top ratings, mostly from the girls. I think they will be surprised how the voting turns out when all is said and done. Now I just need to find three more poems for next week that they will have some hope of liking.