LibraryAdventure.com: 10 Teen Novels About European Adventures

 

This month, The Library Adventure is participating in the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge by posting a book list for each letter of the alphabet. My post for the letter E is up today! Check out 10 Teen Novels About European Adventures.

Ten Creative Ways to Share Nursery Rhymes at Story Time

Nursery rhymes are a great way to expose young children to vocabulary, rhythm, and rhyme. (PBS Kids has a great post explaining exactly how and why.) While reading them aloud without any special props is perfectly fine, sometimes it's fun to get a little bit creative. Here are ten unique ways to share nursery rhymes with your story time audiences and/or your own kids at home.

• The Colorful Itsy-Bitsy Spider
  The itsy-bitsy spider is usually portrayed as a black or brown spider, but wouldn't it be fun if he was a bit more colorful? The rhythm of the song makes it easy to substitute a color combination for the words "itsy-bitsy." You could have "the red and orange spider," "the blue and yellow spider," or "the green and purple spider." Use a template like this one to make a two-toned spider out of felt, or to print and color a paper version.  Have the kids name the colors, then sing the new words along with  you.
• Baa Baa _________ Sheep
  Another nursery rhyme song that lends itself to a lesson in colors is Baa Baa Black Sheep. Sing the traditional song one time through, then change the color of your sheep. I have done this activity on the flannel board countless times,  but Mel's Desk gets the credit for the original idea.
• Mary Had a Little Lamb
  If the black sheep can change colors, so can Mary's lamb. Here are the verses I use for each color:
  
  Mary had a little lamb whose fleece was...

• blue as the sea
• red as a rose.
• green as the grass.
• black as the night.

• Old King Cole
  I did an entire Flannel Friday post about the Sharon, Lois, and Bram version of this song, which introduces the names of three musical instruments (fiddle, clarinet, and trumpet) and the people who play them.

• Hey Diddle Diddle with Puppet
  I have always done this rhyme for babies using a cloth cow hand puppet. I lift the cow way up into the air when she jumps over the moon and invite the caregivers to lift the babies up, too. Sometimes, this also works with toddlers if they like to put their arms up and wiggle their fingers.

• Little Boy Blue Magic Envelope
  Not every nursery rhyme lends itself to a magic envelope, but this one works nicely. Read my story time post from last May that explains how I did it. Learn how to make and use a magic envelope from Sharon at Rain Makes Applesauce.

• Two Little Blackbirds Variations
  There are so many ways to adapt Two Little Blackbirds  to suit different themes. Here are just a few: 
• Two Little Black Bears
• Two Little Bunnies
• Two Little Firefighters
• Two Little Fireflies
• Two Little Kittens
• Two Little Teddy Bears

• Sing the Nursery Rhyme Rap
  This song, which goes to the tune of 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall, is taken from The Bilingual Book of Rhymes, Songs, Stories, and Fingerplays. 
• Shake to the Rhythm
  It can be tricky to know what to do when there are no obvious hand gestures associated with a rhyme. Remedy this by handing out shaker eggs or other instruments and having everyone help keep the beat as you chant the words. For a fun twist, try this song by MaryLee.
  

• Read Nursery Rhyme Retellings
  Kids who are well-versed in their nursery rhymes will love these picture books, which expand upon and poke fun at the original rhymes:
• Mary Had a Little Lamp by Jack Lechner
• Old MacDonald Had a Woodshop by Lisa Shulman
• The Eensy Weensy Spider Freaks Out by Troy Cummings
• The Bear Went Over the Mountain by Iza Trapani 
• Hickory Dickory Dock by Keith Baker
• Knick Knack Paddy Whack by Steve Songs

For more nursery rhyme activities, check out my story time plans for babies and toddlers and preschoolers.

Fizz, Boom, Read! Preschool Story Time Starter: Sink or Float?

 

Today, I'm sharing my second-to-last preschool story time starter related to the Fizz, Boom, Read! summer reading theme. This one focuses on sinking and floating. (Previous posts can be found at these links: Five Senses, Temperature, Living vs. Non-living Things, and Weather.)
 

Miss Katie's Recommended Books

• Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen
  A series of animals climbs into a rowboat, and the reader is asked on each page to guess who might have sunk the boat. There aren't very many books about sinking, but this one is a great introduction to the concept, and  while I doubt every child in the room would get it on the first reading, the animal characters and the fact that the book addresses the kids directly would be enough to keep them interested. I think it's also fun to listen to kids' theories about who sank the boat.
• 10 Little Rubber Ducks by Eric Carle
  This book is based on a true story, and it tells what happens to ten rubber ducks when they fall off their ship and into the ocean. It's a great preschool book because Eric Carle is the illustrator, it involves counting, and it involves an animal familiar to most kids under five. I also think kids tend to know Eric Carle's books about bugs, but not many of his others, so this is a chance to give one of the lesser-known titles some attention.
• The Tub People by Pam Conrad
  Most kids first encounter the concepts of sinking and floating in the bathtub, where they have probably played with toys at some point. This book focuses on a whole family of small wooden figures who live along the edge of the bathtub. When Tub Child is sucked down the drain, his parents are sure they will never see him again, until a plumber comes to save the day. Sinking and floating don't figure heavily into the plot, but the subject matter of the story in general should get the kids talking about their own bathtime experiences that relate to this theme.

Other Possible Books

• Little Tug by Stephen Savage
• The Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack
• Sail Away by Donald Crews
• What Floats in a Moat? by Lynne Berry
• Louise, the Adventures of a Chicken by Kate DiCamillo
• The Toy Boat by Randall de Seve
• Duck Dunks by Lynne Berry
• Daisy Comes Home by Jan Brett
  
• Sink or Swim by Valerie Coulman
• The Circus Ship by Chris Van Dusen

Extension Activities

• Song: Five Little Ducks
  Kids love this song, and it's a perfect one to sing after reading 10 Little Rubber Ducks, or any duck-themed book. This is especially useful with large groups, as the quacking gets a lot of their excess energy out between books.
• Song: Row, Row, Row Your Boat
  This song is well-known, and most likely to encourage adult participation. It's also a good one to use if your preschool groups tend to skew young or include many toddler siblings.
• Flannel Board Song: Five Pirates in a Boat
  You can sing the original version of this song, Eight Rowers in a Boat, or make it a bit more preschool-friendly by turning it into a flannel board with pirates! Find a diverse array of pirates at mycutegraphics.com, and use a coloring sheet as a pattern for a boat.
  
• Song with Picture Props: Sailing Out to Sea 
  Practice number or color identification with this piggyback song I came up with based on Bumpin' Up and Down in My Little Red Wagon. I used cardboard signs, but you could also adapt this one to the flannel board.
• Song: Swimming, Swimming
  I remembered this song from Girl Scouts and looked up the lyrics again. Have the kids act out the different strokes and speed up a little bit with each verse until everyone collapses into a giggling heap.
• Experiment: Sink or Float Crayons
  This simple experiment comparing the bouyancy of crayons of two brands comes from a book published by Scholastic entitled Teaching Science with Favorite Picture Books. Though it is designed to accompany an early elementary lesson on Stone Soup, it would work just as well on its own. Specific instructions can be found in the Google Books preview below.

Visit These Sites for More Ideas

• Sink or Float? at Brilliant Beginnings Preschool
• Bobbing Along: A Float or Sink Story Time by Abby the Librarian
• Preschool Science - Sink or Float? at No Time for Flashcards
• Preschool - Sink or Float Pinterest board by Lindsay Lamping

Fizz, Boom, Read! Preschool Story Time Starter: Weather

This is my fourth story time starter inspired by the Fizz, Boom, Read! summer reading theme. Today's post is all about weather. (Previous posts focused on the five senses, temperature, and living vs. non-living things.)

Miss Katie's Recommended Books

• What Will the Weather Be? by Lynda DeWitt
  This is probably not a book to read in its entirety, but sharing parts of it will help introduce the topic and share some interesting science vocabulary.
• The Snow Globe Family by Jane O'Connor
  This is really more of a fanciful story than a true scientific exploration of weather, but kids love the idea of parallel snowstorms happening outside the house and inside a snow globe as well.
• Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Verna Aardema
  This book opens up a nice opportunity to talk about why we need rain, and what happens when there isn't enough. It's also fun to make the story interactive by asking the kids to repeat the refrain along with you. It's also a good one for retelling if you have some flannel board pieces on hand to assist. 

Other Possible Books

• Blue Sky by Audrey Wood
• BOOM!: Big, Big Thunder & One Small Dog by Mary Lyn Ray
• Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett
• I Love the Rain by Margaret Park Bridges
• Rabbits and Raindrops by Jim Arnosky
• Rain by Robert Kalan
• Rainy Day! by Patricia Lakin
• The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
• The Storm Book by Charlotte Zolotow
• When it Starts to Snow by Phillis Gershator

Songs & Rhymes

• Song: Boots by the Laurie Berkner Band
  This is one of the few songs for which I would suggest using the recording. It's a bit tricky to sing it yourself and dance around. The only exception would be if you can play it on guitar or ukulele.
• Song: I Can Sing a Rainbow
  This can be a fun sing-along. Make it interactive by passing out colored flags for the kids to wave as they sing it. I like to play this on the ukulele.
• Song: I Like to See the Raindrops Fall
  This song to the tune of Here We Go 'Round the Mulberry Bush uses simple actions to recreate a storm. Kids of all ages love to sing this one!
• Rhyme: Snowman, Snowman (based on Book Bear, Book Bear)
  Pretend to be snowmen with this simple action rhyme that is also good for quieting wild groups between books.
• Rhyme: The Wind is Full of Tricks Today
  I have never used this rhyme myself, but the librarian from King County who performs it on their Wiki makes me want to try it! (The link above is to her video.)

Games & Activities

• Flannel Board Sorting Game: What do we wear in this weather?
  Sort articles of clothing according to the weather in which they would be appropriate to wear. Kizclub has clipart sets for clothing and weather that make useful templates. Instead of a flannel board, you could also sort the items onto a long clothesline with sections for sunny days, rainy days, snowy days, etc.
• Game: Drip, Drip, Drop
  Play this fun game based on Duck, Duck, Goose, which comes from Mailbox magazine.

Visit these Sites for More Ideas

• Weather from Harris County Public Library
• Weather posts from SLC Book Boy
• Weather - Science Storytime from the Association of Children's Librarians of Northern California
• Weather Storytimes at Never Shushed