Monday, March 31, 2014

Wee Read - We're Going to the Zoo

Early Literacy Tip of the Week:
To keep your baby focused, remove everything that competes with your face and voice. –KT Paxton

Good Morning

Hello, How are You?

Animals Wake Up
Bunnies wake up with a hop, hop, hop.
Horses wake up with a clop, clop, clop.
Cows wake up with a moo, moo, moo.
Roosters wake up with a cock-a-doodle-doo.
Monkeys wake up with a scratch, scratch, scratch.
But I wake up with a yaaaaaaaawn and a stretch.
--Children’s Programming Monthly v. 1 no. 5 pg. 5 by Kathy MacMillan and Christine Kirker

Open Shut Them

Book One
Dotty by Paola Opal

I Went to the Zoo One Day
I went to the zoo one day.
I saw a [lion] across the way.
And what do you think the [lion] did say?
[roar, roar, roar].
Substitute other animals.
--Originally "I Went to the Farm One Day" from Mother Goose on the Loose by Betsy Diamant-Cohen. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2006.

An Elephant Goes Like This and That
An elephant goes like this and that.
(Move on all fours, slowly like an elephant)
He's terribly big.
(Stand up, reach arms high)
And he's terribly fat.
(Stretch arms out to the sides)
He has no fingers,
(Make fists, hiding fingers.)
He has no toes,
(Wiggle toes)
But goodness gracious, what a nose!
(Point to nose)

One Elephant Went Out to Play
One Elephant went out to play
Upon a spider’s web one day
He had such enormous fun
He called another elephant to come.
(HEY, ELEPHANT!)
Two elephants went out to play
Upon a spider’s web one day
They had such enormous fun,
They called another elephant to come…
etc.

I Wiggle My Fingers

Book Two
One Gorilla by Atsuko Morozumi

Jump, Jump, Kangaroo Brown
--Babies in the Library by Jane Marino. Lanham, MD: The Scarecrow Press, 2003.

Row, Row, Row Your Boat
Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,
Life is but a dream!
--Traditional

Read Together
Saffy and Ollie by Paola Opal

The More We Get Together

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Storytime - Winter is Here

Toddler


Books: Under My Hood I Have a Hat by Karla Kuskin and Mouse’s First Snow by Lauren Thompson.

Songs / Rhymes: “Good Morning”, “Hello, How Are You?”, “The Winter Pokey”, “Open, Shut Them”, “Boots, Jacket, Scarf, and Hat”, “Four Little Snowflakes” on the felt board, “I Wiggle My Fingers”, and “The More We Get Together”. 

Craft: Snowy Pictures. Materials: Elmer’s glue, shaving cream, silver glitter, dark blue construction paper, and paintbrushes. Mix equal parts shaving cream and glue into a cup and add glitter. The toddlers painted their blue paper with the snow paint. When the paint dries, they will have a three dimensional picture of a winter wonderland!


Preschool


Books: Snow by Manya Stojic and The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter’s Wonder by Mark Cassino and Jon Nelson (non-fiction title).

Songs / Rhymes: “Welcome to the Library”, “Hello, How Are You?”, “Hi There, So Glad You Came”, “The Winter Pokey”, “Open, Shut Them”, “Boots, Jacket, Scarf, and Hat”, and “The More We Get Together”. 

Craft: See Toddler craft above.

Songs/Rhymes

The Winter Pokey
Sung to: "The Hokey Pokey"
You put your mittens in,
you take your mittens out,
you put your mittens in
and you shake it all about.
You do the winter pokey
and you turn yourself around.
That's what it's all about.
Additional verses:
You put your boots in . . .
You put your hat in . . .
You put your snowsuit in . . .
--PreschoolEducation


Boots, Jacket, Scarf, and Hat
Sung to: “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes”
Boots, jacket, scarf, and hat,
Scarf and hat.
Boots, jacket, scarf, and hat,
Scarf and hat.
In wintertime we dress like that.
Boots, jacket, scarf, and hat,
Scarf and hat.

Four Little Snowflakes
One little snowflake with nothing to do,
Along came another and then there were… two!
Two little snowflakes laughing with me,
Along came another and then there were…three!
Three little snowflakes looking for some more,
Along came another and then there were…four!
Four little snowflakes having so much fun!
Out came the sun, and then there were none!
*note: my set only has four snowflakes. 
Original last line for "Five Little Snowflakes":
Four little snowflakes dancing a jive,
Along came another, and then there were…five!
Five little snowflakes, having so much fun!
Out came the sun, and then there were none!

Monday, March 24, 2014

Wee Read - Down on the Farm

Early Literacy Tip of the Week:
By the time your baby reaches six months, he realizes that some objects have purposes. He now realizes that books have fun pictures and include time spent with his caregiver. –-KT Paxton

Good Morning

Hello, How are You?

To Market, to Market
--Mother Goose on the Loose by Betsy Diamant-Cohen. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2006.

Open Shut Them

Book One
Barnyard Banter by Denise Fleming

I Went to the Farm One Day
-- Mother Goose on the Loose by Betsy Diamant-Cohen. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2006.

Cluck Cluck, Red Hen
Use a chicken puppet and two plastic eggs
Sung to: "Baa Baa, Black Sheep”
Cluck, cluck, red hen, have you any eggs?
Yes, sir, yes, sir, as many as my legs: 1,2

This Little Cow
This little cow eats grass
This little cow eats hay
This little cow drinks water
This little cow runs away
This little cow lies in the grass all day
Let's tickle, tickle, tickle her until she wants to play.

I Wiggle My Fingers

Book Two
Wee Little Lamb by Lauren Thompson

Three Dirty Piggies
Three dirty piggies rolling in the mud.
Squishy, squashy, felt so good!
Then along came the farmer,
who took one for a bath.
Continue to one little piggy

Three Pigs So Squeaky Clean
Five pigs so squeaky clean
Cleanest you’ve ever seen
Wanted to go outside and play
Oink! Oink!
One jumped into the mud
Landed with a great big THUD
Then there were two clean squeaky pigs.

Read Together
Touch and Feel Farm Animals by Julie Aigner-Clark

The More We Get Together

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Storytime - Animals Down Under

Toddler

Special Note: This week’s storytime was performed by Miss Kelly



Books: Pouch! by David Ezra Stein, Who Hops? by Katie Davis, and Can You Cuddle Like a Koala? by John Butler.

Songs / Rhymes: “Shake Your Sillies Out” by Raffi, “The Silly Dance Contest” by Jim Gill, and “Sticks Tap” with popsicle sticks.

Craft: Koala Hats. Materials: koala head cut out, cotton balls, yarn, crayons, glue, and tape. The toddlers glued and taped their cotton balls to their cut outs to make their own koala hats.

Preschool

Special Note: This week’s storytime was performed by Miss Kelly


Books: Sometimes I Like to Curl Up in a Ball by Vicki Churchill, Pouch! by David Ezra Stein, and Who Hops? by Katie Davis.

Songs / Rhymes: “Shake Your Sillies Out” by Raffi, “The Silly Dance Contest” by Jim Gill, and “Sticks Tap” with popsicle sticks.

Craft: Platypus Puppets. Materials: Platypus printout, paper lunch bags, glue, tape, crayons, and scissors. The preschoolers cut out the pieces of the platypus and glued them to the bags to create a puppet.

Monday, March 17, 2014

Wee Read - Pumpkin Time

Early Literacy Tip of the Week:
Hearing a caregiver’s voice can be the most soothing portion of reading for a baby. –KT Paxton

Good Morning

Hello, How are You?

Jack-O'-Lantern, Jack-O'Lantern
--Artsy Toddler Storytimes: A Year's Worth of Ready-To-Go Programming by Carol Garnett Hopkins. Chicago: Neal-Schuman, 2013.

Open Shut Them

Book One
Five Little Pumpkins by Iris Van Rynbach

Mr. Pumpkin
Sung to: “Are You Sleeping”
Mr. Pumpkin, Mr. Pumpkin
Eyes so round, eyes so round
Fall is coming, Fall is coming,
To my town, to my town.

Pumpkin Pumpkin
Pumpkin, Pumpkin
Sitting on the wall
Pumpkin, Pumpkin
Tip and fall
Pumpkin, Pumpkin
Rolling down the street
Pumpkin, Pumpkin
Trick-or-Treat

Pumpkin, Pumpkin!
Sung to: “Ten Little Indians”
Pumpkin, pumpkin, orange pumpkin
Pumpkin, pumpkin, orange pumpkin
Pumpkin, pumpkin, orange pumpkin
Hi Ho!  Halloween is here!

I Wiggle My Fingers

Book Two
It’s Pumpkin Day by Laura Numeroff

Ring Around the Pumpkin
Sung to: “Ring Around the Rosie”
Ring around the pumpkin
Orange, big and round.
Pumpkin seeds, Pumpkin seeds
We all fall down!

Three Little Bats
Sung to: "Five Little Ducks"
Three little bats went on a flight
by the light of the moon one night
Mama bat said squeak squeak squeak swack!
but only 2 little bats came back.

Read Together
Baby Farm Friends by Jeanie Lee

The More We Get Together

Friday, March 14, 2014

Happy Birthday, Flannel Friday!

Flannel Friday is three years old! It feels like just yesterday it was a fledgling project. Sniff, how the days go by so fast!

In honor of this momentous occasion, here are my top five favorite projects since the beginning of Flannel Friday.

1. One Elephant Went Out to Play from Miss Mary Liberry







2. Five Little Owls from Storytime Katie






3. Five Clean and Squeaky Pigs from Mel's Desk






4. Where Does It Go? from Rovingfiddlehead Kidlit









5. Daddy's Ties from Story Time Secrets










Anne at So Tomorrow is hosting this week's special Birthday Roundup. Join us over at our Facebook page, see the Flannel Friday submissions on our Pinterest page, and check out past roundups at our Flannel Friday blog.

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Storytime - Read with Me

Toddler


Books: Baby Penguins Everywhere! by Melissa Guion and Stick! by Andy Pritchett

Songs / Rhymes: “Good Morning”, “Hello, How Are You?”, “Open, Shut Them”, “The Elevator Song”, “Head and Shoulders”, “I Wiggle My Fingers”, “Come Under My Umbrella” with parachute, “If You’re Happy and You Know It” with parachute, “Ring Around the Rosie” with parachute, “Row Boat, Row Boat” with parachute, and “The More We Get Together”.

Craft: There was no craft today. The toddlers played with the parachute instead.

Preschool


Books: Dinosaur Kisses by David Ezra Stein and The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli

Songs / Rhymes: “Welcome to the Library”, “Hello, How Are You?”, “Open, Shut Them”, “The Elevator Song”, “The ABC Stop Song”, “Come Under My Umbrella” with parachute, “If You’re Happy and You Know It” with parachute, “Row Boat, Row Boat” with parachute, and “The More We Get Together”.

Craft: There was no craft today. The preschoolers played with the parachute instead.

Songs/Rhymes

The Elevator Song
Sung to: "Do Your Ears Hang Low?"
Oh the city is great and the city is grand
There's a whole lot of people
on a little piece of land
And we live way up on the 57th floor
and this is what we do when we go out the door.
We take the elevator up and the elevator down,
take the elevator up, take the elevator down
Take the elevator up and the elevator down
and we turn around.
*This is my new favorite song!

Head and Shoulders
Head and shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes
Head and shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes
Eyes and ears and mouth and nose
Head and shoulders, knees and toes
Knees and toes!
--Traditional

Come Under My Umbrella
with parachute
Come under my umbrella,
Umbrella, umbrella.
Gently wave the parachute up and down.
Come under my umbrella,
It’s starting to storm.
Move parachute faster.
There’s thunder and lightning
And wind and rain.
Come under my umbrella,
It’s starting to storm.

If You're Happy and You Know It
with parachute
If you're happy and you know it,
Shake it slow.
If you're happy and you know it,
Shake it slow.
If you're happy and you know it,
And you really want to show it,
If you're happy and you know it,
Shake it slow.
*raise it high, shake it fast.
--Kendra at Read, Sing, Play

Ring Around the Rosie
Ring around the rosie
A pocket full of posie
Ashes, ashes, we all fall down!
--Traditional

Row Boat, Row Boat
Row boat, row boat go so slow (wave the chute slowly).
Row boat, row boat go so fast (shake the chute fast).
Row boat, row boat the waves are getting worse (shake fast again).
Row boat, row boat put it in reverse (stop the chute by pulling towards you).
--Kendra at Read, Sing, Play

The ABC Stop Song
A B C D E F G
STOP! (holding palms facing out in front of you)
H I J K L M N O P
STOP! (holding palms facing out in front of you)
Q R S T U V
STOP! (holding palms facing out in front of you)
W X Y and Z
STOP! (holding palms facing out in front of you)
Now I know my ABCs, next time won’t you sing with me?
STOP! (Extra loud, flail your arms like a maniac)

Monday, March 10, 2014

Wee Read - On Our Way

Early Literacy Tip of the Week:
Talk with children, not at them - talk is much more effective when it's interactive

Good Morning

Hello, How are You?

Did You Ever See an Airplane?
Sung to: "Did You Ever See a Lassie?"
Did you ever see an airplane,
An airplane, and airplane?
Did you ever see an airplane
Way up in the sky?
There are big ones and small ones
And short ones and tall ones.
Did you ever see an airplane
Way up in the sky?

Open Shut Them

Book One

Red Says Stop
--from Babies in the Library by Jane Marino. Lanham, MD: The Scarecrow Press, 2003.

The Little Train
--Mother Goose on the Loose by Betsy Diamant-Cohen. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2006.

Going for a Ride in My Train
Sung to: Ten Little Indians
Going for a ride in my little ______ train
Going for a ride in my little ______ train
Going for a ride in my little ______ train
Chugga, chugga, chugga, chugga
Choo, choo!
Insert color of train

Dump Truck Song
Sung to: “One little, Two Little, Three Little Indians”
Bumpity - bumpity comes the dump truck
Bumpity - bumpity comes the dump truck
Bumpity - bumpity comes the dump truck
Duuuuuuuuuuump out the load!

The Elevator Song
Sung to: "Do Your Ears Hang Low?"
Oh the city is great and the city is grand
There's a whole lot of people
on a little piece of land
And we live way up on the 57th floor
and this is what we do when we go out the door.
We take the elevator up and the elevator down,
take the elevator up, take the elevator down
Take the elevator up and the elevator down
and we turn around.

Read Together
Colors illustrated by Sally Chambers

The More We Get Together

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Storytime - Eeek! A Mouse!

Toddler


Books: Mouse’s First Fall by Lauren Thompson and Lunch by Denise Fleming

Songs / Rhymes: “Good Morning”, “Hello, How Are You?”, “Tall as a Tree”, “Open, Shut Them”, “The Leaves Are Falling Down” with pretend leaves, “Hickory Dickory Dock” on the felt board, “I Wiggle My Fingers”, and “The More We Get Together”.

Special Activity: After reading Mouse’s First Fall, I described how much fun fall can be, especially when there are leaves falling down! I sang “The Leaves Are Falling Down” while throwing the pretend leaves in the air. When I was finished, I asked the toddlers to “rake” them back up and put them in a pile (back in the bag).

Craft: There was no craft today. The toddlers took home an M is for Mouse coloring sheet.

Preschool


Books: Mice by Rose Fyleman and Mouse’s First Fall by Lauren Thompson

Songs / Rhymes: “Welcome to the Library”, “Hello, How Are You?”, “Tall as a Tree”, “Open, Shut Them”, “Five Little Mice”, “A Tooty Tah”, “I Wiggle My Fingers”, “The Leaves Are Falling Down” with pretend leaves, and “The More We Get Together”.

Special Activity: After reading Mouse’s First Fall, Miss Mollie described how much fun fall can be, especially when there are leaves falling down! She sang “The Leaves Are Falling Down” while throwing the pretend leaves in the air. When she was done, Miss Mollie asked the preschoolers to “rake” them back up and put them in a pile (back in the bag).

Craft: There was no craft today. The preschoolers took home an M is for Mouse coloring sheet.

Songs/Rhymes

The Leaves are Falling Down
Sung to: "The Farmer in the Dell"
The leaves are falling down
The leaves are falling down
Red, yellow, green, and brown
The leaves are falling down

Hickory Dickory Dock (felt board)
Hickory, dickory, dock
(clasp hands together and swing gently back and forth)
The mouse ran up the clock.
(run fingers up so hands end up above head)
The clock struck one,
          (clap hands once)
The mouse ran down,
          (bring arms back down in front)
Hickory, dickory, dock.
--Traditional


Five Little Mice (magnet board)
Five little mice came out to play
Gathering crumbs along the way
Out came the big cat brown and fat
Four little mice go scampering back.
Continue until one
...
One little mouse came out to play
Gathering crumbs along the way
Out came the big cat brown and fat
No little mice go scampering back
*Clip art used: cat and mouse.

Tooty Ta
We do thumbs up, elbows back, feet apart, knees together, bottom up, head back, tongue out.