Baby Parachute Play 2/28/19

Image by Dung_Dang on Pixabay

So, I thought I would share my lineup with you all so that you could duplicate if you’d like. If you are unfamiliar with any of the rhymes, drop me a comment and I’m happy to share.

Today was the first Lapsit Lambs (ages 0-6mos) storytime of our new session.  Each session, I change up the rhymes and activities that we do, throwing in different music, new activities, etc.  I keep about 2/3 – 1/2 of what I did from the last session to provide continuity, but still not make it the same old, same old.  This session I got REALLY crazy and changed up the whole lineup so that I could throw in an activity completely new to my Lapsit crew—a parachute.

Greeting Song (hello, hello, hello and how are you? I’m fine, I’m fine, I hope that you are too.)

Acka Backa Soda Cracker

These Are Baby’s Fingers

Cheek Chin

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Pat-A-Cake

Animal Moves

Popcorn

The Animals on the Farm (done with stuffed animals)

Pancake

What Shall We Do with a Lazy Katie?

Pizza, Pickle, Pumpernickel

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

A Smooth Road

We Bounce and Bounce and Bounce and Stop

Slowly, Slowly

Jo and Jim and Uncle John

I Bounce You Here

A Hippo Got on the Bus

Twinkle, Twinkle

(Read a book together)

Parachute play! (All the rest of the rhymes are done with the parachute)

Peek-a-boo

London Bridge is Falling Down

If You’re Happy and You Know It Shake the ‘Chute

Grand Old Duke of York

(Bubble Time)

Closing Song (This is a half hour of activities)

In previous sessions, we broke up the sitting activities with some standing activities and dancing to music.  If I was going to include the parachute, I knew that I needed to not have it on the floor at the same time that we were moving around, because we have an uncarpeted floor, and no carpet + parachute=slick as snot.  But every baby storytime I saw that used a parachute had it out on the floor to start with.  Babies could crawl on it, talk about the colors, etc.  It became familiar to them and therefore not something likely to scare them when it started billowing around their heads. 

As each person came in, I cautioned them not to walk on the parachute because it was slick.  Before starting, during my usual explanation time, I explained what we were going to do and how it was all going to work.  I asked parents to either lay their babies on the floor, face up in front of them during parachute time, or keep baby in their laps—whatever worked for them.  I emphasized that we wanted this to be fun, not stressful for baby.  Things went remarkably smoothly, and no one seemed bothered that we didn’t have the regular music and dancing.  I had told myself when constructing this session that if there were any problems at all with the parachute that I would change it up immediately.  We didn’t have a single problem, and most of the babies seemed to actively enjoy it, with frantic kicking and excited burbles.  (Other babies were really young and didn’t seem to care one way or another.)

I used a trick that I saw online to gather the parachute before bubble time.  I had everyone raise the parachute really high and let it go.  I then snatched it right over to me.  The grownups laughed in surprise, but it worked like a charm, with nobody fussing and the parachute gathered with one quick move.  I have a small parachute, though, so I don’t know if that would work with a large one.

How to Make Professional Quality Flannels – Fast and Cheap

So… ya’ll, I’ve had a flannel breakthrough of momentous proportions.  If you already knew this, don’t tell me, because I want to revel in my genius for a while.  First, let me tell you how it happened.

I inherited some manufactured nursery rhyme flannels from a friend that were perfect for Mother Goose storytime.  But with as many as I use, I was running through them pretty quickly, and wanted some more variety.  There are hundreds of nursery rhymes out there, but we only teach a small fraction of them.  How could I get my hands on more?

First, I searched the ‘webs.  The old standards are there in abundance, but not lesser-known ones, and many of the prices made me wince.  I wondered how I could make some myself.  I hit on an idea, but couldn’t find anyone else who was using this technique (at least not in the library blog world).  Would it work?  I had the supplies, so I experimented.  It totally worked!  Now, I’m gonna share my genius idea with you.

How to Make Professional Quality Flannels – Fast and Cheap

1.  Find the rhyme or story you want to use.  I’m going to do The Wise Old Owl.

A wise old owl lived in an oak.

The more he saw the less he spoke.

The less he spoke the more he heard.

Why can’t we all be like that wise old bird?

• Find pictures (or clipart) that illustrates your rhyme.  Be mindful of copyright, please!  I found a picture I liked on pixabay.com.

• Remove the background, if necessary, at https://www.remove.bg/upload.  Download the resulting image.

• Put the image into an app designed for images, like Microsoft Publisher. Adjust the size to what you want.  Then, mirror the image (flip horizontally.)  If you’re doing more than one image for your rhyme/story, get as many images as you can on one page. Direction doesn’t matter.

• Now, you need 4 things – a color printer, high quality white felt, iron-on transfer paper for light colored fabrics (I like NuFun), and an iron.  Make sure that you choose a transfer paper that’s appropriate for your printer.  I use an inkjet.
• Print your reversed image(s) onto the transfer paper, following the directions for your particular brand of transfer paper.  Remember to get as many images on one page as possible, as it’s difficult to send cut-up pieces of transfer paper through the printer, and you don’t want to waste any.
• Cut the image out, leaving only a small border around the edge.  No need to be precious or exact about it.

• Now, iron the transfer onto your white felt, following your transfer paper instructions.  Remember, the densest, highest quality felt you can get is your best bet.  If you buy the cheap, flimsy stuff, then it will compress down to nothing when you iron it, and you won’t get as good of an image.  Scraps of felt are perfectly acceptable to use, as long as your whole image will fit onto it.

• Once it cools, trim the excess felt away.  Now you have a lovely new flannel!

A Word About Cost

So, just how inexpensive is this?  At the time of this writing, the transfer paper I linked to is $21 for 50 sheets, or $0.42 a sheet.  High quality felt squares at my craft store are $0.99 a square.  If I used one transfer sheet and one felt square for each flannel story, that would be $1.41 per flannel.  But, depending on how many pieces I want, and how large they are, I can reasonably get 4 or 5 images out of one set, or $0.35 to $0.28 per image.  So, my one owl flannel cost me about $0.28.  If I was doing a Dear Zoo flannel, it would be a lot more expensive – like $3!

Don’t forget to factor in the cost of your time. Now, depending on how long I have to look for images, this whole process can take me 10 minutes to an hour (or two).  I can easily spend days doing a flannel the old-fashioned way, depending on how elaborate it is, especially factoring in drying times.  Do I still use the old-fashioned way?  You bet!  But I rely on it for simple images that I can make quickly, or for when I just can’t find images that I like for iron-on.

Questions Answered

Q; Do the flannels using this technique lose their ability to adhere to the flannelboard?

A: Maybe slightly, since the fibers are not quite as fluffy, but they still seem to adhere just fine.  If this is a concern, you could brush over the back with a toothbrush to fluff up the fibers.  I’ve never had trouble with them falling off.

Q: What if I want to do a light-colored flannel, like the moon?

A:  Use a transfer for a dark colored fabric, and use black felt.  The technique would not need the mirroring process.

Q: Can I use pictures from a book?

A: Don’t forget copyright. However, all works published in the United States before 1924 are in the public domain.  If you have a book of nursery rhymes, for instance, that is no longer under copyright, then you could scan the picture, use Window key + Shift + S to snip the picture, remove the background (if desired) and continue the process.

Q: Isn’t it faster still to just print pictures, laminate them, and stick some Velcro on the back?

A: Yep.  But I have problems with those.  First, they’re shiny, and can glare and reflect light in ways that make it hard for children to see the pictures.  The Velcro can come off easily, because it doesn’t like to stick to the laminate, or it can really pull at the flannel board, making it difficult to get off quickly and cleanly during use.  Don’t laminate, and they tear and bend easily.  Velcro tears off.  They can stick together and discolor.  I don’t like ‘em, but you do you.

Squirrels Toddler Storytime 10/4/22

This morning’s Toddler storytime was about squirrels.  The book I chose was Busy Little Squirrel by Nancy Tafuri.

We started by Shaking Our Sillies out, then welcomed children with a clapping game.

Let’s All Clap (tune: Buffalo Gals)

Let’s all clap ‘cause _________ is here

___________ is here

___________ is here

Let’s all clap ‘cause _________ is here

___________ is here today!

Then we did a nice stretch to get us focused

Stretching

First you stretch high

Then you stretch low

Then you stretch wide

Then you stretch narrow!

Stretch to the left

Stretch to the right

Now stretch really fast with all your might!

Now stretch really slow

Give me a smile

Now we’re ready to GO!

I handed out brown pompoms to the children, explaining that they were nuts that we were going to feed to my squirrel friend, Trouble, as soon as we woke him up, because he would be hungry for breakfast.  We yelled “Wake up, Trouble” a few times, then Trouble came out of his log and very gently took the pompoms from the children, hiding them in his log.  While he was still out and busy, we sang

Frisky Squirrel

Tune “The Grand Old Duke of York”

Oh, the frisky little squirrel

He gathers nuts and seeds.

He hides them for the winter months

So he’ll have all he needs.

Refrain:

Oh, up-up-up he goes

And down-down-down he comes.

He runs around – goes up and down.

His work is never done.

(repeat refrain)

Then Trouble went off to eat breakfast and we read Busy Little Squirrel.  The children helped me with the refrain “He was SO busy!” so the book was nice and interactive.

We all stood up and shook our bushy tails, going through a few colors of squirrels.

Red Squirrel, Red Squirrel
Red squirrel, red squirrel shake your bushy tail
Red squirrel, red squirrel shake your bushy tail
Wrinkle up your nose
Hold a nut between your toes
Red squirrel, red squirrel shake your bushy tail!
Red squirrel, red squirrel shake your bushy tail!

Then we did the flannel song Five Little Squirrels

 (to the tune of “Five Little Ducks”)

1 little squirrel went out to play

Up in the branches one autumn day.

He had such enormous fun,

He called for another little squirrel to come.

2 little squirrels…

3 little squirrels…

4 little squirrels…

5 little squirrels went out to play

Up in the branches one chilly day.

They had such enormous fun,

Then all scurried home ‘cause winter had come.

Credit: https://storytimestuff.wordpress.com/2013/03/15/squirrely-squirrels-storytime/

We finished up with the ever popular Firetruck Song and bubbles.

Pirate Storytime 9/21/22

Storytimes have officially started in the building for us.  It’s weird having walls again.  And a rug.  And electronics.  But in a good way!

I’m now doing a Toddler Storytime as well as a Mother Goose storytime.  I don’t know how often I’ll be able to post with all my current responsibilities, but I’ll do what I can.  This storytime was a pirate theme, and the book I chose was Sheep on a Ship by Nancy Shaw.

We started with Shake Our Sillies Out on ukulele. Then I pulled out a pirate ship with some stuffed pirate friends, and we talked about them and counted them.  Next we got to moving with The Ocean Song:

The Ocean Song (Tune: the Elevator Song)

Oh the ocean is great and the ocean is grand.

There are lots of tall ships and very little land.

And we sleep down deep in a hammock near the floor

And this is what we do when we go out the door:

We ride the waves going up, we ride the waves going down

We ride the waves going up, we ride the waves going down

We ride the waves going up, we ride the waves going down

And we turn around.

Credit: Jbrary

We moved on to a flannel, Five Pirates on a Treasure Chest:

Five pirates on a treasure chest, one jumped off and four are left.

Four pirates on a treasure chest, one slid off and three are left.

Three pirates on a treasure chest, one tumbled down and two are left.

Two pirates on a treasure chest, one blew away and one is left.

One pirate on a treasure chest, he climbed down and now there are none.

No pirates on a treasure chest! Yo ho ho and now it’s all MINE!

Credit: Storytime Katie

Another song was in order for my bouncy toddlers, so we sang If You’re a Pirate and You Know It:

If You’re a Pirate and You Know It

If you’re a pirate and you know it, swab the deck (swish, swish)

If you’re a pirate and you know it, swab the deck (swish, swish)

If you’re a pirate and you know it, then you’ll hear the sea winds blowin’

If you’re a pirate and you know it, swab the deck (swish, swish)

Walk the plank (stomp and fall down)

Say “Aye, Aye!” (and salute)

Then it was time for our book, Sheep on a Ship.  It can be a bit of a tongue twister for me, but the children were glued to it.

To get us moving after our book, we did The Pirate Sailor Song, which was accompanied by my ukulele.

The Pirate Sailor Song

(March in place)

Am

What shall we do with a pirate sailor,

G

What shall we do with a pirate sailor,

Am

What shall we do with a pirate sailor,

G                    Am

Early in the morning?

(Jump up in the air)

Hoo-ray and up she rises,

Hoo-ray and up she rises,

Hoo-ray and up she rises,

Early in the morning!

Credit: Storytime Ukulele

We practiced our colors next, which is still a big deal for toddlers, with Pirate Wore an Eyepatch.

Pirate wore a red patch, red patch, red patch,

Pirate wore a red patch all day long! (continue changing eyepatch colors)

Credit: Storytime Katie

I put all the patches on the flannel board and asked which color patch the pirate should wear next, and to please use your words!  It’s really tempting for little ones to run up to the board and grab their color, because that’s faster and easier than using their words.  But the words are where the learning occurs!

Our last song/fingerplay before closing was A Pirate Went to Sea, Sea, Sea:

A pirate went to sea, sea, sea. (salute at each “sea”)
to see what he could see, see, see. (point to eyes at each “see”)
But all that he could see, see, see (point to eyes at each “see”)
was the bottom of the deep blue sea, sea, sea. (salute at each “sea”) 

Adapted from: https://mytpl.org/project/story-time-at-home-pirates/

Then it was bubbles and our closing song.

Outdoor storytime – Eggs 4/26/22

Today’s outdoor storytime was a nod to the season – eggs!  I used the books Chick Chat by Janie Bynum, and An Egg is Quiet by Dianna Hutts Aston.

After our welcoming song, I opened my magic bag, which had a big E and a little e in it, as well as a chick hatching out of an egg fingerpuppet.  We talked about the sounds that E makes, and about eggs and chicks and birds.  Then we stood up and stretched tall, then saw how small we could make ourselves.  We sang I Wish I Were a Teeny Tiny Egg, and made ourselves very small.

Tune: “If You’re Happy and You Know It”

Oh, I wish I were a teeny tiny egg.

Oh, I wish I were a teeny tiny egg.

I would roll and roll around,

Rolling all around the ground.

Oh, I wish I were a teeny tiny egg.

Credit: Liz Ryerson http://www.preschoolexpress.com/music-station11/egg-songs-april.shtml

Then we read Chick Chat and the kids helped me “peep” with the chick in the book.  People were delighted when the turtle hatched out of the egg!  We then did the fingerplay Five Eggs and a Hen:

Five eggs and five eggs, (hold up two hands)

That makes ten

Sitting on top is the mother hen.  (fold one hand over the other)

Crackle, crackle, crackle, (clap three times)

What do I see?

Ten fluffy chickens, (hold up 10 fingers)

As yellow as can be. 

Credit: SRP 2021

Then I did the flannel Lonely Bird:

There once was a lonely bird sitting in a tree, chirping “Who will, who will, play with me?”

He flew to a nest where a little egg lay, chirping “who will, who will, play with me?”

The egg didn’t answer so he gave it a whack.  Then the little egg began to crack!

The lonely bird’s eyes got big and round as he wondered what kind of friend he’d found.

“Who will, who will, who will it be?  Will it be someone to play with me?”

The egg broke open right in the middle.  A little bird popped out and started to giggle.

Now the two are friends and will never have to say “Who will, who will play with me?”

Then I passed out shakers, and we sang Colored Eggs:

Tune: “Jingle Bells”

Colored eggs, colored eggs,

See them all around.

Red eggs, blue eggs, yellow eggs,

See them on the ground.

Colored eggs, colored eggs,

Green and purple, too.

Let’s go hunt for colored eggs,

Eggs for me and you.

Credit: Elizabeth Scofield http://www.preschoolexpress.com/music-station11/egg-songs-april.shtml

I had the kids hold up the different colored shaker eggs when I called out their color, and they enjoyed showing me their eggs.  After the song, I had the kids hold the eggs in the palm of their hand, then cover it with their other hand and hold it tightly to their bellies so that we could do the next part without noise.  I had paper clipped parts of An Egg is Quiet so that I could just show the different pages that talk about the color and decoration of different eggs.  I gave the parent tip that the more we talk about the world with our kids, the better their background knowledge is, so the better they can understand what they read.  Then I talked to the kids about the different colors of eggs that they see in the store and at home.

To end, I put on Laurie Berkner’s I Know a Chicken, which I adore, and pulled out my chicken puppet.  The chicken and I danced and shook our shaker eggs with the kids.  Bubbles finished us off.  It was a beautiful day at the park!

Outdoor Bunny Storytime 4-12-22

Today’s storytime in the park was all about the bunnies.  The book I chose was A Boy and His Bunny by Sean Bryan.

I started with my usual song and introduction, then pulled out my magic bag.  Inside, my friend Lucy Rabbit was hiding.  We very gently coaxed her out of hiding, then played the song Lucy Rabbit by Eric Litwin from the album Yummy Yellow.  We enjoyed hip-hopping to this hip hop song.

Then, I took Lucy off my hand behind my flannelboard and stuck her on a headband.  Before storytime, I had prepared a small cup taped to the top of a headband.  The cup slipped right inside the puppet and held her in place while I put her on my head (there is a method to this madness – wait for it!).  Everyone got a big laugh when I popped my head out from behind the flannelboard.  After playing that for comic effect a bit, I brought out the book A Boy and His Bunny.  The boy wakes up with a bunny on his head and the rest of the book is about all the things you can do with a bunny on your head!  Obviously, you can read a book with a bunny on your head (which is one of the pages.)

Then, we did the Carole Peterson musical fingerplay Here is a Bunny from the album Season Sings.  After that, I pulled out my uke again and played Did You Ever See a Bunny?

(to the tune of “Did you Ever See a Lassie?” )

Did you ever see a bunny,
A bunny, a bunny,
Did you ever see a bunny,
Hop this way and that?
Hop this way and that way?
Hop this way and that way?
Did you ever see a bunny,
Hop this way and that?

Did you ever see a bunny,
A bunny, a bunny,
Did you ever see a bunny,
That hopped quite this slow?
Hop this way and that way?
Hop this way and that way?
Did you ever see a bunny,
That hopped quite this slow?

Did you ever see a bunny,
A bunny, a bunny,
Did you ever see a bunny,
That hopped quite this fast?
Hop this way and that way?
Hop this way and that way?
Did you ever see a bunny
That hopped quite this fast?

And that is when I realized that I still had a bunny on my head.  Yep.  I’d gotten so distracted doing all of my fingerplays and things that I didn’t take the bunny off of my head!  Obviously, as long as the bunny stays put, we are capable of doing a bunch of stuff with a bunny on the old noggin.  The bunny came off and we did the flannel Five Little Bunnies.

One little bunny,
Wondering what to do,
another bunny came along,
Then there were two.

Two little bunnies,
Hopping like me, (Hop)
Another bunny came along,
Then there were three.

Three little bunnies,
Jumping around outdoors,
Another bunny joined them,
Then there were four.

Four little bunnies,
So fluffy and alive,
Another bunny joined them,
Then there were five.

Five little bunnies,
Ready for some fun,
Hopped away in the
Warm, spring sun.

Then, to get the wiggles out, I handed out shakers and we shook and danced to Shake with You by Eric Litwin from Bouncy Blue.  As usual, we finished up with bubbles.

Outdoor Storytime – Kites 3/29/22

We had a windy day for our kite storytime.  The book I chose was Kite Day by Will Hillenbrand. 

After introducing myself and warming up the crowd (It was about 36 degrees, so this was critical), we sang If You Want to Hear a Story.   Inside my magic bag was a pinwheel, and we talked about how the wind was moving it, and what other things the wind moves – like kites!  Then we sang My Kite and used our hands to be our kites.

Sung to: “The Farmer in the Dell”

My kite is up so high,

My kite is up so high,

Oh my – – just watch it fly

My kite is up so high.

My kite is falling down,

My kite is falling down,

Oh no – – it’s down so low

My kite is falling down.

The wind has caught my kite,

The wind has caught my kite,

What fun – – I’m on the run

The wind has caught my kite.

My kite is up so high,

My kite is up so high,

Oh my – – just watch it fly

My kite is up so high.

Credit: http://www.preschooleducation.com/skite.shtml

For a parent tip, I reminded them that anytime kids play using one thing to represent another (hand=kite), it helps them understand how one thing symbolizes another (words=objects, letters=sounds, etc.)

Next, I did the flannel Five Little Kites

5 little kites in a windy sky

Drifting low, soaring high

The first little kite fluttered to the ground

but there’s still 4 kites flying around

4 little kites in a windy sky

Drifting low, soaring high

The second little kite fluttered to the ground

but there’s still 3 kites flying around.

3 little kites in a windy sky

Drifting low, soaring high

The third little kite fluttered to the ground

but there’s till 2 kites flying around.

2 little kites in a windy sky

Drifting low, soaring high

The fourth little kite fluttered to the ground

but there’s still 1 kite flying around.

Now there’s 1 little kite in a windy sky

drifting low, soaring high

The child wound the string around and around and around

and around and around and around

And the last little kite came safely down

Credit: http://www.literaryhoots.com/2014/07/storytime-kites.html

Then we played with the song Blow, Blow, Blow the Wind.  While I sang, the kids pretended to be kites, and their grownups pretended to be the wind, blowing them around.

by Diane Thom– Sung to Row, Row, Row Your Boat

[C]  Blow, blow, blow the wind

[C]  Gently through the trees.

[C]  Blow and blow and blow and blow.

[G7]  How I like a [C] breeze!

Blow, blow, blow the kites,

Blow them through the sky.

Blow and blow and blow and blow

Watch the kites float by!

Modified from: http://www.preschool-plan-it.com/kite-activities.html#science

Then I read Kite Day and we did the flannel Color Kites. 

I had passed out different color kites to the children.  As I said the rhyme, the children brought up the correct color of kite to the board.

On a breezy spring day/Way up in the sky, / See the many red (orange, yellow, green, blue, purple) kites / Flying high!

Because of the setup I have for outdoor storytime, my board attaches perpendicularly to the handle of the crate I use for carting my supplies.  Unfortunately, although the flannel is wonderfully interactive, which is good, it was hard for the flannels to stay attached to the 90 degree board.  More fell off than stayed on.  And, the wind was bouncing the board a bit, which didn’t help with stick-to-it-tiveness.  And, it took longer than I expected, which was also not a bonus.

We finished by dancing with scarves to Let’s Go Fly a Kite, a song I absolutely adore.  My plan was to finish with some parachute games, but we were all just freezing, and because of the length of the flannel, we were in great need of hot chocolate and snuggly blankets.  I was actually surprised that anyone showed up with such a low temperature, but glad that people saw the value in storytime.

Outdoor Train Storytime

Today.  Finally.  I’m blissfully happy because it’s a beautiful spring day, and I FINALLY GOT TO DO A STORYTIME WITH CHILDREN.  In person.  It was my first outdoor storytime, it was a beautiful day, and there were children in the park having storytime after two freaking long years of pandemic craziness. 

Life is good.

Since I did my last storytime, I have switched libraries, and my new library has a train track running outside of the library.  Because toddlers are magnetically drawn to trains, and there is no rail between the tracks and their fast little bodies, we moved our storytime to a local park which is not track-adjacent.    But, ours is a train town, and I couldn’t think of a better theme for a first storytime than trains.  And because our group was to run young, I only did one book: And the Train Goes by William Bee.

I started with a welcome song, then pulled out my ukulele and did If You Want to Hear a Story to the tune of If You’re Happy and You Know It.  One of my co-workers (who came on her day off because she wanted to!!) took photos.

• C                                                                    G7
• If you want to hear a story, clap your hands.           (clap, clap)
•                                                                       C
• If you want to hear a story, clap your hands.           (clap, clap)
•               F                                        C
• If you want to hear a story, a library story,
•                G7                                                  C
• If you want to hear a story, clap your hands.           (clap, clap)

Repeat with other actions; stomp feet, nod head, sit down, say “Shhhh,” etc.Then I pulled out my magic bag which was full of train paraphernalia: a neckerchief, a conductor’s hat, a capital T and a lowercase t, a train whistle, and a small toy train. 

Then, I read And the Train Goes with lots of interaction.  The children helped me make all the noises, and we counted characters, and talked about others. 

Once that was done, we popped up and did a big stretch:

First you stretch high, then you stretch low

Then you stretch wide, then you stretch narrow!

Stretch to the left, stretch to the right

Then stretch really fast with all your might!

Then stretch really slow.  Give me a smile, and we’re ready to go!

While everyone was standing, I handed out shakers and played This Train Is Bound for Glory from Rockin’ Redby Eric Litwin and Michael Levine.  We shook our shakers and made a train that traveled all around the picnic shelter.

Everyone turned their shakers in and sat down for a flannel story.  I had rigged up a flannelboard that strapped onto the handle of my wheeled cart.  That worked pretty well, but did wave a bit in the breeze.  I had used my Cricut to make the flannel pieces, and I’m inordinately proud of that.

“Clickety Clack.” Melissa Depper

Clickety-clack, clickety-clack,
Here comes the train on the railroad track!
Clickety-clunn, clickety-clunn,
Here comes ENGINE number one.
Clickety-clew, clickety-clew,
Here comes COAL CAR number two.
Clickety-clee, clickety-clee,
Here comes BOX CAR number three.
Clickety-clore, clickety-clore,
Here comes TANK CAR number four.
Clickety-clive, clickety-clive,
Here comes COACH CAR number five.
Clickety-clicks, clickety-clicks,
Here’s the CABOOSE, that’s number six.
Clickety-clack, clickety-clack,
There goes the train on the railroad track!
Choo-choooooooo! Goodbye!

Then I placed a blue felt cat on the board and a red hat.  We talked about what they were, and then I played I Love It, also from Rockin’ Red.  In the song, you’re as “cool as a blue cat, a blue cat in a red hat.”  That gave me something to point to as we jumped, shook, and twisted ourselves silly.

I finished up with a bubbles song and blew bubbles for all I was worth, even though the wind sailed them away quickly.

Have I mentioned how happy I am that storytimes are here again???

Sloth Storytime

Because I’m busier than a cat in a room full of rocking chairs, I’m going to do a few quick-and-dirty posts of the virtual storytimes I’ve done. This one is all about the sloths!

Books I chose: Super Sloth by Robert Starling and Slowly, Slowly Said the Sloth by Eric Carle.

Outline:

If You Want to Hear a Story Clap Your Hands

Sloth info while showing my sloth puppet, then singing Sammy the Sloth.

Book: Super Sloth

Song/Flannel: S-L-O-T-H (Tune: Bingo)

The rainforest has many friends

My favorite is the sloth.

S-L-O-T-H

S-L-O-T-H

S-L-O-T-H

I really love the sloth!

(Count down just as in BINGO, clapping for each letter as it’s replaced)

Credit: Cockburn Libraries

Fingerplay: Sloth is Hanging

(Hold one forearm horizontally in front of chest for the vine, cupping the other hand into a C shape for the sloth, positioning fingertips on arm as though sloth is hanging from the vine.)

Sloth is hanging from a vine

Gently swinging all the time (sway sloth back and forth)

Slowly climbing up the tree (Open and close fingers and thumb, slowly climbing up to shoulder)

Fast asleep, my sloth and me. (Palms together below head as if sleeping)

Credit: Awnali Mills

Flannel: 5 Lazy Sloths

Five lazy sloths in a tree by the door

One fell asleep and then there were four

Four lazy sloths climbing on a tree

One fell down and then there were three

Three lazy sloths wondering what to do

One got lost and then there were two

Two lazy sloths not having any fun

One lazed away and then there was one

One lazy sloth couldn’t wait ‘til day was done

He went to bed and now there are none.

Credit: Modified from Hey There Library

Book: Slowly, Slowly Said the Sloth

Finished with bubbles.

Book Review – Shark Summer by Ira Marcks

Gayle Briar starts her summer in Martha’s Vineyard with a collision on the baseball field that breaks her arm and lands her in disgrace.  Soon, however, she meets Elijah Jones, an aspiring filmmaker who is tagging along after his reporter father.  The two decide to collaborate on a film so that they can win a contest being sponsored by the film company that has taken over the island for the summer.  Gayle wants to win the prize to help pay for her medical bills, and Elijah wants to win the prize to prove to his father that he’s got what it takes to be a real filmmaker.  But they have no idea what to do until they meet up with Maddie.  Maddie has a story to tell that they think could win them the prize.  But they aren’t prepared for the trouble their story could stir up among the islanders.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel, even more than I expected to.  I liked the parallel storylines of the movie company and the movie the kids were making and how the two intersected, as well as the way Marcks showed how movie making works.  But the story is really about friendship and revenge, and what kind of people we ultimately want to be – a worthy topic.  Recommended for grades 3-5.