Story Time Sampler

Here's an example of the story times our children's librarians offer.

A Very Squirrelly Storytime

I recently did a storytime about squirrels, since it’s the time of year when we see them everywhere. Here are some fun books about squirrels:

Acorns Everywhere! By Kevin Sherry

The Busy Little Squirrel by Nancy Tafuri

Frisky Brisky Hippity Hop by Susan Lurie

Nuts to You! By Lois Ehlert

Ol’ Mama Squirrel by David Ezra Stein

Scaredy Squirrel series by Mélanie Watt

We also made a squirrel from my favorite craft supply, a toilet paper roll. I followed these instructions:

http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/msquirrel.htm

If your kids are feeling an action song from

blog. This might come in handy on rainy days, when you can’t go outside to get the wiggles out!

This Brown Squirrel

(Tune: This Old Man)

This brown squirrel, he climbs trees.

He climbs trees with lots of leaves.

With a thump, jump, never bump,

Give the squirrel a nut,

This brown squirrel amazes us!

This brown squirrel, he hides nuts,

He hides nuts from here to there,

With a scratch, scratch, bury that,

Give the squirrel a nut,

This brown squirrel amazes us!

This brown squirrel, he builds nests,

He builds nests up high in trees.

With a crunch, scrunch, gather leaves,

Give the squirrel a nut,

This brown squirrel amazes us!

The craft and the action song both give children opportunities for pretend play. When children pretend to be squirrels, they are learning how to tell stories. They often use the books they have read as the basis for their pretend play. Acting out stories you have read, or making up new ones, helps children develop the language skills they need to become good readers.

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Recent Blog Posts

Imagination at Story Time

posted 3 months 1 week ago

It’s frequently said that play is the work of the child. Some attribute the quote to Maria Montessori, others to Fred Rogers. No matter who said it first, most educators believe that play is the best way for children to develop language, motor, and social skills. That’s why I did a story time all about imaginative play, with two wonderful picture books by Antoinette Portis.

First we read Not a Box, in which a very creative bunny uses a cardboard box to represent a variety of settings. The story’s delightfully simple structure has an unseen adult asking bunny what she is doing with the box. Bunny always replies that it is not a box; the pictures illustrate how the box can be anything with a little imagination.

The story’s structure invites the children to participate. When the bunny tells the adult that the box is not a box, I asked my audience, “Well, what is it?” They eagerly shouted out their answers. After reading, we looked at the pictures again, and discussed all the things a box can be. Since a box can be a boat, we sang “Row, Row, Row Your Boat.”

Any time I sing “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” I explain that the sticks you use to row are called oars. This provides an excellent transition to Portis’ follow-up book, Not a Stick. This time a piglet must explain to an adult that this is not a stick: it’s a fishing pole, a sword, a band leader’s baton, and so much more.

At the end of story time, we simply acted out the scenarios we saw in the books. We sailed a pirate ship, fought dragons, and went to the moon in a rocket ship. As we did so, the children developed vocabulary and storytelling skills that will help them become good readers. We also had a great deal of fun that did not cost us a cent. Imagination is free, but its benefits are priceless.

Caterpillars, Butterflies, and Libraries, Oh My!

posted 4 months 1 day ago

Last spring the Lexington Public Library planted a monarch waystation to create a habitat for this vulnerable species. We recently found our first monarch caterpillar in the waystation, so I did butterfly story times to celebrate the big event.

At our first butterfly story time, we read the classic picture book The Very Hungry Caterpillar. This book offers everything: gorgeous art, a charming story, counting practice, and a child-friendly explanation of metamorphosis. I made sure to use this word in story time, explaining it as “a big change.” While the word is not used in Carle’s book, it does appear in many picture books about caterpillars and butterflies. Explaining metamorphosis to children will enrich their vocabulary, and their understanding of the world around them. Both skills will improve their comprehension when they start reading independently.

Our second butterfly story time focused on monarch butterflies, so I talked about some information in Gail Gibbons’ picture book Monarch Butterfly. This book is packed with facts about monarchs, but it’s a little long to read from cover to cover. This is especially true when your audience is comprised of wiggly two- and three-year-olds. So I just used her text to explain some of the pictures, which is an effective technique for introducing young children to informational books.

Play gives children a chance to explore concepts they discover in books. This craft from the Mama Smiles blog lets your children get crafty. http://www.mamasmiles.com/caterpillar-to-butterfly-craft/

When the kids have finished the craft, they will have a fun toy they can use to explore metamorphosis. They also can use the toy to tell and retell stories, which helps them develop the verbal skills they need to become proficient readers.

For more information about monarch waystations, visit http://www.monarchwatch.org/waystations/. And please come see our very own waystation at the Tates Creek Branch, 3628 Walden Drive.

Other Books About Butterflies:

A Butterfly is Patient by Dianna Hutts Aston
Becoming Butterflies by Anne Rockwell
Butterfly House by Eve Bunting
Dinosaurs Roar, Butterflies Soar! By Bob Barner
Fly, Monarch, Fly! by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace

Frozen Story Time: It's Olaf's Turn to Shine!

posted 4 months 2 weeks ago

Frozen fever won’t break any time soon, so I recently did a Frozen-themed story time. I still love the movie and its songs, but I know many parents would like a change of pace from Anna, Elsa, and “Let It Go.” With this in mind, I focused on Olaf the Snowman to remind kids that the movie has other charming characters and songs. I made snowman stick puppets with cotton balls, popsicle sticks, and a hot glue gun. The kids made their Olaf puppets dance to his signature tune, “In Summer.”

Playing with puppets helps children retell favorite stories (such as Frozen) and create new ones. As they tell stories, they discover that each story has its own structure and sequence. Understanding how stories are put together will build reading comprehension skills when children get older.

Olaf story time also was easy to create because there are many excellent picture books about snowmen. I read All You Need for a Snowman, written by Alice Schertle and illustrated by Barbara Lavallee. Here are some other snowman books I recommend:

100 Snowmen by Jennifer Dussling
The First Day of Winter by Denise Fleming
Snowballs by Lois Ehlert
The Snowman by Raymond Briggs
Snowmen All Year by Caralyn Buehner

After the story the kids used cotton balls, pompoms, pipe cleaners, and glue sticks to make snowmen. One creative five-year-old made Frozen’s Snow Monster. This craft helped children develop their fine motor skills. As caregivers helped with the craft, they engaged in conversations with their children: Where should his nose go? Where is your nose? Talking about their snowmen gave the children background information that helped them understand their world. For instance, a snowman’s nose probably wouldn’t go on his tummy.

All of the activities we did at this story time – playing, reading, singing, and talking – gave the children the early literacy skills they need for reading success. Ask your local children’s librarian how you can help your child get ready to read.

Building Engineering Skills with Fairy Tales

posted 5 months 2 weeks ago

Fairy tales benefit young children in many ways. The magical stories engage the imagination, which instills a love of reading. Their rich vocabulary also helps children learn words we don’t use in everyday conversation. Children who enter school with a rich vocabulary are likely to become strong readers.

I recently discovered that fairy-tale activities also can help children develop engineering skills. Here are a couple of fairy tales you can use to explore structural engineering. In other words, you get to build what you read about.

Once upon a story time, we read The Three Little Pigs. After the story, I gave children materials to build the little pigs’ houses. We used drinking straws for the straw house, popsicle sticks for the stick house, and blocks for the brick house.

After we had built these houses, we used a hair dryer to create wolf-strength breath. Then we talked about which building material was the strongest. This would be a fun and easy activity to duplicate at home.

I borrowed this idea from Amy Koester’s The Show Me Librarian blog. You can read more about it here: http://showmelibrarian.blogspot.com/2012/10/preschool-science-on-alsc-blog.html. Children’s librarians are Amy’s target audience, but she also has some helpful posts that explain how children’s books can promote math and science skills.

At another story time, we read The Three Billy Goats Gruff, then built bridges for the goats to cross. We talked again about which building materials were the strongest: blocks, popsicle sticks, or straws? Some creative young engineers also added a house for the troll to live in.

I got this idea from one of my favorite blogs, The Imagination Tree. Parents are the target audience; in fact, its author is a stay-at-home mom with early childhood education experience. This post provides some questions you can ask as you build, and identifies the different skills your children will learn in the process: http://theimaginationtree.com/2013/04/designing-and-building-bridges-activity.html

Happy reading and building!