Early Literacy Tip: When reading books with predictable or very familiar text, try pausing before you say a word, and let your child fill in the blank (For example, “The cow said, “_____”. Using prediction skills is a key part of learning how to read.

This week, we continued our journey through the alphabet, focusing on the Letter L. We started by drawing the letter L (upper and lower-case in the air together), and then talking about words that begin with L. The kids suggested lollipop, lion, and lamb. I pulled out some items from a paper bag: a ladle, a lid, and a lyre (which I brought around for the kids to strum).

Here’s the rest of what we did:

Books:

Red Light, Green Lion by Candace Ryan and Jennifer Yerkes

This is a cute book that kept the kids guessing. The text describes how things don’t always work out the way you expect, and demonstrates this on each page by ending with “Red Light, Green Li-” only to begin the next page with “Lion” or “Lifeboat” or “Livestock.” I tried to draw out the “Li…” each time, and the kids would laugh at the unexpected word.

Llama Llama, Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney

The perfect book for letter L! Most of the kids knew the book already and were excited to see it. It’s such a classic rhyming story about an anxious Llama who gets upset when his Mama doesn’t come when he calls.

Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle; illustrated by Jill McElmurry

Another classic picture book that a lot of the kids knew. I especially like this one because it’s fun to pause when you read the lines about each animal and have the kids supply the missing word (“Sheep said ____! Cow said _____!”) A sweet, rhyming story about a friendly blue truck who saves a grumpy dump truck with the help of all of his animal friends.

Moo-Moo, I Love You by Tom Lichtenheld and Amy Krouse Rosenthal

I wanted to include a picture book featuring the word “Love,” and this is one of my favorites (although it would also work well for letter M). Full of word play around the word “Moo,” (like “I would jump over the Moo-N for you!”) and sweet, funny pictures of cows, both the kids and their caregivers enjoyed this one.

Songs & Activities:

Red Light, Green Light

After reading Red Light, Green Lion, we played a short game of Red Light, Green Light. Instead of the traditional game of having the kids walk towards me when I said, “Green Light” and stop when I said, “Red Light,” I just had them do different actions (clapping, stomping, etc.) when I said “Green Light” and stop when I said “Red Light.” It works especially well if you hold up pictures of a red light and a green light each time.

Can You See the Color Red?

We sang this after reading Llama Llama Red Pajama. The kids always enjoying pointing to things around them that match each color. It’s to the tune of Do You Know the Muffin Man?

Can you [C] see the color red,
The [F] color yellow, the [G7] color red?
Can you [C] see the color red,
[F] Right here [G7] where you [C] are?

Can you see the color blue… etc.

Love Somebody, Yes, I Do

For Outdoor Musical Storytime, we sang this with the parachute, shaking it in time with the song.There are lots of different versions of the song, but the one I do is closest to the one in the video by Musicaliti found below. We sang it through three times.

Love somebody, yes I do!
Love somebody, yes I do!
Love somebody, yes I do!
Love somebody and it’s you, you, you! (point to different people)
You, you, you!

Little Red Caboose

We did this as our instrument play-along at the end. For Family Storytime, I had the kids line up to make a train, and we circled the row of shelves next to the storytime space as we sang and shook our egg shakers (it would also be fun with play scarves). There are lots of versions of this song, but the one I do is closest to the Sweet Honey and the Rock version below.

[C] Little red caboose,
Little red caboose,
Riding behind the [G7] train.
Little red caboose,
Little red caboose,
Riding behind the [C] train.

[C] Get your tickets and get on board,
Riding behind the [G7] train.
Get your tickets and get on board,
Riding behind the [C] train.

[C] Little red caboose,
Little red caboose,
Riding behind the [G7] train.
Little red caboose,
Little red caboose,
Riding behind the [C] train.

I’ve got a brother on that train,
Riding behind the train.
You’ve got a sister on that train,
Riding behind the train.

[C] Little red caboose,
Little red caboose,
Riding behind the [G7] train.
Little red caboose,
Little red caboose,
Riding behind the [C] train

Stay & Play: Letter Stamps

This was a super easy Stay & Play, where I just put out our set of letter stamps, along with ink-pads, markers, and other fun stamps. Most of the kids stamped out their names with the help of a caregiver. It’s a great activity for both literacy (searching for each letter) and fine motor skills (figuring out the best way to coat the stamp in ink and press it onto the paper).

Do you have any favorite books or songs featuring the Letter L? Please share them in the comments below.