Monthly Archives: August 2026

T-riffic Reads: A Storytime About the Letter T

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Early Literacy Tip: Point out that letters can make different sounds when combined with other letters (for example, Tr), and can change one word into another. For example: tee becomes tree, tail becomes trail, and tap becomes trap. Make a game out of having your child cover up the letter r with their finger and then uncover it, while you say each word. How fast can you switch back and forth between the words?

This week, we celebrated the letter T, which allowed me to share some of my favorite picture books. As usual, we started by drawing an upper and lower-case T in the air together, and then came up with words that started with the letter T. The kids suggested turkey, tree, and toothbrush. I also pulled some items out of my paper bag: a troll doll, a tambourine, and a triangle (the kids enjoyed playing the tambourine and triangle at the end of storytime).

Secret Words: As usual, I gave out slips of paper with a “secret word” on them at the end. Our words this time were: tiger, train, tree and turtle.

Here’s the rest of what we did:

Books:

It’s a Tiger by David LaRochelle; illustrated by Jeremy Tankard

This book has been a favorite of several of my storytime regulars, and it’s a lot of fun to read aloud. The reader is invited along on a story adventure that begins in the jungle where the monkeys swing from vine to vine. But everywhere you go, there’s a tiger hiding there! RUN! The book features lots of fun twists, including a boat captain with a tail, and a treasure chest with two glowing eyes peering out. Luckily, the tiger just wants a belly rub.

Leonardo, the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems

I love performing this book, which is so perfectly executed, hilarious, and sweet. Leonardo is a terrible monster. No matter how hard he tries, he can’t scare anyone. Until one day, he sneaks up on Sam, the most scaredy-cat kid in the whole wide world, and makes him cry. But when he finds out the long list of reasons why Sam is sad, he decides to stop being a terrible monster and become a wonderful friend instead. The page with all of the reasons why Sam is sad is so much fun to read. I always try to get through the whole thing in one breath.

Towed by Toad by Jashar Awan

Cute story about a toad who drives a tow truck, helping all kinds of animals all day long. But when his tow truck breaks down, he learns that even he needs help himself every now and then. My vehicle-obsessed storytime kiddos loved this one.

I Like Trains by Daisy Hirst

Sweet book about a dog who loves trains and train rides, especially when they involve a trip to see Grandma. The large format and illustrations, and simple language make this a great book for toddlers.

Songs & Activities:

Brush Your Teeth by Raffi

This Raffi song is an old standby of mine, and always goes over well with toddlers and preschoolers. I usually start by telling the kids to imagine their finger is a toothbrush. Then we all mime squeezing our imaginary toothpaste onto our fingers (I often ask them to share their favorite flavor of toothpaste).

When you wake up in the morning,
It’s a quarter to one,
And you want to have a little fun,
You brush your teeth,
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch!
You brush your teeth,
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch!

When you wake up in the morning,
It’s a quarter to two,
And you just can’t think of something to do,
You brush your teeth…

When you wake up in the morning,
It’s a quarter to three,
And your mind starts humming,
“Fiddle-dee-dee,”…

When you wake up in the morning,
It’s a quarter to four,
And you think you hear a knock on the door,
You get a little scared,
And then you brush your teeth…

When you wake up in the morning,
It’s a quarter to five,
And you just can’t wait to come alive!…

Going on a Tiger Hunt

Instead of the usual bear hunt, we went on a tiger hunt after reading It’s a Tiger.  I like to ham it up by pretending to get a grasshopper stuck in my shirt, wiping the mud off my feet, and shaking myself dry from the lake.  There are lots of variations, but this the script I use, with the kids repeating every line:

We’re going on a tiger hunt!
(We’re going on a tiger hunt!)
It’s a beautiful day!
(It’s a beautiful day!)
We’re not scared!
(We’re not scared!)

We’re coming to some grass.
(We’re coming to some grass).
Can’t go over it.
(Can’t go over it.)
Can’t go under it.
(Can’t go under it.)
Have to go through it.
(Have to go through it.)
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! (Rubbing hands together)

We’re coming to some mud.
(We’re coming to some mud.)
Can’t go over it.
(Can’t go over it.)
Can’t go under it.
(Can’t go under it.)
Have to go through it.
(Have to go through it).
Squilch! Squelch! Squilch! Squelch! (Clapping hands together).

We’re coming to a lake.
(We’re coming to a lake.)
Can’t go over it.
(Can’t go over it.)
Can’t go under it.
(Can’t go under it.)
Have to swim across it.
(Have to swim across it.)
Splish! Splash! Splish! Splash!

We’re coming to a cave.
(We’re coming to a cave.)
Can’t go over it.
(Can’t go over it.)
Can’t go under it.
(Can’t go under it.)
Have to go inside.
(Have to go inside.)
Tiptoe…tiptoe…tiptoe…tiptoe…
It’s dark in here…
(It’s dark in here…)
It’s cold in here…
(It’s cold in here…)
Two yellow eyes…it’s a tiger!

Run!
Swim across the lake!
Run through the mud!
Run through the grass!
Into the house!
Slam the door!
Lock it!
We’re never going on a tiger hunt again!

We Wave Our Scarves Together

We sang this with the play scarves at Family Storytime. It’s a fun, versatile song that you can extend by adding a verse about any other actions you can think to do with the scarves. It’s to the tune of For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow. Jbrary does a nice job of demonstrating it in the video below.

We wave our scarves together,
We wave our scarves together,
We wave our scarves together,
Because it’s fun to do.

We hug our scarves together…

We wear our scarves together…

We peek-a-boo together…

We throw our scarves together…

Ducks are on the Trampoline (Parachute Song)

I made this one up, using the tune to The Wheels on the Bus. I have lots of little animals that came with some Monkey Mitt sets and I threw different ones on the parachute each time we sang it. The kids loved watching them bounce up and down.

Ducks are on the trampoline, trampoline, trampoline,
Ducks are on the trampoline, bouncing up and down.

Dogs are on the trampoline… etc.

Freight Train

We sang this as our instrument play-along at the end. It’s one of my all-time favorite songs, and it has an incredible back-story. The original version by Elizabeth Cotten is beautiful, but sad, so I use this kid-friendly version by Elizabeth Mitchell. I ask the kids for different destinations for each verse.

[C] Freight train, Freight train [G7] going so fast.
[G7] Freight train, Freight train, [C] going so fast.
[E7] Please don’t tell what [F] plane I’m on,
So they [C] won’t know [G7] where I’ve [C] gone.

Going to Hawaii, going so fast!
Going to Hawaii, going so fast!
Please don’t tell what train I’m on,
So they won’t know where I’ve gone.

Going to the park, going so fast! etc…

Stay & Play: Tissue Paper Paintings

I love this simple process art activity. For the Stay & Play, I brought a box of colored tissue paper cut into small pieces, some white construction paper, and some small atomizers filled with water.

The kids had a great time arranging the tissue paper pieces on the construction paper and then spraying them with water. One nice aspect of this project is that as the tissue paper dries, you can peel it off and see the imprint it’s left behind on the paper, so the kids get to enjoy a second version of their artwork a few hours later.

Do you have any favorite picture books or songs featuring the letter T? Please share them in the comments below.

S-ential Reading: A Storytime About the Letter S

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Early Literacy Tip: Ask your child to point out particular letters in the titles of the books you read (example: can you find the word that starts with S?). This is a great way to introduce the idea of how individual letters make up the words that they see every day.

This week, we had a great time celebrating the letter S in storytime. As usual, we started by drawing the letter S in the air together, and talking about the sound it makes. I asked the kids if they could think of any words that started with S. They suggested: sun, snake, sky, and slug. I also pulled out some items from a paper bag: a snake puppet, a straw, and a slide whistle (my favorite!).

Secret Words: I’ve been enjoying having the kids pick a slip of paper with a secret word featuring the letter of the day at the end of storytime. This week, we had the words strawberry, sun, star, shoe and snake.

Here’s the rest of what we did:

Books:

Sleepy Sheepy by Lucy Ruth Cummins; illustrated by Pete Oswald

The kids LOVED this book. I’m not sure if it was the name “Sleepy Sheepy” or the phrase “was not sleepy!” but they giggled almost every time I read that sentence. It’s a very simple story about a sheep who doesn’t want to go to bed, but the language and the illustrations are a lot of fun.

Smelly Peggy by Helen Stephens

I read this book at several preschools recently, and some of the kids were practically on the floor laughing. A little girl named Pie describes her naughty dog named Peggy, who likes to wake Mom up with a lick, and Dad up with dog butt! She also steals Mom’s frilly undies, and rolls in all kinds of poop. But the family loves Peggy anyway. This is an author who knows her audience!

How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers

Sweet, whimsical story about a little boy who wants a star of his very own. He tries every way he can think of to find one, until he finally discovers one at the edge of the sea. This book resonates with me particularly, because my family has always loved to visit the tide pools here along the California coast, and recently we’ve been so relieved to see the sea stars, which are finally coming back after a long struggle with wasting disease. I also love it because it reminds me of Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, which is one of my all-time favorite fantasy novels. The kids at Family Storytimes seemed taken by the idea of having a star of their own.

Aarrgghh! Spider! by Lydia Monks

I try really hard not to hoard books in my house, but I do have a small personal collection of favorite picture books. This is one of them. It’s an older title about an adorable spider who wants to be a family pet, but keeps getting put outside. The kids love joining in on the repeated “Aarrgghh, Spider!” line, and they love the page with the sparkly webs. The ending, where the spider invites all of her friends into the family’s house, always gets lots of laughs.

Kat Writes a Song by Greg Foley

This is another old favorite of mine: the story of a cat who writes a song to make everything better. She thinks her song is magic, because it seems to make the sun come out, and helps turtle find his missing sock, and keeps dog from barking at her. But when it doesn’t fix her friend Bunny’s broken skateboard, she begins to doubt that it’s magical after all. But then, her friend Bird comes to cheer her up with a bunch of friends singing her song. The kids enjoyed singing along with the song, which is simply “Meow, Meow, Meow, Meow, Meow.”

Songs & Rhymes:

Sleeping Bunnies Song

This is a repeat from last week, but it fit so well with Sleepy Sheepy that I couldn’t resist doing it again at Outdoor Musical Storytime. The version I use is closest to the one in this LittleBabyBum video.

See the little bunnies sleeping (crouch down and pretend to sleep)
‘Till it’s nearly noon.
Come, let us wake them with a merry tune?
They’re so still.
Are they ill?
NO! Wake up little bunnies! (jump up)
Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop! (jump up and down)
Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop!
Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop!
Hop little bunnies, hop and stop!

Little Bo Peep

I did this rhyme with the play scarves for Family Storytime. I had the kids stand up, and then we pretended the scarves were tails for the last line. Jbrary does a nice demo of the rhyme in the video below.

Little Bo Peep
Has lost her sheep, (hide scarf)
And doesn’t know where to find them.
Leave them alone,
And they’ll come home,
Wagging their tails behind them. (wave scarf in front of you, or behind you like a tail)

Shake My Sillies Out

This old Raffi song was my opening song for years when I first started as a children’s librarian. For Outdoor Musical Storytime, we sang the first verse with the parachute. I put a few small stuffed animals on the parachute, so they would fly up and down as we shook the chute in time with the song.

I’m gonna shake, shake, shake my sillies out,
Shake, shake, shake my sillies out,
Shake, shake, shake my sillies out,
And wiggle my waggles away.

There’s a Spider on the Floor

To the tune of If You’re Happy and You Know It. This is another Raffi song, although I usually change the lyrics a little. I acted it out with a spider puppet, and told the kids to pretend their hands were spiders.

There’s a spider on the floor, on the floor.
There’s a spider on the floor, on the floor.
Who could ask for any more than a spider on the floor?
There’s a spider on the floor, on the floor.

Now the spider’s on my leg, on my leg.
Now the spider’s on my leg, on my leg.
Oh, he’s really, really big, this old spider on my leg.
There’s a spider on my leg, on my leg.

Now the spider’s on my tummy, on my tummy…
Oh, I feel so very funny with this spider on my tummy!…

Now the spider’s on my neck, on my neck…
Oh, I’m gonna’ be a wreck, I’ve got a spider on my neck!…

Now the spider’s on my face, on my face…
Oh, I’m such a big disgrace. I’ve got a spider on my face!…

Now the spider’s on my head, on my head…
Oh, it fills my heart with dread to have this spider on my head!…

Spoken: But it jumps off!

Now the spider’s on the floor, on the floor…

Who could ask for any more than a spider on the floor?…

Sing a Song by Joe Raposo

We sang this as our instrument play-along at the end. It’s an old song from Sesame Street that I have always loved. I really like the version by The Carpenters in the video below.

[G] Sing, sing a [Am7] song [D7],
Sing out [G] loud, sing out [Dm7] strong [G7].
[Cmaj7] Sing of good things, not [G] bad,
[Em7] Sing of [A7] happy, not [Am7] sad [D7].

[G] Sing, sing a [Am7] song,
Make it [G] simple to [Gmaj7] last your whole life [Dm7] long [G7].
Don’t [Cmaj7] worry that it’s not [B7] good enough,
For [Em7] anyone else to [A7] hear.
Just [Am7] sing, [D7] sing a [G] song.

[G] La la do la da, [Gmaj7] la da la do la da,
[Cmaj7] La da da la do la da.
[G] La la do la da, [Gmaj7] la da la do la da,
[Cmaj7] La da da la do la da.

Stay & Play: DIY Stickers

This was really simple, but a lot of fun. Before storytime, I cut some large shipping labels into squares about 2″ x 2.” For the Stay & Play, I just put out the squares, along with markers and some small stamps. The kids really enjoyed making multiple stickers and then wearing them home. If I had time, I would have loved to use the circle cutter that came with our button machine to make round stickers too.

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

Fine Rts: A Storytime about the Letter R

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Early Literacy Tip: Talk about the sounds that individual letters make, and make a game out of coming up with words that start with that sound. Paying attention to the sounds that make up words is a critical part of phonemic awareness, an important skill for learning to read later on.

This week, we focused on the Letter R in storytime. As usual, we started by drawing an upper- and lower-case letter R in the air together (I also wrote it on my whiteboard). I talked about the sound the letter makes (we said it together), and asked the kids if they knew any words that started with R. They had several suggestions: rain, run, rabbit, rat, and rhinoceros. I also pulled some items out of my paper bag: a ruler, a ribbon wand, and some rosemary (I broke off pieces to hand out to the kids so they could smell it).

For our secret words at the end, I handed out slips of paper with some basic letter R words written on them, including robot, rose, rabbit, raspberry, and rocket. This has been a fun addition to storytime, and the kids seem to enjoy the surprise of seeing what word they will get. It’s always nice when someone has a particular connection to the word, like “Oh, raspberries are your favorite fruit!”

Here’s the rest of what we did:

Books:

The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld

I love this sweet story that conveys the power of simply sitting with someone who is having a hard time, instead of trying to fix their problems. When Taylor’s block tower gets knocked over by a flock of crows, different animals stop to offer advice, telling him he should shout, or laugh, or ruin someone else’s tower. None of their advice makes Taylor feel any better, until the Rabbit comes and sits beside him, taking the time to listen to all of his feelings.

Rainbow Hat by Hong Hai

Cute, colorful story about a bear whose rainbow hat blows away. It lands on a turtle, and then a duck, and then a frog, and finally gets carried off by a large bird, who drops it right back on Bear’s head.

My Rhinoceros by Jon Agee

I love this book, especially because the author lives in the Bay Area, and has visited some of our local schools. When a boy buys a pet rhinoceros, he is disappointed to learn that rhinoceroses only do two things: pop balloons and poke holes in kites. Neither of those seem particularly useful, until the boy comes across two robbers escaping in a balloon and a kite. When his rhinoceros helps the police catch the robbers, the boy discovers his rhinoceros can also fly! The page with the flying rhinoceros always gets delighted gasps and giggles.

Singing in the Rain by Tim Hopgood (based on the song by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown)

I gave out the egg shakers before I read this book, and we sang the song together at the end of both Family and Outdoor Musical Storytime. I also pulled out my thunder stick (which makes a loud rumbling sound) and shook it whenever we got to the line about the stormy clouds. The illustrations are colorful and charming.

Songs:

The Sleeping Bunnies Song

For some reason, toddlers and preschoolers love songs where you sink down to the ground, and then jump up. This is one of my all-time favorites (I stole it from a local daycare provider years ago). There are lots of different versions, but the one I use is closest to the one in this Little Baby Bum video:

See the little bunnies sleeping (crouch down and pretend to sleep)
‘Till it’s nearly noon.
Come, let us wake them with a merry tune?
They’re so still.
Are they ill?
NO! Wake up little bunnies! (jump up)
Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop! (jump up and down)
Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop!
Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop!
Hop little bunnies, hop and stop!

Rainbow ‘Round Me by Ruth Pelham

I don’t remember where I first learned this song, but I love it because it gives kids a chance to suggest things that they might see outside their window. We sang this with the ribbon wands at Outdoor Musical Storytime. I told the kids to wave the wands back and forth on the verses, and then spin around in a circle during the chorus. They suggested a red cat, a white garbage truck, and a green duck.

When I [C] look outside my [G7] window,
There’s a world of color I [C] see.
Fiddle-dee-dee, [F] outside my [C] window 
There’s a [G7] world of color I [C] see.

CHORUS:
[F] Rainbow, [C] rainbow, [G7] rainbow ’round [C] me. 
[F] Rainbow, [C] rainbow, [G7] rainbow ’round [C] me. 

And the [C] cat outside my [G7] window,
Is as red as red can [C] be.
Fiddle-dee-dee, [F] outside my [C] window 
It’s as [G7] red as red can [C] be.

CHORUS:
[F] Rainbow, [C] rainbow, [G7] rainbow ’round [C] me. 
[F] Rainbow, [C] rainbow, [G7] rainbow ’round [C] me.

And the [C] garbage truck outside my [G7] window,
Is as white as white can [C] be.
Fiddle-dee-dee, [F] outside my [C] window 
It’s as [G7] white as white can [C] be.
And the cat is as [G7] red as red can [C] be.

CHORUS:
[F] Rainbow, [C] rainbow, [G7] rainbow ’round [C] me. 
[F] Rainbow, [C] rainbow, [G7] rainbow ’round [C] me.  

And the duck outside my window…etc.

Roll the Ball to You

I used to work at a library that hosted a weekly Kindermusik class. The teacher would always sing this song in a really operatic style, which always struck me as funny. It is a really simple, catchy song though, and it stuck with me. For Family Storytime, we sang it while rolling a plush ball back and forth between me and each of the kids. For Outdoor Musical Storytime, I put a plush ball on the parachute and we rolled it around together (I wish I had brought a lighter ball though, because the plush one didn’t roll very well on the parachute).

I roll the ball to you,
And you roll the ball to me.
I roll the ball to you,
And you roll the ball to me.
I roll the ball to you,
And you roll the ball to me.
I roll the ball to you,
And you roll the ball to me.

Rocketship Run by Laurie Berkner

We sang this as our instrument play-along at the end. I had the kids crouch down and jump up during each countdown.

[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!
[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!

[C]Take me [G7] to the [F] Sun,
[C]Take me [G7] to the [F] Sun,
[C]When I [G7] get there [F] I’ll be spinning everywhere.
[C]Spinning [G7] round the [F] Sun.

[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!
[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!

[C]Take me [G7] to the [F] Moon,
[C]Take me [G7] to the [F] Moon,
[C]When I [G7] get there [F] I’ll be dancing through the air,
[C]Dancing [G7] on the [F] Moon.

[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!
[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!

[C]Take me [G7] to the [F] stars,
[C]Take me [G7] to the [F] stars,
[C]When I [G7] get there [F] I’ll be jumping everywhere,
[C]Dancing [G7] from star to [F] star.[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!
[Am] 5-4-3-2-1 [C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run!

[C]Take me [G7] to the [F] Earth,
[C]Leave me [G7] on the [F] ground,
[C]When I [G7] get there [F] I’ll be [C] home.

[Am] 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1

[C] Blast off! Another rocket [E7] ship [Am] run

Stay & Play: Straw Rockets

I got this idea from BuggyandBuddy.com, which also provided the rocket templates. Before storytime, I had our summer intern cut out the paper rocket templates.

For the Stay and Play, I put out the paper rocket templates, along with markers, tape, paper straws, and small pieces of larger plastic straws (our county has a policy of not purchasing disposable plastics if possible, so I cleaned a few used regular sized drinking straws and cut them into 2″ pieces. You can also roll up squares of paper and tape them into tubes instead, but there’s a little more friction, which makes it harder for the kids to blow the rocket off of the paper straw).

The kids enjoyed coloring their rockets with the markers. Then we helped them tape a piece of plastic straw to the back, making sure that the tape fully covered the hole at the top of the straw. When they inserted the paper straw into the plastic one, and blew, their rocket launched into the air.

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

Q-riosity: A Storytime About the Letter Q

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Early Literacy Tip: Write simple action words on small pieces of paper (run, clap, jump, etc.), and put them in a bag (or attach them to a die that you throw, or a board game spinner that you spin). Have your child pick out one of the papers, and then do the action together (or have your child direct you to do it). This is a simple, fun way to build print awareness.

This week we celebrated the Letter Q! As usual, we started by writing an upper and lower case letter Q in the air together, and then brainstormed words that started with Q. The kids suggested queen and quack. I also pulled some other items from my paper bag: a quarter, and a picture of quail and a quokka.

I had written three q words on pieces of paper, and I told the kids that there were special motions we would do for each one. For the word quack, we would quack like a duck and make duck bills with our hands. For the word quiet, we would put one finger over our lips and say, “Shhhh!” And for the word quick, we would clap our hands really fast. I spent a couple of minutes, pulling out the pieces of paper and reading the words, and we did the actions together.

HOME EXTENSION: I’ve been trying to add a “secret word” component each week, to help build excitement around printed words, and give the kids something to share with their caregivers after storytime. This week, I let them pick one of the “q” words from the activity above, and told them they could tell their grown-ups they had to do the motion (quacking, shushing, or clapping).

Books:

Quick Little Monkey by Sarah L. Thomson; illustrated by Lita Judge

A beautifully illustrated book about a pygmy marmoset who accidentally slips to the forest floor, and has to flee a giant snake before reuniting with his father. This was an exciting story that held the kids’ attention.

A Quick Trip to the Store by Sam Wedelich

I really like this funny new picture book about a girl and her mother, who have to take a quick trip to the store to buy bananas. While her mother chats with a group of other Mom’s, the girl decides to go shopping by herself, and accidentally crashes her cart (and herself!) into the bin of bananas. Her Mom agrees to buy all of the bruised bananas, and together they make banana bread for the employees at the store. The main character’s opinions about shopping, and mothers, and banana bread are hilarious.

Queenie Quail Can’t Keep Up by Jane Whittingham; illustrated by Emma Pedersen

This is an adorable story that I’ve shared many times. I especially like to read it for Outdoor Musical Storytime, since there are a lot of California quail in the park. Queenie Quail just can’t keep up with her brothers and sisters, because she is too busy looking at bees and caterpillars and shiny stones. But when she spies a cat hiding in the grass, and alerts her family, her parents realize that her dawdling can be helpful. The kids enjoyed joining in on the repeated “bob bob bob,” “tap tap tap” and “hurry hurry hurry” motions throughout the book.

I Quit! by Kristen Tracy; illustrated by Federico Fabiani

Sweet story about a cat who gets adopted. At first, she is thrilled with her new home, but then she learns there are rules like no licking yourself on the table and no chasing the baby. “I quit!” she declares, and makes her escape. But the world outside is dark and scary, and she quickly decides she wants to go home.

Songs:

Monkey See and Monkey Do

We sang this after reading Quick Little Monkey. It’s a fun, versatile action song, and you can add in any motions that suit your storytime crowd. I always end with “sit back on the ground” to get the kids ready to listen to the next book.

When you clap, clap, clap your hands,
The monkey clap, clap, claps his hands,
Monkey see, and monkey do,
The monkey does the same as you!

When you jump up and down, etc.

Repeat with other motions: when you jump up and down; make a funny face; turn yourself around; and sit back on the ground.

Two Little Quail

We sang this with the play scarves (I gave each child two). A variation of the traditional Two Little Blackbirds song to go along with the book Queenie Quail Can’t Keep Up.

Two little quail sitting on a hill, (Hold up both scarves)
One named Jack, and the other named Jill.
Fly away, Jack! (Put one scarf behind your back)
Fly away, Jill! (Put the other scarf behind your back)
Come back, Jack! (Bring the first scarf out in front).
Come back, Jill! (Bring the second scarf out in the front).

Two littlequail sitting on a cloud,
One was quiet, and the other was loud (I make my voice as loud and obnoxious as possible each time I sing the word “Loud!”)
Fly away, Quiet!
Fly away, Loud!
Come back, Quiet!
Come back, Loud!

Two little quail sitting in the snow.
One flew fast!
And the other flew slow!…

Two little quail sitting on a gate.
One was early, and the other was…late!…

Quick, Quick, Quick

We sang this with the parachute at Outdoor Musical Storytime. I have a bunch of little ducks from a couple of Monkee Mitt sets, and I told the kids to quack each time I threw one on the parachute. Then we sang the song, shaking the parachute quickly and then slowly, and lowering and raising it up. I added a few more ducks each time we sang it.

Quick, quick, quick!
Slow, slow, slow!
Down, down, down!
And up we go!

Letter Q

I wrote this song for my last set of alphabet storytimes, since I couldn’t find a good instrument play-along for letter Q. I had explained to the kids about how the letter Q is almost always followed by U, which is the subject of this song. We sang it at the end with egg shakers.

If you ever need a storytime song for a particular topic, feel free to reach out. I love a challenge!

[C] Oh, Letter [F] Q,
[G7] What can it [C] do?
It just can’t [F] be
[G7] Away from [C] U!

[C] Without U, there is no [F] Question.
[G7] Without U, no qualit-[C]y.
No Quiet walks [F] along the shore,
No [G7] Quests of braver-[C]y.
No Quilts to keep you [F] warm at night,
No [G7] Quick trips to the [C] zoo.
There’s nothing quite as [F] lonesome
As [G7] Q is without [C] U.

[C] Oh, Letter [F] Q,
[G7] What can it [C] do?
It just can’t [F] be
[G7] Away from [C] U!

[C] Q is such a quirky [F] letter.
[G7] It is useless on its [C] own.
Without U it cannot [F] Qualify,
It [G7] cannot stand a-[C]lone.
Q would be in such a [F] Quandary,
Without [G7] you to make it [C] sound.
I Quake to think what [F] Q would be
[G7] Without U [C] around!

[C] Oh, Letter [F] Q,
[G7] What can it [C] do?
It just can’t [F] be
[G7] Away from [C] U!

Stay & Play: Origami Paper Quilts

We have a lot of origami paper left over from past programs, so before storytime this week, I asked our summer intern to cut some of the paper into smaller squares.

For the Stay & Play, I put out white computer paper, glue sticks, and the precut origami squares. The kids enjoyed arranging the different patterns on the page and gluing them down.

Do you have any favorite picture books or songs featuring the letter Q? Please share them in the comments below.