Tag Archives: April Fool’s Day storytime

April Fools! A Silly Storytime

Posted in Storytime themes, Uncategorized by

My storytimes are usually pretty silly, but for April Fools’ Day this week, we went even sillier.

I started by telling the kids that I had made them all brownies, and to raise their hands if they wanted one. Then Claire handed out letter E’s that I had cut out of brown paper. At first they were disappointed, but once they understood the joke, the older kids enjoyed offering people “Brown-E’s” themselves.

Here’s what we did for the rest of the storytime:

Books:

Knock, Knock by Tammi Sauer; illustrated by Guy Francis

A sleepy bear is trying to prepare for his long Winter’s sleep, but his friends keep showing up at his door in what turns out to be an extended series of knock-knock jokes. The “Knock-Knocks” are in large red letters, providing the perfect opportunity to point them out on each page and have the kids say them along with you. My coworker, Claire, read the part of the bear, and I read the other animals. A fun introduction to word play and jokes.

I Want to Go First by Richard Byrne

Elphie, the elephant, wants to be first in the line for the watering hole, but as the smallest, he has to go to the end of the line. In order to trick the elephants in front of him, he asks you, the reader, to distract them by calling their names, hissing like a snake, squeaking like mice, and shaking the book. The kids enjoyed the participation elements, especially the squeaking!

I Will Surprise My Friend by Mo Willems

When Gerald and Piggie see two squirrels having a great time hiding from and jumping out at each other, they decide to give it a try themselves. The trouble is that they both decide to hide on either side of the same rock, and then worry when they can’t find each other. This one is always a lot of fun to read aloud.

Songs & Rhymes

I’m Singing in the Rain

There are lots of different versions of this old camp song, which riffs off the song from the musical by Alfred Freed and Nacio Herb Brown. The punchline is always the last line, where you try to say the “tee-ta-ta’s” while sticking your tongue out. Here’s the version I used:

I’m singing in the rain,
Just singing in the rain,
What a glorious feeling,
I’m happy again!

(Spoken) Thumbs up!
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta (Move your thumbs back and forth in front of you)
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta

I’m singing in the rain,
Just singing in the rain,
What a glorious feeling,
I’m happy again!

Thumbs up!
Knees together!
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta (Put your knees together, and move your thumbs back and forth in front of you)
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta

I’m singing in the rain,
Just singing in the rain,
What a glorious feeling,
I’m happy again!

Thumbs up!
Knees together!
Toes together!
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta (Put your knees and toes together, and move your thumbs back and forth in front of you)
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta

I’m singing in the rain,
Just singing in the rain,
What a glorious feeling,
I’m happy again!

Thumbs up!
Knees together!
Toes together!
Tongue out!
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta
A-tee-ta-ta-a-tee-ta-ta-ta-tee-ta-ta-ta

There’s a Spider on the Floor

To the tune of If You’re Happy and You Know It. This is an old Raffi song, although I usually change the lyrics a little. I acted it out with a big toy spider, and encouraged the kids to make spiders with their hands.

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?…

April Fools!

We sang this one as an instrument play-along. Click on the triangle for the tune, or it also works to the tune of If You’re Happy and You Know It.

[C] April Fools’! April [G7] Fools’!
It’s the day when silly pranks don’t break the [C] rules.
If your orange juice is pink,
When you [F] go to take a drink,
Then it’s [C] time to stop and [G7] think,
“It’s April [C] Fools’!”

There’s an [C] alligator swimming in the [G7] tub.
A zookeeper came and said he needs a [C] scrub.
And he asked in quite a rush,
If you’d [F] give his teeth a brush…
Never [C] mind, I’m only [G7] kidding,
April [C] Fools’!

April Fools’! April Fools’!
It’s the day when silly pranks don’t break the rules.
If your orange juice is gray,
Then before you run away,
You might wonder if today
Is April Fools’!

I’m afraid your birthday cake is full of ants,
They came crawling up the side and did a dance.
If you don’t mind extra spice,
I can cut you off a slice…
Happy Birthday, and above all
April Fools’!

April Fools’! April Fools’!
It’s the day when silly pranks don’t break the rules.
If your orange juice is white,
And it gives you quite a fright,
Then remember it just might be
April Fools!
APRIL FOOLS!

Stay and Play: Crayon Resist Surprise!

Crayon resist art is one of my favorite things to do with kids, and this interactive twist turned out really well.

Before I put out the watercolor paints, white crayons, paper, cups of water, and paintbrushes, I explained that if you draw or write with a white crayon on white paper, you won’t be able see what you draw at first. But when you paint over the crayon marks with watercolors, it will appear like magic. I encouraged the grown-ups to draw or write something for the kids to “find” with the paint, and they were all really engaged in the process.

What are your favorite stories, songs, or pranks for April Fools’ Day? Please share them in the comments.

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April Fool! Books about Jokes and Tricksters

Posted in Storytime themes by

 

Poisson d'Avril by Sarah

Poisson d’Avril by Sarah

In honor of April Fool’s Day, for this week’s Family Storytime, we read books about jokes and tricks.  This was a fun theme, and all the books were snatched up and checked out at the end.  Here’s what we read:

knock

Knock, Knock, Who’s There? by Tad Hills (Amazon.com link)

A great introduction to knock knock jokes for toddlers and preschoolers, with comical animal illustrations.  I love to read this book at storytimes because it’s so interactive.  Even the parents enjoy saying “Who’s There?”

watch

Watch Out! Big Bro’s Coming by Jez Alborough (Amazon.com link)

I first heard this book read by a children’s librarian named Mary Ann Schlitz when I was just starting out doing storytimes, and I was struck by how well she did the voices for each character.  It’s been one of my favorite read-alouds ever since.  When a little mouse warns a frog that “Big Bro is Coming!” it starts a panic that spreads throughout the jungle.  Each animal makes Big Bro out to be rougher and bigger, until they are all cowering in terror.  When Big Bro finally appears, he turns out to be…a mouse!   The big, colorful illustrations and dramatic story make this book perfect for just about any age.   I usually have the kids stretch their arms out every time a character says “THIS BIG!”

willsurprise

I Will Surprise My Friend by Mo Willems (Amazon.com link)

Yet another terrific Gerald and Piggie book, and one that worked perfectly for this theme.  When Gerald and Piggie see two squirrels playing a game where they try to scare each other, they decide to try it on each other.  This book always gets big laughs, especially on the page where Gerald and Piggie jump out at the same time and scream in terror.

play

Buddy and the Bunnies in: Don’t Play With Your Food by Bob Shea (Amazon.com link)

Bob Shea is another favorite picture book author of mine.  I learned about this new title of his from my friend Kerri’s blog, MLReads.com.  Buddy the monster really wants to eat the adorable little white bunnies, but somehow the bunnies always manage to divert him onto something else: making cupcakes, going swimming, or going to the fair.  Hilarious read-aloud that always gets groans and laughs at the punchline.

SONGS:

There were a number of wandering toddlers at storytime this week, so I ended up doing songs after each book to keep them engaged:

Shake My Sillies Out: My standard opening song.  I always pretend to fall asleep in the “Yawn my sleepies out” verse, and the kids yell, “Wake up!” Here’s a video of the original version by Raffi.

Aiken Drum: I had the kids suggest different foods to make the parts of Aiken Drum’s face.  Here are the lyrics with the uke chords in parentheses (If this key is too high, you can also play it in C with C, F, and G7).  Click on the triangle below to hear the tune:

(D) There was a man lived (G) in the moon
(D) In the moon, (A) in the moon.
There (D) was a man lived (G) in the moon,
And his (D) name was (A) Aiken (D) Drum.

Chorus:

And he played upon a ladle, a ladle, a ladle,
He played upon a ladle, and his name was Aiken Drum.

His eyes were made of meatballs, meatballs, meatballs,
His eyes were made of meatballs, and his name was Aiken Drum

His nose was made of cheese….
His hair was made of spaghetti…  etc.

There’s a Spider on the Floor:  I have a big spider puppet that I brought out for this one, and I carried it around to put lightly on each kid’s leg, neck, head, etc.  I’ve changed the verses a little from the Raffi version.  Instead of “There’s a spider on your stomach,” I do “There’s a spider on your tummy, on your tummy…Oh, you look so very funny, with that spider on your tummy.”  And instead of “I wish that I were dead, I’ve got a spider on my head,” I sing, “Oh, it fills my heart with dread to see that spider on your head…”  But otherwise I keep it the same.

Little Bunny FooFoo: Great song for getting the kids on their feet and jumping around.  Here’s an animated video by Hannah Heller with the lyrics.

INSTRUMENT PLAY-ALONG WITH A CD: Just Kidding by Jon Galimor from Folk Playground (Amazon.com link)

CRAFT: Poisson d’Avril

photo (90)

Poisson d’Avril by Shelby

An incredibly simple craft based on the French tradition of sticking paper fish on people’s backs on April First as a joke (Poisson d’Avril).  You can read more about the history on FranceTravelGuide.com.  For the fish, I printed out a basic template from AllKidsNetwork.com, and gave the kids markers and crayons to decorate it, and tape to make it sticky.  They had the best time trying to stick the fish on each other and on all the grown-ups.

OTHER BOOKS:

Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock by Eric Kimmel; illustrated by Janet Stevens (Amazon.com link)

One of the best examples of a trickster tale, featuring Anansi the Spider, the mischievous West African god.  When Anansi discovers that a certain rock in the jungle knocks people unconscious when they say, “Isn’t this a strange moss-covered rock?”, he uses it to trick all the other animals and steal their food.  But all the time, Little Bush Deer is hiding and watching, and planning a trick of her own.  This is a terrific read-aloud.  Kids love joining in on the “KPOM!’s” whenever an animal falls for the trick.  Plus Janet Stevens has cleverly hidden Little Bush Deer on almost every page for kids to find.

Guess Again! by Mac Barnett; illustrated by Adam Rex (Amazon.com link)

A clever and hilarious parody of traditional riddle books.  Each page uses rhymes, clues, and silhouettes to lead readers to an obvious answer, only to surprise them with something completely random.  For example: Who’s furry, scurries, and has fleas?/Who climbs our counters and eats our cheese?/We’ve set up traps throughout the house/But still can’t catch that pesky…Viking!”

Miss Nelson is Missing! by Harry Allard; illustrated by James Marshall (Amazon.com link)

The classic classroom story about sweet Miss Nelson, who is mysteriously replaced by the evil Miss Viola Swamp.  The best thing about this book is the way it leaves it up to the reader to solve the mystery.  I also love that James Marshall based his depiction of Miss Viola Swamp on his own horrible second grade teacher who laughed at his drawings (you can read about it in this Horn Book interview).  I have also read that Marshall gave up drawing for years afterwards.  Thank goodness he regained his confidence as an adult!  He certainly had the last laugh.

What are your favorite picture books about jokes and tricks?