Tag Archives: library storytime ideas

Love Somebody: A Storytime for Valentine’s Day

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It was a chilly day in the park today for our Outdoor Musical Storytime, but we still had a great time celebrating Valentine’s Day with stories and songs.

Here’s what we did:

Books:

If You’ll Be My Valentine by Cynthia Rylant; illustrated by Fumi Kosaka

Short poems describe what a little boy will do for different loved ones if they will be his Valentine: scratch his cat behind her ears, take his little sister for a ride in a wagon, make a special letter for Grandma, etc. Most other books that are explicitly about Valentine’s Day are a bit too long for my storytime toddlers and young preschoolers, but this one worked well. A sweet book that celebrates shared experiences with family.

If Animals Said I Love You by Ann Whitford Paul; illustrated by David Walker

Adorable book that imagines how different animals might say, “I love you.” The kids loved calling out the names of the animals and mimicking their motions: beating their chests like gorillas; stomping their feet like secretary birds, etc.

Plant a Kiss by Amy Krouse Rosenthal; illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds

Very simple, rhymed story about a girl who plants a kiss, which grows into a glittery treasure she shares with the world. We had handed out play scarves for a song before we read this one, so I had the kids hide the scarves in their hands and then pull them out slowly to mimic the sprouting kiss. Claire threw small paper hearts out into the crowd at the end.

Songs:

There’s A Little Wheel a’Turnin’ in My Heart

This is a traditional song with lots of versions, but I used a variation of the one by Laurie Berkner in the video below.

There’s a [C] little wheel a-[G] turnin’ in my [C] heart, (rotate your hands around each other)

There’s a [C] little wheel a-[G] turnin’ in my [C] heart.

In my [F] hea-a-[C] art, in my [G] hea-a-[C] art, (put your hand on your heart)

There’s a [C] little wheel a-[G] turnin’ in my [C] heart.

Additional verses:

I hear two hands a clapping in my heart…

I hear two feet a stomping in my heart…

Oh, I feel so very happy in my heart… (make the ASL sign for Happy)

There’s a little wheel a-turnin’ in my heart.

Love Somebody, Yes I Do!

There are several different versions of this song, but the one I used was closest to the one in this video from Musicaliti:

Love somebody, yes I do! (ASL sign for LOVE, ASL sign for YES)

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!

Old MacDonald

We sang this after If Animals Said I Love You. I asked the kids for animal suggestions for each verse. We sang about a cow, a duck, a pig, a chicken, and a goat.

C] Old MacDonald [F] had a [C] farm,

E-I- [G7] E-I- [C] O!

And on that farm he [F] had a [C] pig,

E-I- [G7] E-I- [C] O!

With an oink-oink here, and an oink-oink there,

Here an oink, there an oink,

Everywhere an oink-oink.

[C] Old MacDonald [F] had a [C] farm,

E-I- [G7] E-I- [C] O!

You’ll Sing a Song by Ella Jenkins

We sang this song with play scarves, and I added verses so the kids could move the scarves in different ways: you wave a scarf; you throw a scarf, etc. It’s a wonderful song for storytime, because you can add in whatever motions suit your group best: jumping up and down, clapping your hands, etc. Plus, it is incredibly catchy!

[C] You’ll sing a song, and [Am] I’ll sing a song,

And [C] we’ll sing a [Dm] song toge-[G]ther.

[C] You’ll sing a song, and [Am] I’ll sing a song,

In [G] warm or [C] wintry [G] wea-[C]ther.

You’ll wave a scarf, and I’ll wave a scarf, and we’ll wave our scarves together…

You’ll peek-a-boo, and I’ll peek-a-boo… (put the scarf over your face, then pull it away)

You’ll throw a scarf, and I’ll throw a scarf…

Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton

I’ve always loved this song from Sandra Boynton’s Philadelphia Chickens book and album. There is also a stand-alone board book version of the song. We did it as our instrument play-along, and Claire carried around a dog puppet to “lick” the kids.

Well, [G] I have a thing to tell you
And it [C] won’t take long.
The [D] way I feel about you
Is a [G] kind of a song.
[G] It starts with an ooh and [C] ends with a kiss,
And [A] all along the middle it goes [D] something like [D7] this:

CHORUS
We go, [G] ooh, Snuggle [C] Puppy of mine,
[D] Everything about you is [G] especially fine.
[C] I love what you are, [G] I love what you do,
[A] Fuzzy little Snuggle Puppy, [D] I love [D7] you!

I say, [G] ooh, Snuggle [C] puppy of mine,
[D] Everything about you is [G7] especially fine,
[C] I love what you are, [G] I love what you do,
[D] Ooh, I love [G] you!

Well, I [G] wanted just to tell you
And it [C] didn’t take long,
The [D] way I feel about you
Is a [G] kind of a song.
[G] It started with ooh, [C] I gave you a kiss.
I [A] hope you like the middle now we’ll [D] end like [D7] this:

CHORUS

We go, [G] ooh, Snuggle [C] Puppy of mine,
[D] Everything about you is [G] especially fine.
[C] I love what you are, [G] I love what you do,
[A] Fuzzy little snuggle puppy, [D] I love [D7] you!

I say, [G] ooh, Snuggle [C] Puppy of mine,
[D] Everything about you is [G7] especially fine,
[C] I love what you are, [G] I love what you do,
[D] Ooh, I love [G] you!

Stay & Play: Tissue Paper Painted Hearts

The kids had a great time with this process art (or process heart?) activity, and several of the parents commented on how engaging it was.

Before the storytime, I cut large hearts out of white card stock, along with lots of squares of different colored tissue paper. For the Stay & Play, I put out the paper hearts, tissue paper squares in bowls, small cups of water, and paintbrushes. The kids arranged the tissue paper squares on the paper hearts and then painted them with the water. I told them they could peel the tissue paper off immediately or let it dry first. Either way, it makes cool, colorful patterns.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

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Some-Body Loves Me: Storytime About Parts of the Body

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Well, my Toddler Storytime this week got rained out, but we luckily the weather held for our Musical Storytime. Our libraries are participating in a program called San Mateo County Reads, sponsored by the County Office of Education, so our featured book was Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison. We had copies of the book to give out, along with copies of Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes for older kids.

On a side note our library system recently purchased portable PA systems for each branch, and these have made a HUGE difference for outdoor storytime. I can put the speaker on one of the picnic tables closer to the audience, and use a headset mic when I read and sing. At the first outdoor storytime, I had to use a microphone on a stand, which was really awkward for reading aloud. But now I can move around freely.

Here are the books and songs that we used:

BOOKS:

Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry; illustrated by Vashti Harrison

Our featured picture book, and this year’s picture book selection for San Mateo County Reads, this is a beautiful story about an African American father and daughter, and their struggles to recreate a special hairstyle for a very special day. The book is actually based on an Oscar Award-winning short film, which was originally funded by a Kickstarter pitched by the author. (Warning: the film will make you cry!). The book was a bit longer than the ones I usually read for my musical storytime audience, but since we had given out copies to each family, they could follow along as we read, giving the kids a really clear view of the illustrations. It was sweet to see all of the caregivers and kids sitting on their blankets and looking at the book together.

Who Has Wiggle-Waggle Toes? by Vicki Shiefman and Francesca Chessa

This is a really cute book, reminiscent of Eric Carle’s From Head to Toe, but featuring children instead of animals. It begins by asking who has different body parts (wiggle-waggle toes, hokey-pokey heads, and big, bold bottoms), and then asks the kids to move each part in different ways. I’ve noticed that the kids in the outdoor storytime tend to stay seated on their blankets, and this was a great way to encourage them to move around a bit more. Since the families were spread out, my coworker, Claire, walked a second copy of the book around to help the kids see the illustrations (she says it’s fun to hear the caregivers talking to their kids about things they see in the pictures. This has turned out to be an unexpected bonus of outdoor storytime, and a new way of promoting interactions between parents and kids.

There Is a Bird on My Head? by Mo Willems

This is one of my favorite Elephant and Piggie books, where Gerald the Elephant is unhappy to discover that a couple of birds have decided to build a nest on top of his head. Claire drew a pig nose on a face mask and read the part of Piggie, and I put on a set of elephant ears to be Gerald. We had a bird puppet, and even a nest of baby bird puppets to put on our heads, which was an extra challenge, but hilarious for the kids, since they kept falling off. Lots of fun!

SONGS:

I LOVE MY HAIR

I came up with this one to go with Hair Love. It’s to the tune of Love Somebody, Yes, I Do.

I love my hair, yes I do! (nod)

Love to wash it with shampoo (Mime washing your hair)

Rinse it, dry it (shake head vigorously), style it too.

Don’t you love my new hairdo? (fluff your hair with your hands)

AIKEN DRUM

This old Scottish song is one of my favorites to sing and play. I often have the kids suggest their own foods for the different parts of Aiken Drum’s face, but this time I printed out large pictures of meatballs, cheese, pizza, and spaghetti noodles, and taped them to the back of the large notepad I use to display song lyrics. The ukulele/guitar chords are in brackets:

[C] There was a man lived [F] in the moon
[C] In the moon, [G] in the moon.
There [C] was a man lived [F] in the moon,
And his [C] name was [G] Aiken [C] Drum.

Chorus:

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

Verse:

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 mouth was made of pizza…

His hair was made of spaghetti…  etc.

THE HOKEY POKEY

This one worked perfectly as a follow-up to Who Has Wiggle-Waggle Toes. Here are the chords:

[C] You put your right hand in,

You put your right hand out.

You put your right hand in,

[G] And you shake it all about!

You do the Hokey Pokey

And you turn yourself around,

That’s what it’s all [C] about!

HEAD AND SHOULDERS, KNEES AND TOES

This one needs no explanation, except that I like to sing it three it times, getting faster and faster, and I always add a “beep beep” after the word nose. I also point to each body part before we sing the song the first time, and make the inevitable joke, “Did everyone bring their heads today?,” which usually gets a laugh from the grown-ups.

NO ONE LIKE YOU by Andra Willis Muhoberac:

For years, my manager Thom Ball and I used this as an opening song for Musical Storytime, and we recorded it with two storytime volunteers (Ellen Ron and Sue Beckmeyer) on a CD we created to give away to families. It’s such a sweet and beautiful song.

I like your [C] eyes.

I like your [F] nose.

I like your [G] mouth.

Your ears, your hands, your [C] toes.

I like your face.

It’s really [F] you.

I [Dm] like the things you say and [G] do.

There’s not a [F] single [G] soul

Who [C] sees the [Am] skies

The [G] way you see them.

Through your [C] eyes.

[F] And aren’t you [G] glad.

[E]You should be [Am] glad.

There’s [C] no one, [G] no one

Exactly like [C] you.

STAY AND PLAY ACTIVITY

For our stay and play activity, I printed out these adorable Nature Collage Critters from The Ultimate Guide to Backyard Camping on TommyJohn.com (the link includes a bunny, a bear, and a raccoon). I gave out glue sticks, so the kids could gather leaves and other small objects from around the park to glue onto their picture. This was a big hit!

Any other favorite books or songs about parts of the body? Please share them in the comments.

The Great Outdoors! Stories about Adventure

Posted in Rhymes and songs, Storytime themes, Ukulele by

Foam Shape Boat by Shelby

Foam Shape Boat by Shelby

Last week, Ella, one of my regular storytime patrons, asked if she could read a Bob book about Outdoor Adventures at storytime.  So I based last week’s Family Storytime on that theme.  Unfortunately, Ella wasn’t able to come, but I still had fun sharing outdoor adventure books.

louis

The Day Louis Got Eaten by John Fardell (Amazon.com link)

When Louis gets unexpectedly eaten by a Gulper, his sister, Sarah, sets out to rescue him.  Unfortunately, just as she gets close, the Gulper is eaten by a Grabular, who is eaten by an Undersnatch.  Sarah is undaunted.  Pursuing the creatures on a bike that magically transforms to suit the terrain, she saves the day with the help of a hiccup frog.  The whimsical illustrations in this book are always a hit.

gumpy

Mr. Gumpy’s Outing by John Burningham (Amazon.com link)

Fun, simple story about a man whose boating outing is complicated by all the animals who want to come along.  The kids enjoyed joining in on the animal noises.  This one is also fun for kids to act out.

frogcooper

Frog by Susan Cooper; illustrated by Jane Browne (Amazon.com link)

Sweet story with beautiful illustrations.  When a frog gets trapped in their swimming pool, Little Joe, who can’t swim, watches as his family tries frantically to get it out.  But it is Little Joe who quietly comes to the rescue, and, inspired by Frog, finally learns to swim.

good

That’s Good!  That’s Bad!  by Margery Cuyler; illustrated by David Catrow (Amazon.com link)

While visiting the zoo with his parents, a little boy is carried off by a red balloon to a perilous adventure in the jungle.  Each page reveals a new part of the story followed by a refrain of “That’s good! No, that’s bad!” Or, “That’s bad! No, that’s good!” which the kids quickly learned to repeat.

SONGS:

I wish I had thought to do “Going on a Bear Hunt,” since that’s a kind of interactive adventure all its own.  Instead we sang:

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

I added in these two verses.  This song is super easy on the ukulele, since you can play the whole thing with just a C chord:

Row, row, row your boat
Gently to the shore.
And if you see a lion,
Don’t forget to roar! ROAR!

Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the stream,
And if you see an alligator,
Don’t forget to scream! AAAAAHHHH!

Five Green and Speckled Frogs

I have a rude toy frog that burps when you put your hand in its mouth.  I passed that around when I sang this song, but it’s just as fun to pretend your hand is the frog’s tongue, and pretend to catch flies on the kids’ heads.  Click on the triangle for the first verse:

Five green and speckled frogs
Sat on a speckled log.
Eating the most delicious bugs! Yum Yum!
One jumped into the pool,
Where it was nice and cool,
Now there are four green speckled frogs!

Four green and speckled frogs…etc.

Going to the Zoo

I do this one on the ukulele too.  Click on the triangle to hear the tune:

Daddy’s taking us to the zoo tomorrow (C)
Zoo tomorrow, Zoo tomorrow. (G7)
Daddy’s taking us to the zoo tomorrow, (C)
And we can stay all day. (C  G7)

CHORUS:
We’re going to the zoo, zoo, zoo!  (F)
How about you, you, you? (C)
You can come too, too, too! (G7)
We’re going to the zoo, zoo, zoo! (C G7 C)

See the elephants with the long trunk swinging,
Great big ears and a long trunk swinging.
Snuffing up peanuts with the long trunk swinging,
And we can stay all day!

CHORUS

See all the monkeys, they’re scritch, scritch, scratchin’.
Jumping all around and scritch, scritch, scratchin’.
Hanging by the long tails scritch, scritch, scratchin’,
And we can stay all day!

CHORUS

Well, we stayed all day, and I’m getting sleepy,
Sitting in the car getting sleep, sleep, sleepy.
Home already and I’m sleep, sleep, sleepy,
‘Cause we have stayed all day!

We’ve been to the zoo, zoo, zoo!
So have you, you, you!
You came too, too, too!
We’ve been to the zoo, zoo, zoo!

But Mommy’s taking us to the zoo tomorrow
Zoo tomorrow, Zoo tomorrow.
Mommy’s taking us to the zoo tomorrow,
And we can stay all day!

CHORUS

CRAFT: Foam Shape Boats

Foam Shape Boat by Kiley

Foam Shape Boat by Kiley

I got this simple craft idea from DLTK-kids.com: http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/transportation/mhalvesboat.html  I had some colored foam sheets that I used to cut the shapes out, but you could do it just as easily with construction paper or card stock.  I made a mix of colors for the kids to choose from, and gave them markers to decorate if they wanted.  They each made their boats a little differently.

OTHER BOOKS:

So many other books fit this theme.  Here are just a few:

Journey by Aaron Becker (Amazon.com link)

I don’t often “read” wordless books at storytime, but I have shared this one several times and the kids always love it.  A beautifully illustrated story about a lonely girl with a magic red crayon who draws her way into another world to find adventure and a new friend.  Reminiscent of Harold and the Purple Crayon, which would also fit the theme.

Fortunately by Remy Charlip (Amazon.com link)

An older book I love that reminds me of That’s Good! That’s Bad!  This one is about a boy who is trying to get to a surprise party.  Unfortunately, the party is in Florida and he is in New York.  Fortunately, he borrows a plane from a friend.  Unfortunately, the engine explodes.  Fortunately, he has a parachute.  You get the picture.

My Friend Bear by Jez Alborough (Amazon.com link)

The third book in the picture book series about Eddie, his teddy Freddy, and the big bear who lives in the woods.  They are all funny rhyming stories with large colorful illustrations, but this is the sweetest one, where the bear thinks his teddy bear can talk (because Eddie is hiding behind it), and Eddie and the bear end up becoming friends.

What are your favorite picture book adventure stories?