Old MacDonald Had a Farm Song

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: Songs are a great way to incorporate the early literacy skill, phonological awareness. Hearing and learning animal sounds helps your children hear the smaller sounds in words and singing emphasizes different syllables. This helps your children later to sound out words. Submitted by Wendy B. Rancier, Roanoke County (VA) Public Library

Old MacDonald Has a Farm Song

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: Researchers have found that one of the early literacy skills is phonological awareness. This is the ability to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words, like rhyming, playing with syllables or parts of words, and hearing beginning sounds of words. The beginning of this skills starts with children hearing and saying the sounds of animals.Sometime durng storytime sing "Old MacDonald" with the children, including several animals--cow, pig, sheep, chicken, duck, etc. Early Literacy Aside--Example:  Making the sounds of animals contributes to phonological awareness and hearing sounds in words. Early Literacy Aside--Empower: Take advantage of opportunities to sing and say the sounds of animals with your children. It's fun and it also helps them hear the smaller sounds in words.

Submitted by Kimberly Burnette-Dean, Roanoke County (VA) Public Library

The Aminal by Lorna Balian

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: Narrative skills is helping your child tell a story. Researchers say this is an important skill towards your child learning to read, understanding what he will read. In this storytime we will have fun while using narrative skills.During the storytime: Early Literacy Aside--Example: In this story we will be using narrative skills to tell our story and to talk about the events taking place. Narrative skills is one of the early literacy skills that help your children learn to read. This includes giving your children time to think about and answer questions about the story. Listen as I ask questions that cannot be answered with just yes or no. Read the book. Early Literacy Aside--Empower: Ask your child about storytime today when you get home and help them retell one of the stories. You'll be continuing to develop your child's narrative skills!

Submitted by Carolyn B. Morehead, Big Island Library, Bedford (VA) Public Library

Blue Goose by Nancy Tafuri

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: Researchers have found that 95% of children's attention goes to the pictures in the book. When you run your fingers under the title as you read it, this helps show them you are reading the text, not the pictures. This is part of print awareness and is one of the skills children need to learn to read.During the storytime--Read the book running your finger under the repeated phrases. Early Literacy Aside--Example: You can run your finger under the repeated phrases to match the text to the words. Then your action doesn't get in the way of the story. Read the book running your finger under the repeated phrases. Early Literacy Aside--Empower: When you read withyour children at home, hold the book upside down or backwards and see if your child notices. Be sure to turn the book if a page is in a different direction. Theis helps develop their print awareness. Submitted by Melissa Davis, Bedford (VA) Public Library

Help! A Story of Friendship by Holly Keller

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: When you help your children pay attention to the print in books, you are helping to develop their print awareness, one of the early literacy skills that will later help them learn to read. I'll point out a couple of things in storytime today that will support this skill. Read the story Help! A Story of Friendship by Holly Keller. [When you come to the page with the deep hole, you have to turn the book the long way.] Wow! This hole is so deep we have to turn the book around. Look the writing changed direction too! Early Literacy Aside--Example:  Children's attention often goes to the pictures. By pointing out the direction of print you help develop your children's print awareness.

Shapes--Explain Aside

Early Litearcy Aside--Explain: Today our early literacy tip is on letter knowledge. You may think of letter knowledge as being able to write letters. Actually there is a lot to know related to letter knowledge long before children can write the letters. One aspect is recognizing shapes. Today I'll be pointing out some fun ways we can help them recognize and talk about shapes.

Print Awareness--Explain Aside

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: Our early literacy tip of the day today is on print awareness. There are many ways we can help children understand that print has meaning. Research studies point out that about 95% of a child's attention goes to the pictures. Today in storytime I'll be pointing out some ways we can help them focus on the print as well.

Reading--Language of Books

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: Reading is one of the best ways to introduce new words to your children. Many books have unfamiliar words. ones we would not use in regular conversations with our children. Talking about even one or two of the words before, during or after reading the book is one way to build your children's vocabulary. Knowing lots of words, having a large vocabulary, helps children not only understand what they later learn to read, it also helps them recognize words when they later try to sound them out. Today we'll see how the language of books expands your child's vocabulary.

Recess Queen by Alexis O'Neill

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: One thing you can pass on to your children is an enjoyment of books. Children who enter school enjoying books and reading are more likely to stick with learning to read even if it is difficult. For over half our children, learning to read in school is difficult. I know we have a lot of book-lovers here. In today's storytime, I'll point out some ways to keep your children's attention and keep the booksharing time enjoyable.Book Introduction: I show the cover of the book Recess Queen by Alexis O'Neill and flip through the pages to show my love of a few descriptive illustrations, especially facial expressions that show feelings like”mad and scared. Early Literacy Aside--Example: Read with your child in a comfortable setting so you may share and talk about the book, including what the pictures are saying. When you take time to talk with your child and listen to what your chld says about the pictures, you are helping to make an enjoyable time with the book, which helps print motivation.

 Submitted by Carolyn Lewis, Pamunkey (VA) Regional Library

Is Your Mama a Llama? by Deborah Guarino

Early Literacy Aside--Explain:The ability to hear and play with the sounds of words, as in rhyming, is an important skill for reading. To recognize these rhymes and how words are related by sound is part of what educators term phonological awareness and will help your children later sound out words.During the storytime, read the book Is Your Mama a Llama? by Deborah Guarino Each page describes the animal that might be llama's mother. Let's guess what will come on the next page. I will emphasize the word that will rhyme on the next page. For example, if I say now, guess what animal we will see. The author gives us other clues, like brown and moo. So, we know the animal will rhyme with now is COW! Early Literacy Aside--Example: Some books, like this one, use rhymes in a playful way. Playing with rhyming words is one good way to help children hear the smaller sounds in words which will later help them sound out words when they learn to read.

Maisy Big, Maisy Small by Lucy Cousins

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: Vocabulary is a very important early literacy skill. By vocabulary, I mean knowing the meanings of words. Today we're focusing on the concept of opposites. Read the book Maisy Big, Maisy Small by Lucy Cousins with time to allow participants to respond with the opposite word. [Add a synonym for a couple of the words as well. If a participant gives a different word for the opposite word, comment on it. For example if you say big and the book says small, but a child says tiny, you can note that tiny and small have similar meanings and both are the opposite of big.] Early Literacy Aside--Example: Using this book your children filled in the word meaning the opposite of the one I said from the book. You can always add more interesting words for both the opposite and synonyms for some words. In this way you build your children's vocabulary. Early Litearcy Aside--Empower: Today in storytime we talked about opposites. As you go about your day, when talking about feelings (hungry, full, tired, wide awake), about what you are doing (relaxing, hurrying, walking slowly, running quickly), or playing, there are many opportunities to think of opposites which builds your children's vocabulary. These little things you do throughout the day will later help them understand what they read.

Submitted by Ellen Abramson, Fairfax County (VA) Public Library System

Something from Nothing by Phoebe Gilman

Early Literacy Aside--Explain: One of the best things you can do to help your child be ready to learn to read is to share enjoyable times as you share books. Children who have these positive experiences around books are more likely to stick with learning to read when it comes time for them to learn to read. That enjoyment, called print motivation, goes a long way! Today I'll point out a couple ways you can support enjoyable reading experiences.
Before reading the book Something From Nothing by Phoebe Gilman:
Early Literacy Aside--Example: This is one of my favorite books! It's very clever and I like to watch the mouse story down below here. Adults, when you are reading a book you especially like, let your child know how much you like it and what you like about it. This supports print motivation, the enjoyment of reading.
Read the book Something from Nothing by Phoebe Gilman.