Storytime Share

 Aside: As I read this story, I am going to pause and have the children fill in the rhyming word. This is something you can easily do with rhyming books. Start off by using rhyming books that your child has read with you before.
Read the book: As you read the book, let the children chime in with some of the rhyming words, like head to follow red.
After the book activity: Everyone stand up! What’s a word that rhymes with head? Children give suggestions. Pick one–bed. OK, take your hand and dip it in red paint on the floor (pretend). Now take your hand and draw a bed. Good! What’s a word that rhymes with green? Perhaps the children say bean. OK, dip your foot in some green paint on the floor, and draw a bean. We all laugh together.
Submitted by Katie Ross, Kanawha County (WV) Public Library System

Say to all: In our next book, there is a mother hen and her three chicks, one is a Big Chick, one the Middle Chick, and lastly the Little Chick. The Little Chick likes to run on tiptoes, very quickly. Everyone stand up. Let me see you run in place, just where you are standing. Great! Now let me see you stand on tiptoe. That’s right you don’t touchyour heel to the floor. Now run in place again, but on tiptoe–that’s how Little Chick runs. Everyone sit down and let’s see what happens. In this book there are sounds like RUFF-RUFF that the dog makes. Let me hear you say that. Great! For Little Chick the sound is tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe. Let me hear you say that. Great!
OK, ready?! As I read the book you’ll be making these sounds. Listen to the story too and see how smart Little Chick is.
Read the story.
Aside: Having your children make the sounds of animals and other sounds helps them develop phonological awareness, being able to hear the smaller sounds in words. This is so important when they later try to sound out words.

Introductory Aside: Rhyming is one way that children learn to hear that words are made up of smaller parts. By doing rhymes with them you are supporting phonological awareness. This skill helps them when they later try to sound out words. And it’s fun, too!
Read Who’s There on Halloween? by Pamela Beall

Song: Do a rhyming song to the tune of Are You Sleeping?
We are rhyming; we are rhyming.
Rhyme with me; rhyme with me.
Nose rhymes with toes; nose rhymes with toes. (substitute other words from story)
Rhyme with me; rhyme with me.
Closing Aside: Take advantage of lots of opportunities to play rhyming games with your children.
Submitted by participants in Saskatchewan Library Association Conference 2008

Aside:  As we read this book listen for words that rhyme, words that sound similar. Even the title of the book Move Over Rover has two words that rhyme.
Read Move Over Rover
Repeat the story using stuffed characters and a doghouse and let the children tell the story, using rhyming phrases from the book.
Submitted by participants of Saskatchewan Library Association Conference 2008

Aside:  Today we are focusing on phonological awareness, the early literacy skill that includes rhyming and helps children hear parts of words. This story, Fidgety Fish by Ruth Galloway, has rhyming and non-rhyming segments. We’ll see words that rhyme and words that don’t. Rhyming breaks words into smaller parts. Words that sound like the sounds they make also support phonological awareness. This is called onomatopoeia.
Submitted by participants of Saskatchewan Library Association Conference 2008

Introductory Aside: Researchers have found that one of the six early literacy skills is phonological awareness. This is the ability to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words, like rhyming and hearing the beginning sounds of words.
Aside before reading the book Animal Boogie by Debbie Harter: This is a book that we can sing. Listen to all the rhymes in this book. Singing and rhyming help with phonological awareness. You can also think of other words that rhyme, or add extra verses at the end.

Aside: Rhymes help teach “phonological awareness”–an awareness of the sounds that make up words. You may have noticed that your child enjoys the way a nursery rhyme sounds even if it doesn’t make much sense to him. When you introduce a new rhyme or song, repeat it at least twice. Three times is even better. And be sure to keep repeating the old, familiar rhymes too.
Submitted by Cindy Christin, Bozeman (MT) Public Library

Aside: Singing songs and saying rhymes are good ways for children to become aware of the different sounds that make up words. We call this phonological awareness. It also helps them get a feelf or the rhythm of language, how words are divided into syllables.
Submitted by Cindy Christin, Bozeman (MT) Public Library

Introductory Aside: I will be having the children hear and make animal sounds. This is one of the ways to develop phonological awareness, hearing the smaller sounds in words.
During the storytime, read book. We are now going to read What Shall We Do With the Boo-Hoo Baby? by Cressida Cowell. All join in together with the animal sounds and the crying baby! Letting the children hear and make the sounds helps them later hear the sounds in words.
Closing Aside: Feel free to check out these books I have displayed which have animal and other sounds, which will help with phonological awareness.
Submitted by Cindy Thompson, Roanoke City (VA) Public Library

Mortimer’s song is repeated:
Clang, clang, rattle-bing-bang
Gonna make my noise all day.
Clang, clang, rattle-bing-bang
Gonna make my noise all day.
You pass out musical instruments and have them play to the rhythm of the song.
Aside: As the children are saying the words of the sounds, they are developing phonological awareness. Having them play to the rhythm of the words also helps with this skill.
Submitted by Barbara Slough, Glasgow Library, Rockbridge Regional Library (VA)