Storytime Share

Scarecrow, Scarecrow Rhyme and Dance

Early Literacy Aside: Here’s a rhyme that you can do anytime and it reinforces rhyming words which develops phonological awareness while having fun at the same time.
Do Scarecrow, Scarecrow activity
Children stand up with arms bent at elbows like a scarecrow and head tilted. Actions to words.
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, turn around
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, jump up and down
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, raise your arms high
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, wink one eye
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, bend your knees
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, flap in the breeze
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, climb into bed
Scarecrow, Scarecrow, rest your head.
Submitted by Terri Stringer, Vandalia Branch, Dayton Metro (OH) Public Library

Itsy Bitsy Spider Rhyme

Early Literacy Aside: Even with simple rhymes you can talk about what’s happening. This gives them more vocabulary, more words to know, and if you ask questions they respond to you are also developing their narrative skills.
Say/sing the rhyme:
The itsy bitsy spider went up the waterspout.
Down came the rain and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain.
And the itsy bitsy spider climbed up the spout again.
Aside: Here are some examples of the kinds of questions you can ask your children. [Then you ask the children a couple of questions. Some possibilities are below. Be careful to keep it fun and engaging, not like a test of knowledge.]
Where was the spider going?
What happened when the rain started?
Where do you think spiders live?
Have you seen a spider? Where? What was it doing?
What do you know about spiders?
Submitted by a library staff person at Public Library of Charlotte and Mechlenburg County (NC)

Five Candles

Five Little Kittens Rhyme

Five Little Kittens
Five little kittens sleeping on a chair
One rolled off, leaving four there.
Four little kittens, one climbed a tree
To look in a birds nest; then there were three.
Three little kittens wondered what to do.
One saw a mouse, and then there were two.
Two little kittens playing near a wall.
One little kitten chased a red ball.
One little kitten with fur soft as silk,
Left all alone to drink a dish of milk.
Say the rhyme together. Act out the lyrics.
Aside: We are acting out the lyrics. After we do it a few times, I will see if the children can help me recall the actions and say the rhyme themselves. This is a form of narrative skills, saying the rhyme in order and using the actions to help them recall it.
Submitted by Anna Hancock, Cincinnati (OH) Public Library

Ten Little Campers Fingerplay

Fingerplay: Ten Little Campers
Ten little campers putting up their tent. (Put finger tips of fingers together forming tent roof)
Ten little campers close the vents. (Intertwine fingers together to signify closure)
Ten little campers make a ring. (Form circle putting tips of fingers together and thumbs together)
Ten little campers start to sing. (Cup hands to mouth)
Ten little campers around the fire. (Form circle putting tips of fingers together again)
Ten little campers dance till they tire. (Put all ten fingers up in the air and dance them around)
Ten little campers say good-night. (Wave good-night with both hands)
Ten little campers close their tent up tight. (Intertwine fingers together again to signify closure)
Aside: Nursery rhymes are fun to sing and say with your child. Because they rhyme, they also help children develop phonological awareness, an important skill for later reading.
Submitted by Beth Grai, Independence (MI) Township Library

Any Rhyming Song

Introduction: Rhyming is one of the things that children learn that lets them hear that words are made of smaller parts. By doing rhyming songs and fingerplays with your child, you are supporting phonlogical awareness. It’s fun for you and your child and will help them when it comes time for them to learn to read.
Submitted by Molly Beedon, Ypsilanti (MI) District Library

Candlewick Press Storytime Plan

Storytime Plan includes these books with suggested activities and relation to the six early literacy skills.
Arabella Miller’s Tiny Caterpiller by Clare Jarrett
On the Farm by David Elliott
A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker
Tweedle Dee Dee by Charlotte Voake
[Some activities are more for school-age children.]
readtousstoryhourkit.pdf 

Little Raindrops Fingerplay

Fingerplay:  Little Raindrops
This is the sun, high up in the sky. (Form large circle with arms up)
A dark cloud suddenly comes sailing by.  (Move hands through the air in a parallel motion.)
These are the raindrops,  pitter, pattering down. (Bring arms down, flutter fingers)
Watering the flowers, growing on the ground. (Cup hands to form flowers.)
Activity: Make a book based on this fingerplay. Use the pattern here (Little Raindrops Booklet pattern) to represent the items in the fingerplay. There are four pages for your book (one for each line of the fingerplay). The pattern is a Word document so you can change the size of the objects to save paper, if you wish. The children cut out the pictures. They can cut around them to make it easier. The adults write the words to the fingerplay on each page. For children too young for this craft, the adults make the book FOR their young children. The umbrella can be used on the cover of the book.
Aside: Making a book with or for your child is very special. By showing care in making them and including your child in the process you make this activity around a book enjoyable. Your child can memorize the words to the rhyme and can “pretend” read it to you. Praise your child. This helps develop print motivation, a child’s interest and enjoyment of books and reading.
Submitted by Jaime Duval and Whitney Whitaker, Radford (VA) Public Library

Buzz, Buzz, Buzz! Went Bumble-bee by Colin West

Introductory Aside: Narrative skills can be developed by having your children tell stories. This is easier for some children when they recognize patters so that they can predict what will happen next.
Book Aside: Before reading the book–AS we read the book we want to encourage them to recognize the pattern and to repeat “buzz, buzz, buzz” and “buzz off.”
Read Buzz, Buzz, Buzz! Went Bumble-bee by Colin West
Fingerplay: Here is the Beehive
     Here is the beehive. Where are the bees?  (Hold up fist.)
     Hidden away where nobody sees. (Move other hand around fist.)
     Watch and you’ll see them come out of the hive. (Bend head close to fist.)
     One, two, three, four, five. (Hold fingers up one at a time.)
     Bzzzzzzzz… all fly away! (Wave fingers.)
Closing Aside:  Children enjoy repeating phrases as they did in our book and song. Please help your children look for patterns in the books and songs you do at home. This helps foster narrative skills.

Eat Your Peas by Kes Gray

peaspeaspeas1.doc
Submitted by participants of Saskatchewan Library Association Conference 2008