STORYTIME FOR: Berwyn Public Library (Outreach)
Hello/Goodbye Song
We Say Hello/Goodbye Like This (with ukulele)
(Tune: The Farmer in the Dell)
D A7
We wave hello like this… with our friends in storytime, we wave hello like this.
D A7
We clap hello like this…with our friends in storytime, we clap hello like this.
D A7
We stomp hello like this… with our friends in storytime, we stomp hello like this.
Why These Books?
Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson. I like to use this story for both preschool and sensory storytimes. It works well because it’s excited and interactive ( a lot like Press Here). The book gives directions like “tap this page to see…” and I ask the kids at the beginning of the story to help me out by tapping on their hands. But this books goes beyond simply being interactive. It’s a great book to start off a seasons storytime because of the way it focuses on how a tree changes with each season. Kids love to see the tree change and comment on details (i.e. the squirrel who eats the apple.
Here Comes Jack Frost by Kazuno Kohara. This is another book that seems to be multipurpose! I had used this for winter storytime, but I go to enough classrooms that there were plenty of classes that I hadn’t read it to yet. Although the bulk of this book is about what the boy and Jack Frost do in winter, the book is really framed by the seasons changing: it begins when frost appears on the window, introducing Jack Frost, and ends when the boy finds a snowdrop flower, introducing spring.
The Little Tree by Loren Long. At first glance from an adult perspective, this is such a slow and sweet story that I wondered how well it would go in a storytime (since its not as active as the books above). But I was told by a co-worker that it works surprisingly well, so I tried it…and found out that she was right. The classes I read to loved this book. It begins with a little tree, not yet full grown, who loves his leaves. As the seasons change, the trees around him lose their leaves, but the little tree holds on to his tight. The trees around him start to grow, but he stubbornly holds onto his leaves until they turn brown. The moment that the little tree finally lets go of his leaves is a powerful one, and then the tree starts to grow. My kids couldn’t get enough! I’m also going to use this story as a backup for my growing storytime.
Stretchers
Where’s the Snowball? (flannel)
Hide a flannel snowball under different colored flannel mittens and have the kids guess where it is. A great activity to talk about colors!
Winter Hokey Pokey (motion song)
You put your mittens in you put your mittens out,
You put your mittens in, and you shake them all about.
You do the hokey pokey and you turn yourself around.
That’s what it’s all about.
Repeat: boots, hat, etc.
Winter Animal Bag (puppets)
Show puppets of winter animals and talk about what each one sounds like, where it lives, and what it does during the winter. For younger and sensory kids, I simply asked, what sound does this animal make. I saved the bear puppet for last and told the kids, “In the winter, the bear likes to snore.”
Seasons of a Tree (action rhyme)
In the springtime I have flowers,
And I like to show my colors.
In summer I have leaves
That are all big and green.
In fall my leaves fall down,
And my arms droop like a frown.
In winter my arms hang low,
Piled up with glistening snow.
Next springtime comes and then
The seasons start again!
How It Went
I actually started doing by seasons storytime with Tap the Magic Tree, Mouse’s First Snow by Lauren Thompson, and Old Bear by Kevin Henkes. I think my classes were still interested, but I just got the feeling that the books were too easy for them. I soon realized that these books worked a lot better for sensory storytime, because they are more concept based. I was much happier after I switched them out. I also wanted a stretcher about the seasons of a tree, so I made up the rhyme (above) with arm motions. It worked really well; the kids loved pretending to be trees!
The Journey Librarian 