I'm super excited to be doing my first outdoor storytime! The venue we are working with looks so much like an outdoor stage that I am almost intimidated. I know I won't have many props or be using flip charts, so I made sure to pick easy rhymes that I already have memorized and popular ones that many will already know.
Here's what I have planned:
PBJ Hello Peanut butter jelly, Marmalade and jam. Let’s say hello as LOUD as we can! HELLO (softly, fast, slow, nicely)
The More We Get Together
The more we get together, together, together
The more we get together,
The happier we'll be.
Because your friends, are my friends
And my friends, are your friends.
The more we get together,
The happier we'll be.
We'll do some stretching together:
High to the sky; Low to our toes; Right; Left, Then we will pretend to be trees leaning this way and that way in the wind.
Our first book will be: I Love You, Sun, I Love You, Moon by Tommie DePaola
I plan to do both the English and Spanish versions of this book.
Little Clapping Mouse Behind the tree (clap, clap) And under the house * * There lived a teeny * * Tiny mouse * * She loved to sing * * She loved to tap * * But most of all * * She loved to clap * * She clapped all night * * She clapped all day * * She clapped to frighten * * The cat away * * * * * * * * (lots of claps)
Our next book will be: The Cow Said Neigh! A Farm Story by Rory Feek and Illustrated by Bruno Robert
This one puts a spin on your usual farm animal sounds, so I thought it would be fun for this crowd.
Game – Sleeping, Sleeping is a game my mom taught me. Basically, you put the kids to sleep and tell them to wake up as different animals. Then you put the animals to sleep and wake them up again as a different animal. But don't forget to turn them back into kids at the end.
Sleeping Bunnies
See the bunnies sleeping, Till it's nearly noon, Shall we wake them with a merry tune? They're so still, are they ill? WAKE UP LITTLE BUNNIES Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop, Hop, hop, hop, Hop, hop, hop, Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop, Hop, hop, hop!
My last book was going to be, I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More by Karen Beaumont, but I found 40+ copies of Tickle Time by Sandra Boynton and decided it would be great to actually pass these out and promote that one-on-one reading time.
We are going to end with some bubbles & a bubble bath song by Joanie Bartels. Bubbles are great for younger kids especially because the same muscles you use to track the bubbles with are the same eye muscles we use when we later learn to read. So strengthening these muscles now can be a big help later!
If we have time, I like to see how happy everyone is with the tried and true: If Your Happy and You Know It.
PBJ Goodbye Peanut butter jelly, Marmalade and jam. Let’s say hello as LOUD as we can! HELLO (softly, fast, slow, nicely)
How'd it go:
Overall, we had a really great time! It was very sunny, so I really need a hat next time. But the books were good and the rhymes I planned worked well. I think I would add a few more clapping rhymes next time because the one I used was a hit.
That's all for now!
-M-