This week we’re learning about density and buoyancy! Will your flotation device keep the action figure afloat?
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Author Archives
What We Did in Storytime: Frogs
Storytime was all about frogs today! We splashed around in the sensory bin and made a frog craft with green tissue paper.
Song: If You’re Ready for a Story
Book: Leap Back Home to Me by Lauren Thompson
I liked this book! The little frog leap frogs over different things but always comes back to mama frog.
Felt Board: 5 Little Froggies
Five little froggies sitting on a well,
One looked up (point up)
and down he fell. (fall down)
Froggies jump high (reach up high)
Froggies jump low (reach down low)
Four little froggies hopping two and fro.
(Keep going until there are no more frogs.)
I like that this little rhyme for the flannel board has actions to go along with it to keep everyone interested and moving while we count down the froggies.
Book: Frogs by Marysa Storm
This is the first time I’ve tried using a nonfiction book in storytime, and I’m not sure how well it went over. It was shorter than Leap Back Home to Me but didn’t seem to hold the kids’ attention. I’ll have to think this over before trying another nonfiction book.
Song: Mm Ah Went the Little Green Frog
Mmm ahh went the little green frog one day.
Mmm ahh went the little green frog.
Mmm ahh went the little green frog one day.
And they all went mmm, mmm, ahh.
But… We know frogs go (clap) shanananana.
(clap) shanananana.
(clap) shanananana.
We know frogs go (clap) shanananana.
They don’t go mmm, mmm, ahh.
This is a classic kids’ song, but if you haven’t heard it before Jbrary has their version here.
What I Didn’t Use:
Fingerplay: “Two Little Frogs”
Two little frogs sitting on a hill,
One named Jack and one named Jill.
“Jump,” said Jack. “Jump,” said Jill.
And they both jumped down the great big hill.
Come back, Jack. Come back, Jill.
And they both jumped up the great big hill.
Book: Jump! by Scott M. Fischer
Fingerplay: Mr. Bullfrog
Here’s Mr. Bullfrog (make a fist)
Sitting on a rock (put fist on palm)
Into the water he jumps
KERPLOP! (clap loudly)
And that’s what we did in storytime today! If you’d like to see what we did in past weeks, click on the “What We Did in Storytime” tag. Also, just a reminder – we will be taking a break from Littles over the summer, so this was our last regular session for a few months. BUT!! Miss Marta and I have planned some really fun themed storytimes for over the summer too. We hope you can join us for Storytime Rocks! on June 3rd at 10 AM for a super fun music and dance themed storytime. Or why not check out Messing Around at 10 AM on July 1st, our art themed storytime program? We promise it will be LOTS of fun and make LOTS of messes. But don’t worry, you leave the clean up to us! Both programs are for kids up to age 6, with siblings welcome. Hope to see you there!
Miss Jessica
Review: Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez
Summary:
From the publisher: How did a raw chicken get inside Yasmany’s locker? When Sal Vidon meets Gabi Real for the first time, it isn’t under the best of circumstances. Sal is in the principal’s office for the third time in three days, and it’s still the first week of school. Gabi, student council president and editor of the school paper, is there to support her friend Yasmany, who just picked a fight with Sal. She is determined to prove that somehow, Sal planted a raw chicken in Yasmany’s locker, even though nobody saw him do it and the bloody poultry has since mysteriously disappeared. Sal prides himself on being an excellent magician, but for this sleight of hand, he relied on a talent no one would guess . . . except maybe Gabi, whose sharp eyes never miss a trick. When Gabi learns that he’s capable of conjuring things much bigger than a chicken–including his dead mother–and she takes it all in stride, Sal knows that she is someone he can work with. There’s only one slight problem: their manipulation of time and space could put the entire universe at risk. A sassy entropy sweeper, a documentary about wedgies, a principal who wears a Venetian bauta mask, and heaping platefuls of Cuban food are just some of the delights that await in his mind-blowing novel gift-wrapped in love and laughter.
Review:
You ever read a book so good that once you finish it, you hug it and thank it for its existence like some kind of nerdy version of KonMari? That is exactly what I did after finishing Carlos Hernandez’s middle grade debut, Sal and Gabi Break the Universe. Sal is one of the most delightful and charming protagonists I’ve read in a long time, and even though the scifi part of the plot wasn’t as significant as I had expected, it never dragged because I loved Hernandez’s style so much. Filled with heart and humor, this is a story about love and grief and friendship without ever getting preachy. The publisher suggested ages are 8 to 12, but I think kids on the older end of that range and even into young adult readers would better appreciate it. Highly, highly recommended.
Check it out on the catalog here!
Miss Jessica
Caterpillars and Butterflies Booklist
We’re crazy for caterpillars lately! The caterpillars we’ve been raising have been getting bigger every day. If you haven’t stopped in to check them out, you’re missing out! It’s pretty fun to see them crawling around and chowing down on their food. Here are some fun books about caterpillars and butterflies to share with your little ones.
Pete the Cat and the Cool Caterpillar by James Dean
Butterfly Birthday by Harriet Ziefert
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Gotta Go, Gotta Go! by Sam Swope
In My Flower by Sara Gillingham
Life Cycle of a Butterfly by Karen Kenney
Caterpillars by Claire Llewellyn
Butterflies by Nic Bishop
Love from the Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Butterflies by Thea Feldman
How a Caterpillar Grows into a Butterfly by Tanya Kant
10 Little Caterpillars by Bill Martin, Jr.
The Prince of Butterflies by Bruce Coville
Little Bear and the Butterflies by Susan Quinn
10 Magic Butterflies by Danica McKellar
Waiting for Wings by Lois Ehlert
Miss Jessica
What We Did in Storytime: 5/6
Song: If You’re Ready for a Story
Book: You Hold Me Up by Monique Gray Smith
I came across this book elsewhere and decided to use it for storytime. A sweet, gentle story about the different ways we look out for each other.
Song: Mama’s Sleeping (shaker egg song)
To the tune of Skip to My Lou
Mama’s sleeping, don’t wake her up (shake eggs quietly)
Mama’s sleeping, don’t wake her up
Mama’s sleeping, don’t wake her up
We must be very quiet
Wake up Mama, we want to play! (shake eggs loudly)
Wake up Mama, we want to play!
Wake up Mama, we want to play!
Let’s be very noisy!
(Repeat with baby)
Everybody loves going from shaking their eggs quietly to shaking AS LOUD AS WE CAN!!
Book: What Will Fat Cat Sit On? by Jan Thomas
One of my favorite storytime books! A very silly story about a very fat cat and the animals scared he’s going to sit on them. Jan Thomas’s large, bright illustrations make it even better.
Song: 10 Little Fingers
I have 1 little, 2 little, 3 little fingers
4 little, 5 little, 6 little fingers
7 little, 8 little, 9 little fingers
10 little fingers on my hands
They wiggle and they wiggle and they wiggle all together
They wiggle and they wiggle and they wiggle all together
They wiggle and they wiggle and they wiggle all together
10 little fingers on my hands
This song is a new one for me, and unfortunately I forgot to keep track of where I found it. I think it went well though and I will likely use it again.
What I Didn’t Use:
Book: Will Bear Share? by Hilary Leung
Song: Hands are Clapping
To the tune of Skip to My Lou
Hands are clapping, clap clap clap
Hands are clapping, clap clap clap
Hands are clapping, clap clap clap
Clap your hands my darling!
Toes are tapping, tap tap tap
Toes are tapping, tap tap tap
Toes are tapping, tap tap tap
Tap your toes my darling!
Our craft this week was a rain cloud. I slightly altered the instructions from this blog to make them individual clouds instead of a mobile and used a cloud clip art I found online. And that’s what we did in storytime today! If you’d like to see what we did in past weeks, click on the “What We Did in Storytime” tag. And be sure to come back next Monday to check out what Miss Marta did!
Miss Jessica
5 on Friday: May
For this month’s Five on Friday, I’ve put together 5 articles about kids’ books and literacy that I found interesting. I hope you do too!
- Why do we read sad books? Are sad books helpful for kids? Author Jo Knowles’ article has a really interesting take on the purpose and value of sad books for kids here.
- Any children’s librarian will tell you the importance of reading to your child. But don’t just take it from us – a recent study found that kids who are read one short book per day start kindergarten knowing 290,000 more words than kids whose parents didn’t read to them. If you increase the number of books to five per day, the difference in vocabulary bumps up to 1.4 million words. Wow! Read more on why you should read to your kids here.
- I remember reading Richard Scarry books when I was a kid, and it makes me smile to see they are still around today. But they’re not the exact same books as they were when I was young, because Scarry has been subtly updating them to better reflect changing values in society. How cool! Check out some of the altered pictures here.
- To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Children’s Book Week, the Library of Congress has put 67 classic children’s books online! Their news release states that “From Humpty Dumpty to Little Red Riding Hood, the books in this collection were published in the United States and England before 1924, are no longer under copyright, and are free to read and share.” So why not head over to the School Library Journal article covering it and check it out?
- Speaking of books I grew up on, Baby-sitters Club was another series I remember enjoying. With Raina Telgemeier’s graphic novel adaptation, they’ve come back into popularity. Riding on the wave of sudden relevance, Elle Fanning and others are recording audiobooks for the entire 131-book series.
And that’s all for this month! Be sure to check back in June, same bat time, same bat channel for the next 5 on Friday.
Miss Jessica
Junie B. Jones is Not a Crook
