Seattle Story Time Tour - Madrona-Sally Goldmark Branch

Branch: Madrona-Sally Goldmark 

Storyteller: Ms. Rachel

Age/Type: Family Story Time

This branch lives in an historic building (see plaque above). It's super tiny, but they make the space work. Ms. Rachel opens the doors at 11am and we begin right away.

Ms. Rachel leads the group in an opening chant that goes like this:

"The bright sun comes up, the dew falls away. Good morning, good morning, the little birds say. Wake up!"

Next she leads the group in the traditional action song "Open and Shut Them."

Today's story time is about Birds! Ms. Rachel Asks the children about the letter B and we make the 'buh' sound. 

The first book she reads is "WOW! Said the Owl."

This book is good for going over colors and basic counting. Perfect for the younger members of the audience. 

After the book, she asks everyone to give a 'round of applause' by clapping in a circular motion. 

In keeping with the color theme, we sing the "Color Song." It goes like this:

"If you're wearing red today, red today, red today. If you're wearing red today, stand up and say hooray! (repeat with other colors)"

Ms. Rachel has us all stretch and sit down for the next book: "I Spy in the Sky."

This book works really well for the older kids as it focuses on specific types of birds and involves guessing. A particularly funny moment comes when one child proudly proclaims to Ms. Rachel that he or she has seen a bird poop. What fun!

The next few activities involve egg shakers, so Ms. Rachel passes these out. After a few chaotic minutes, everyone settles in and Ms. Rachel puts on a CD of "The Chicken Song."

Next we use the shakers to sing "Head and Shoulders." This one is easier for the younger ones.

The shakers get put away and we play a counting game. Ms. Rachel puts up a large writing pad with a tree on it. She puts up five brightly colored owls and teaches subtraction by taking away owls in groups. Prefect activity for the preschoolers who shout out answers.

After the game, we sing all five verses of "Where is Thumbkin?" This song is better suited for the younger children who need to learn those hand movements. 

The challenge of a Family Story Time is finding books and activities all ages will enjoy. I think Ms. Rachel provides a good range of books and activities to find that balance.

Now she closes with a goodbye song, "Skinny Marinky Dinky Dink."

Stamps are available for those who want them and a craft is set up for any groups that want to stay and participate. Today's craft is a paper plate bird's nest with baby birds. 

The End. Yay!

Now that I've been to a few of these, I can definitely see how the librarians influence one another. Many of them use the same songs and have the same little tricks for getting the kids to sit still and listen to the next book. This is the benefit of working in a larger system- all the resource sharing! 

Thanks for letting me watch today, Rachel.

Best,

Amanda