Branch: Northeast
Storyteller: Ms. Erica
Age/Type: Preschool
Another packed story time for the Seattle Public Library. This branch, however, has a bigger meeting room and can support all the kids that show up today. Ms. Erica does a Groundhog Day theme today, focusing on the changing of the seasons.
Letter time! We go over the letter 'G' and the sounds it can make. Ms. Erica asks if anyone has a name that starts with 'g.' A few do. So does Groundhog!
Hello Song: "Open Shut Them" with whispered verses and loud verses.
She asks everybody to shake their hands while she goes over story time expectations with parents.
Book: "A Friend for All Seasons"
Ms. Erica tells us the story of the Groundhog. If he sees his shadow on Groundhog Day, that means 6 more weeks of winter.
Next we sing a song called "I'm a Little Groundhog" to the tune of "I'm a Little Teapot." It goes like this:
"I'm a little groundhog short and stout. February 2nd I pop out. If I see my shadow, they all shout: '6 more weeks of winter without a doubt!'"
Stretch! She asks us all to stand up and stretch to this rhyme:
"Tall as a tree, wide as a house, thin as a pin, small as a mouse."
Book: "Tap the Magic Tree"
She asks us to tap the air in front of us to make the magic happen in the book. Very cute read aloud.
Yay! I finally get to see a flannel. She uses a flannel set to tell the story of a confused Groundhog that can't tell if he can see his own shadow. Ms. Erica asks us to chant 'Groundhog, groundhog, when will Spring be?" He decides to go back into his burrow and wait for Spring to decide on its own.
Fact: Did you know that a groundhog is also know as a a woodchuck?
As soon as I heard 'woodchuck' I knew what was coming! Ms. Erica has us chant the classic tongue twister:
"How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood!?"
After several repetitions of this, Ms. Erica leads us in singing "The More We Get Together" and shows us the American Sign Language to go with it.
She fills the parents in on an Early Literacy Tip before the closing song. Writing takes a lot of core strength. Encourage your child to play and get strong so they can learn to write.
Goodbye Song: "If You're Happy and You Know It"
After the story time, Ms. Erica passes out puppets for kids to play with. She also has a craft prepared. Today's craft is a sheet of paper with four empty trees representing each season. The kids are provided with paper, glue, cotton balls, etc. to decorate them.
Ms. Erica also provides each kid who wants one with a hand stamp to conclude the story time.
This was a great, high energy group! Thanks for letting me observe.
Amanda
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