Babies & Books - Baby Story Time Planning

Hello all!

I've been planning my first Baby Story Time and wanted to share what I put together and how it went. If you have suggestions or ideas, I am all ears! Otherwise, I hope this helps anyone else starting out.

I put a limit on the program to 10 so that I could purchase 10 copies of the same board books. The program is new, so we haven't had even 10 people show up. This works out for now, but I've been in contact with local early childhood organizations to try to raise our attendance.  

Supplies:

1 Copy of the Outline

1 Baby Stand-in (I used a Barbar doll)

1 Boombox with a copy of Jim Gill's CD "Toe Leg Knee"

10 Copies of 3 Different Board Books

10 Scarves

10 Shakers

10 Copies of Songs and Rhymes for the Parents

10 Carpet Squares (or blankets to make the parents comfortable)

Here is the outline I used:

Babies & Books Outline – Summer 2015

I.                    Welcome to Babies & Books, a story time for babies 6 weeks to 18 months old. A few things before we get started. First, we run on baby time. It’s okay to be late, to leave early, to go out and back in if your baby needs the time. Second, don’t be afraid to sing and play along. Even if you think you sound bad or silly, trust me: your baby loves it anyway.

II.                  Opening Song:

Choo Choo!

Choo choo choo choo,

(bounce baby up and down to the rhythm)

Choo choo choo choo

(bounce baby up and down to the rhythm)

Up the railroad track,

(move baby forward)

Choo choo choo choo,

(bounce baby up and down to the rhythm)

Choo choo choo choo

(bounce baby up and down to the rhythm)

Then we come right back.

(move baby back toward you)

First we go to ________’s house,

(Baby’s name)

Then we go to _______’s house,

(Baby’s name)

(Repeat around the circle)

And then we come right back!

III.                Pass out 1^st board book

Look, Look!
(sing before reading book; use ASL for underlined words)

Look, look, it’s time for a book.
Look, look, it’s time for a book,
Look, look, it’s time for a book.
It’s time for a book right now.

IV.                Stand up!

The Noble Duke of York

The noble duke of York
He had ten thousand men
He marched them up

to the top of the hill
And marched them down again.
And when they’re up, they’re up,
And when they’re down,

they’re down,
And when they’re only half-way up,
They’re neither up nor down.

Shake It to the East

(pass out bells or shakers)

Shake it to the east, shake it to the west.

Shake it all around and then you take a rest.

Shake your shakers up, shake your shakers down.

Shake it, shake it, shake it and then you settle down.

V.                  Pass out 2^nd Board Book

VI.                Sit Down!

CD: Jim Gill’s Toe Leg Knee

VII.              Pass out 3^rd Board Book

VIII.            Play!

Zoom Zoom Zoom

(Pass out scarves)

Zoom Zoom Zoom
Were going to the moon
Zoom Zoom Zoom
Were going to the moon
We'll climb aboard a rocket ship
And go upon a little trip
Zoom Zoom Zoom
Were going to the moon
5. .4. .3. .2. .1. .Blast Off!

Peek-a-boo!

(Put scarf over child’s eyes)

1 -2 -3 Peek-a-boo! I see you!

This is the way we…

(Use scarf as ‘bath sponge’)

This is the way we wash our toes,

Wash our toes, wash our toes,

This is the way we wash our toes,

When we take a bath!

(Repeat with: ears, arms, legs, face, etc.)

IX.                Closing Song:

Here We Go Up
(Tune: "Here We Go Looby-Loo")

Here we go up, up, up
Here we go down, down, down
Here we go back and forth
Here we go round and round
Here we go to the left
Here we go to the right
Let’s all blow a kiss
Now wave goodbye like this!

X.                  Announcements! Don’t forget to sign up for Summer Learning Club. Feel free to bring a baby blanket next time for your comfort.

XI.                Free Play and Read! Baby safe toys and board books from the collection are out. Feel free to mingle and with other parents.

Special thanks to the Frisco Public Library, Seattle Public Library, and to Jbrary for songs and inspiration. 

How it went:

It was really fun! I had one kiddo who cried when we did the Noble Duke of York action rhyme, but she was smiling again by Peek-a-boo. Having only a few people makes it a little awkward. I hope we get the full 10 people so that everyone gets more out of it.  

Best,

Amanda

Incorporating Technology in Early Leanring

CC Credit: Jody Roberts

The public library has become a destination for many families to engage their children in early learning. Whether they come for story time, library material, or access to early literacy computers/tablets, these families are trusting the expertise of youth librarians at public libraries with their children's development. One of the things library professionals need to do is educate parents on technology use for children.

The biggest concern about incorporating technology into the life of a preschooler is that the child is not developmentally prepared to digest digital media and/or that too much screen time can be harmful to their early learning. In her article "Too Soon for Technology?" from the July 2014 School Library Journal, Annie Murphy Paul suggests that librarians and caregivers be more discerning when selecting technology for young children. She cites the American Society of Pediatrics as suggesting that children under age 2 should have no screen time and older children should be limited to 2 hours. The page that recommends this is talking specifically about television, but I think we can extrapolate most kinds of computing and gaming from the term 'screen time.' Children under 2 should have little to no screen time because it distracts from developing basic motor skills and impairs their understanding of physical objects/space. Children older than 2 can develop poor fitness/health habits in addition to impairing their ability to process physical surroundings if they are exposed to too much screen time.

Thinking about this, I have a few suggestions for libraries and parents. Firstly, I would recommend putting time limits on early learning stations for both computers and tablets. You may already have time limits due to popularity, but it would also help to put up signage to educate parents about reducing screen time to improve mental and physical health. Make sure there are play areas with physical toys nearby to encourage active play. Things like puppet theaters and felt boards are good examples. When you do pick apps or games for the child to play, make sure they are engaging and require decision making like matching, reading, drawing, and writing.

While screen time needs to be limited, there are many ways to incorporate technology into early learning that is not related to the sedentary activity that most parents fear. Librarians and parents should embrace technology to help do other activities. Story time programs, for instance, often have music. Why not get high tech and embed the digital music file in a PowerPoint that displays the lyrics for the parents? This way parents will see the lyrics and get more involved, making the child enjoy the activity at a higher level. Why not give your kid a pedometer and challenge them to take so many steps? They can practice counting and get exercise. Or, you could use an app to help identify different kinds of plants on a nature walk. There are tons of ways you could use technology to aide early learning.

Need ideas? Here are some examples for using technology for each of the 5 reading readiness practices. Librarians, feel free to steal and tell this to your parents.

1. Talking

Talking to your child does not normally require much in the way of technology. It's just something you do every day. You ask your child questions and listen to their answers. You talk about the objects in the world around you and about how you feel. A fun way to incorporate technology in talking would be to record your conversation with your child and play it back. Show them how to use your phone or the recorder and let them set up the recording (if possible). Once you play it back, talk about the talking. Do they sound weird on the recording? We always think our own voices sound weird on recordings. Why do think that is? This would encourage critical thinking.

2. Singing

I think a fun thing to do here is to set up a karaoke station. YouTube has many karaoke versions of Disney songs and so forth. You can practice reading the lyrics together on the screen or if you aren't there yet, you will at least have some nice background music as you belt out "Let it Go!" Repeat as necessary.

3. Reading

I know we discussed avoiding screen time, but the occasional eBook or TumbleBook (interactive eBook, often with sound and a read-along feature) is a perfect example of the good, engaging kind of screen time. Make sure to use the same principles of dialogic reading for eBooks as you do for print. Discuss the illustrations and ask questions as you go.

4. Writing 

Writing is super important in early learning. Children get the idea of how letters and numbers are formed by physically writing them out on paper. It's also important that children learn how to type, because, moving forward, the QWERTY keyboard still seems to be the dominate method for communication. Have your child right out their name and then have them find the letters on a keyboard (or a drawing of a keyboard). It might even been a fun activity to have them write in all the letters on an empty keyboard worksheet.

5. Playing

Playing is when a child puts into action what they've learned. It's their job, as kids, to take what they discover about the world and test out theories through play. It means movement; it means creativity. A fun idea could be to ask your child to come up with a puppet show while you record it on video. You can watch the show afterward and talk about the characters and the plot. Ask them where they got the idea and correct any misconceptions.

Incorporating technology in early learning is important because our children are growing up in a technology rich world that is constantly updating and expanding. It's good to know the limits of screen time and to make sure children are engaged in other activities, but that doesn't mean that we should throw out our modern devices. I feel some librarians and parents go a little too far here, taking pride in their willful ignorance today's technology. Not me. I'm always trying to better my understanding of these tools, because that's what they are- tools. They help us on our journey to understand the world and better ourselves. Let's just make sure we are using them wisely, especially as we foster the early learning of the next generation.

Best,
Amanda