Story Time Detour - Everett Public Library

Instead of visiting a local story time, I filled in as a substitute librarian today to do a Toddler Time. I had the honor of filling in for the fabulous Ms. Andrea at the Everett Public Library for her Wednesday Toddler Storytime. Since I know that story time crowds like to have some consistency week to week, I did my best to recreate the storytime from Ms. Andrea's outline while adding my own flair. Here is what we did today.

Opposites!

Warm up

The Tempo Marches On – Jim Gill

I normally don't do a warm up; I just dive on in with a hello song and announcements. However, I loved it! This is a great way to get people ready while stragglers come in. I picked The Tempo Marches On because I adore Jim Gill.

3 deep breaths

As we breathe in, we raise our arms above our head; as we breathe out, we bring our arms back to the ground.

What an easy and simple way to calm down the crowd and transition into listening. 

Welcome!

I'm Ms. Amanda filling in for Ms. Andrea. Welcome to Toddler Time, a storytime intended for Children 18mo-2yr. End side conversations and sit you’re your child. Participate!

Pretty standard greeting and setting the expectations.

Hello Song

Hello, Hello

Hello and how are you?

I'm fine, I'm fine

And I hope that you are too.

I added this in here because I just feel weird without doing it. This was my Hello Song for many years during Toddler Time.

Let’s say Hello to our Toes

Can you wiggle your fingers? Let’s say good morning to your fingers.

Good morning fingers (wiggle your fingers), goodbye fingers (hide fingers behind your back)

Good morning fingers (wiggle your fingers), goodbye fingers (hide fingers behind your back)

My fingers are feeling shy today (clasp hands together, and put near your face, like you are shy)

They see their friends, and they are happy! (Wiggle fingers)

Good morning toes…

I haven't done this rhyme before, but it was a perfect transition from the Hello Song to say: "Now we've said hello to each other, let's say hello to our fingers!" 

Criss-Cross Applesauce

Criss-cross, applesauce
Spiders crawling up your back
Cool breeze
Tight squeeze
and now I’m going to tickle you!

This is soooo cute and perfect for toddlers or babies. I did my best to demonstrate what the parents should do. A stuffed animal might have been a good idea here. Luckily, they were mostly regulars and know the drill.

Spot's Opposites by Eric Hill (Copy for every family, read together)

I have only done the individual books for Baby Storytime, but this works great with the toddlers. The parents all read along with me, which was fantastic. What an awesome, involved group we had!

Roll your hands (Tune: Row, Row, Row Your Boat)

Roll, roll, roll your hands
As fast as fast can be.
Do it now, let me see,
Do it now with me.
Variations:
Clap, clap, clap your hands…
Tap, tap, tap your feet…

5 Little Ducks - Flannel

I found the flannel in their storytime closet and could not resist. I love singing this song. I connected it to opposites by saying: "If the ducks go out, what would be the opposite? If the ducks come back in! That's right. Let's see if they come back in after they go out."

Yummy Yucky by Leslie Patricelli (Copy for every family, read together)

I love this book. I liked that it was a little different from Spot's Opposites. A lot of those opposite books can get repetitive.

Hap Palmer’s Rock and Roll Freeze Dance - with scarves!

This was on her outline and I had a lot of fun. I love using scarves. :) I was actually surprised that, as young as they were, they got the 'freeze' parts right. It goes to show what repeating songs and concepts can accomplish.  

Animal Opposites, a Pop Up Book

I choose this out of their storytime closet and it worked really well. This book is good for didactic reading and movement. I asked them about the different animals and told them to stretch and bounce with me.

Raffi’s Shake My Sillies Out (2 times, with rattles)

This was in her outline and it made me really happy. I've done this song for years in my storytimes. I used the CD this time for the beat, but I normally just belt it out acapella style.  

We Wave Goodbye Like This (Tune: Farmer in the Dell)

We wave goodbye like this.
We wave goodbye like this.
We clap our hands for all our friends.
We wave goodbye like this

I used her goodbye song to finish off the storytime portion and they all sang along. Yay! 

Bring out the Toys and Bubble machine

Oh, boy. Did they love this part. My helper today, a library page named Jennifer (without whom I was doomed to fail) brought out the bubble machine and waltzed around the room, showering the toddlers in bubbles. I, meanwhile, dumped 4 large tubs of toys on the carpet. I've had toys and playtime at the end of Toddler Time before and I am very much for it. While some parents leave right away and don't engage, many others stay to play and the parents get to connect with one another.

I had a blast today and was grateful for the chance to flex my storytime muscles. I learned some new tricks and met some pretty rad kids.

Best,

Amanda

Bilingual Story Time - Cinco de Mayo

The other day I did my first Preschool Story Time at my new library. I decided to do a Cinco de Mayo theme. Mostly, I wanted to make the story time bilingual. I am not fluent in Spanish, but know a few phrases. I made sure to double check pronunciations and spellings with a coworker who is fluent before I went into the story time. Here is what I did and how it went.

Welcome to story time! We sing my current hello song.

We Clap and Sing Hello
(tune: Farmer in the Dell)
We clap and sing hello
(clap, clap)
We clap and sing hello
(clap, clap)
With our friends in story time
We clap and sing hello
(clap, clap)

It's letter time!

I like to start with letter time to introduce the capital and lowercase letters to the preschoolers. This story time, it was letter M. I set up the letter time by bringing out puppets: a monkey, a mouse, and a moose. What letter do they all have in common?!

M is, of course, for the month of May. This is how I introduce the theme.

To celebrate Cinco de Mayo, we read bilingual books in story time.

Book:

This book was great. I didn't read all of it because it is a little long. Instead I read selected words in Spanish. At the end, I repeated the colors in Spanish and pointed out the children who were wearing those colors.

Next we sang a song in Spanish. I took care to teach them each phrase twice before we started the song.

Buenos Días 
(tune: Are You Sleeping?)
Buenos días, buenos días
Cómo estás? Cómo estás?
Muy bien gracias
Muy bien gracias
Y tu? Y tu?

At this point, I noticed a little bit of restlessness from the kids. Learning all those words in a new language was doable, but took a lot of their concentration. It was time to shake out some sillies. I put on a Raffi CD and played Shake My Sillies Out.

I like to use this transition rhyme to get them calm for a book again:

Stretch up high toward the sky
Stretch on down to the ground
Stretch arms out and spin around
Sit quietly back down

Book:

I absolutely adore Pat Mora. This book has a lot of great illustrations as well. Once again, I read selected parts in Spanish so as to not overwhelm the mostly native English speaking crowd. 

I took a break from Spanish and did a felt story of the Itsy Bitsy Spider. Originally, I had planned on introducing more Spanish words into the song, but I could tell they needed a break. 

Next, we put on Jim Gill's The Tempo Marches On. This song is great for learning self-regulation and fast vs slow. 

Book:

This book was really perfect. Had it been only in English, I would say it was more of a Toddler level book, but since it was introducing words in another language it worked great. I had everyone repeat the phrase 'Qué más?' that came up on every page. 

Next I sang my goodbye song on my guitar: May There Always Be Sunshine. Inspired by Jim Gill, I ask the kids what they think there should always be and try to work it into the song. Always good fun.

At the end, I brought out a Piñata filled with candy. Instead of whacking it open, I pre-cut a hole and let them pull out a piece of candy.

This week's craft was making paper flowers. 

Photo from Flickr. 

This craft was a lot of fun, but I noticed that parents seemed to be doing most of the work. The tissue paper was too delicate for the kids to handle. Noted for future preschool crafts! The kids sure had fun running around and smelling each other's flowers though. It was adorable. 

It feels good to be back in the story time seat! 

Best,

Amanda

6 Ways Libraries Spread Valentine's Day Love

1. Valentine's Day Crafts

Almost every public library will have a craft for kids to make Valentines, Valentine Boxes, or Valentine's Day cards.

2. Love Themed Story Times

It's also common for your local story time to be about love, but not always. Some librarians don't like to do themes or have some other theme planned. It may be good to call ahead to see.

3. Blind Date Book Display

This is a really neat trend that has caught on at many libraries. You check out a book without knowing what it is. Will it be love, or will your book date be a dud?

4. Romance Novels

Perfect for reading while curled up next to your cat with a glass of wine. Judgement free!

5. Cookbooks for Romantic Recipes

Eating out can be a miserable experience. Even if you make reservations, restaurants are so busy this night. Stay in with your sweetie and make your own tasty food together. Even if it turns out poorly, it will make a funny story (plus, Dominoes does deliver on Valentine's Day... just saying).

6. Valentine's Reference Questions

"What are Valentine's Day traditions in other countries?"
"What is the number for local chocolate makers or florists?"
"Who wrote that song that goes like this... ? We heard it on our first date."

#Letmelibrarianthatforyou

Good luck!

Love,
Amanda

Story Time Detour - KCLS Burien Library

I've been touring all the library branches in Seattle and observing story times, but this week I took a little detour. I volunteer for the King County Library System at the Burien Library and I asked the children's librarians at this library if I could sit in on one of their story times. Here is what we did today.

Library: KCLS Burien Library
Age/Type: Preschool
Storyteller: Ms. Gaye

This story time takes place in the building's multipurpose room that the library shares with city hall. It is a nice, big space. Ms. Gaye has name tags for story time goers and makes chit chat as people come in. She starts the story time with a great rhyme. KCLS has an excellent website that shares a lot of songs and rhymes called Tell Me a Story.

Here is the one we open with:

"My Hands"

Next we play a fun guessing game with four flannel houses. Ms. Gaye asks us to guess under which house the little duck is hiding. "Little duck, little duck, are you in the red house?" We repeat until we find the little duck under the last house.

We talk about how ducks go 'quack' and Ms. Gaye explains that today is all about the letter 'Q'. She takes out a 'Q' on a stick and asks us what words start with 'Q'.

Book: "Little Quack's Hide and Seek"

Since Valentine's Day is coming up, Ms. Gaye gets out a flannel called "Five Sweet Valentines." I've used this rhyme before. It's a great subtraction exercise.

Book: "Questions, Questions"

Next we sing "Roll Your Hands." I love this!

What else starts with 'Q'? Why, 'Queen' of course! Ms. Gaye does a flannel rhyme called "Queen of Hearts." A Queen gets new dresses with various shapes. We point out the shapes on our own clothing.

This next part is truly magical. Ms. Gaye has a bag of stuffed animals and she pulls them out as she sings the "When Animals Get Up in the Morning" song.

After this, we sing the "Alphabet Song" and clap to the beat.

Book: "If You're Happy and You Know It, Clap Your Hands" - a Pop-up!!

The last activity before the craft is the "Beanbag Song." Ms. Gaye puts on a song from a CD and hands out beanbags. The song is really fun and interactive. All the parents and kids get really into throwing the beanbags and holding them to different body parts.

The craft is creating a Queen with Q cut outs.

What a cool story time! Thanks for letting me observe today, Ms. Gaye.

Best,
Amanda

Seattle Story Time Tour - Green Lake

Branch: Green Lake
Storyteller: Ms. Joanna
Age/Type: Toddler Story Time

Today's Story time takes place in the "Mary Alice Cooley" meeting room on the lower level of the library. It's a nice, big space. Children gather on a colorful carpet and Ms. Joanna welcomes them. She points out the shapes and colors on the carpet.

The theme for this story time is Animals!

Book: "Hello, Day!"

Song: "When Animals Get Up in the Morning"

"When cows get up in the morning, they always say hello. They say moo, moo, moo, that is what they say." We repeat with Pig, Duck, and Horse. 

Book: "Spots, Feathers, and Curly Tails"

Next, Ms. Joanna hands out shakers and we sing "The More We Get Together."

Big Book: "Where is the Green Sheep"

Now Ms. Joanna asks the children to get on all four like a dog. We sing "How Much is That Doggie in the Window." The children bark and shake their 'tails' during the song. What fun!

Next we do a classic finger play called "Two Little Birds." We hold out a pointer for each bird and fly them away behind our backs. At the end they come back out.

"Two little birds, sitting on a wall. One named Petter and one named Paul. Fly away Peter. Fly away Paul. Come back Peter. Come back Paul."

She repeats this with ponies, fishes, and pussy cats.

Book: "Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What Do You See?"

Ms. Joanna then tells us a Flannel Story based on the popular book "Dog's Colorful Day."

Shakers are passed around again and the children shake and dance to the song "The Animal Fair" on a CD.

It's time for the Goodbye Song! We sing: "We Wave Goodbye Like This."

Ms. Joanna stamps hands and passes out toys for a play time that follows story time. I love the idea of letting caregivers and children socialize.   

Thank you for letting me observe, Ms. Joanna! Congratulations on your retirement. I'm so glad we got to meet.

Best,

Amanda

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

Seattle Story Time Tour - Douglas-Truth Branch

Welcome to a new recurring series of posts that I am calling 'Seattle Story Time Tour'. I was challenged by my WLA mentor to visit all 27 Seattle Public Library branches by April of this year. As I thought about this, I decided to make my mission to visit a story time from each branch. Here is my very first visit.

Branch: Douglas-Truth
Storyteller: Ms. Lynn
Age/Type: Toddler Story Time

Right away I know this story time is going to be fun. The kids outside the door are all repeating to one another: "Ms. Lynn, Ms. Lynn!" We go inside and Ms. Lynn asks all the caregivers and toddlers to take off their shoes because today we are trying out a new activity-- a parachute. I've always wanted to try out a parachute in a story time and today I get to see it in action. It sits in the middle of the room, big and colorful. Waiting. For those of you unfamiliar with the playtime parachute, here is a little girl using one:

Photo by: Lance McCord

Ms. Lynn starts the story time traditionally with a Hello Song. She points to a little girl and asks everyone the color of her shirt and then they sing a song that goes like this:

"Mary is wearing her green shirt, green shirt, green shirt. Mary is wearing her green shirt all day long."

She repeats the song with a number of different children and then moves on to the first book, which is "Bounce" by Doreen Cronin. All of the kids stand up and bounce along.

Next Ms. Lynn puts on a modified version of "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" that involves counting and a fast rhythm.

They read the classic Keith Baker "Big Fat Hen" big book next. Lots of great counting and movement.

The next activity is a song to the tune of Frere Jacques that goes like this:

"Walking, walking, walking, walking. Hop, hop hop. Hop, hop hop. Running, running, running. Running, running, running. Now we stop. Now we stop."

Finally we get to the part all the toddlers have anxiously been waiting for: the parachute! Everyone gathers around the outside of the parachute and holds the edge. They sing a few verses of "Ring Around the Roise" while walking and spinning the parachute.

The next parachute activity is waving it like ocean tides. It gets faster, then slower again. Then Ms. Lynn puts on the Elevator Song and they take the parachute up and down.

By far the best part (as far as the toddlers were concerned) comes next. Ms. Lynn puts clear plastic balls on top of the parachute and they make the balls bounce. The children help put the balls away afterward.

They said goodbye by letting the children underneath the parachute and singing the goodbye song. A few adorable little girls have mad scientist hair as the static takes over. Kind of like this kid:

Photo by: Marcus Nelson

After the goodbye song, some of the toddlers and caregivers choose to stay for a while longer playing with toys and mingling.

It all looked very fun. Thanks for letting me sit in and observe, Ms. Lynn!

Best,
Amanda