Colors Storytime
I do Storytime every Tuesday at 10:15 at the Mount Royal branch library of the Duluth Public Library system. I enjoy it. I really do. I enjoy reading to the kids (my weekly "performance"), I love putting together themes, activities & songs to go along; I really enjoy creating flannel boards & fun activities to go along with it.
I've decided I'm going to start blogging about my Storytimes as it's a great resource for me down the road. I sometimes forget what worked & how well; what failed; what wasn't worth it and what TOTALLY was. I also lose track of what books/songs/fingerplays I do with what books/themes.
So here ya go. Today's Storytime:
Today our theme was COLORS. A fun Storytime theme and one I've used in the past & will use again in the future.
Opening song - The More We Get Together
Early Literacy Aside #1 - We talked about VOCABULARY as today's enhanced storytime element. Vocabulary is my favorite. I love talking about this because it's SO GREAT to learn new words & increase kids language awareness. Plus it's easy. You can read any book & find words that little ones don't know the meanings of. And non-fiction books are SUPER great to use.
Color, Color, Where Are You Color? by Mary Koski
A great book to play "I-Spy" with and talk to the kids about all the objects, plants, animals, etc featured in this book. Excellent for exploring vocabulary!
Dog's Colorful Day - by Emma Dodd
I made a quick & simple flannel board to go along with this book yesterday. A little tracing, a little cutting and wham! A super cute flannel that the kids LOVED.
The Great Big Green - by Peggy Gifford
Another great book exploring the color green and making it very easy to talk about vocabulary - plants, animals, people, art (ooh! collage!) I did my 2nd Early Literacy Aside right before this: As we read this book, I will stop to point out different animals and to point out words in the book. Factual books are a great way to introduce new words to your children! Reading & talking about new words increase your child's vocabulary. Studies show that the larger a child's vocabulary is when they enter school, the easier it is for them to read. READ READ READ!
Bear Sees Colors - by Karma Wilson & Jane Chapman
An adorable new "Bear" book. Love these. The kids were great at picking up the idea of the next color by use of the rhyming text! Two birds with one stone! I love rhyming books. And it's great to have the kids shout/guess the next color!
I Dream of an Elephant - by Ami Rubinger
Basically the same concept as Bear Sees Colors, but the pictures are so cute & the kids love guessing the colors with the elephants. Orange is my favorite! Kind of a bonus book (didn't really need to do it as we were pushing 30 minutes, but I couldn't resist).
Early Literacy Aside #3 - Keep in mind that reading books is not the ONLY way to increase your child's vocabulary. You might talk about the ambulance, fire station, ice cream truck, etc etc on a walk to the park. Talk about the different types of birds, talk about the buildings & the signs. Talk at the doctor's office, in the home and when you're out running errands. There is a neverending supply of experiences to enhance your child's vocabulary...and it will pay off in the long run!
We ended the Storytime with a rousing edition of "If You're Happy & You Know It!"
58 people in attendance. I thought it was more (we often have 75-85 people!) because they were quite squirelly today. I usually have a "core" group that sits right up front and gets into it...but with that many people it's hard to keep everyone focused (usually the adults!). Somedays are better than others!
I've decided I'm going to start blogging about my Storytimes as it's a great resource for me down the road. I sometimes forget what worked & how well; what failed; what wasn't worth it and what TOTALLY was. I also lose track of what books/songs/fingerplays I do with what books/themes.
So here ya go. Today's Storytime:
Today our theme was COLORS. A fun Storytime theme and one I've used in the past & will use again in the future.
Opening song - The More We Get Together
Early Literacy Aside #1 - We talked about VOCABULARY as today's enhanced storytime element. Vocabulary is my favorite. I love talking about this because it's SO GREAT to learn new words & increase kids language awareness. Plus it's easy. You can read any book & find words that little ones don't know the meanings of. And non-fiction books are SUPER great to use.
Color, Color, Where Are You Color? by Mary Koski
A great book to play "I-Spy" with and talk to the kids about all the objects, plants, animals, etc featured in this book. Excellent for exploring vocabulary!
Dog's Colorful Day - by Emma Dodd
I made a quick & simple flannel board to go along with this book yesterday. A little tracing, a little cutting and wham! A super cute flannel that the kids LOVED.
The Great Big Green - by Peggy Gifford
Another great book exploring the color green and making it very easy to talk about vocabulary - plants, animals, people, art (ooh! collage!) I did my 2nd Early Literacy Aside right before this: As we read this book, I will stop to point out different animals and to point out words in the book. Factual books are a great way to introduce new words to your children! Reading & talking about new words increase your child's vocabulary. Studies show that the larger a child's vocabulary is when they enter school, the easier it is for them to read. READ READ READ!
Bear Sees Colors - by Karma Wilson & Jane Chapman
An adorable new "Bear" book. Love these. The kids were great at picking up the idea of the next color by use of the rhyming text! Two birds with one stone! I love rhyming books. And it's great to have the kids shout/guess the next color!
I Dream of an Elephant - by Ami Rubinger
Basically the same concept as Bear Sees Colors, but the pictures are so cute & the kids love guessing the colors with the elephants. Orange is my favorite! Kind of a bonus book (didn't really need to do it as we were pushing 30 minutes, but I couldn't resist).
We ended the Storytime with a rousing edition of "If You're Happy & You Know It!"
58 people in attendance. I thought it was more (we often have 75-85 people!) because they were quite squirelly today. I usually have a "core" group that sits right up front and gets into it...but with that many people it's hard to keep everyone focused (usually the adults!). Somedays are better than others!
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