Catch the Possibilities

Theme: Emotions

Song: Hey, Hey, How Do You Do [Learning Groove] (I edited this for the library and we sing it acapella)

Rhyme/Movement: Hands Are Clapping [Brooke, Jbrary] (while I don't mind singing for an entire storytime, I like to give less enthusiastic singers a rest, so we just chant this one rather than sing it)

Book: If You're Happy and You Know It by Jane Cabrera [library]

Action Song: Love Grows [KCLS]

Flannel Song: Happy Face, Happy Face (Tune: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star) [KCLS]

Book: Llama Llama Mad at Mama by Anna Dewdney [library]

Song: Peace Like a River (spirituals were written as a way to share emotion)

Book: My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss [library]

Fingerplay: This is Big, Big, Big [Mel]

Song: I'm a Book Baby [Denver Public Library]

Free play. During free play I get out a basket of developmentally appropriate toys that get more frequent baths than the general library toys, and are only used for this program. Since it's impossible to keep everything out of baby and toddler mouths, this helps us all stay healthy but play the way we were designed. I also have a staff member from ECFE who attends every storytime to share about ECFE classes and programs. She also brings a baby scale with, so parents can get weight checks between their well child doctor visits.

Bonus Mini-Dance party playlist! Happy by Pharrell / Get Happy by Smiles Ahead / H.A.P.P.Y. by Lisa Loeb / Happy Beat by Jack Grunsky

If you've been following the storytime and standards series, you've been reading me say I'd be posting individual plans. Today is the day! 
Theme: Adults Who Love You

Song: Hey, Hey, How Do You Do [Learning Groove] (I edited this for the library and we sing it acapella)

Rhyme/Movement: Hands Are Clapping [Brooke, Jbrary] (while I don't mind singing for an entire storytime, I like to give less enthusiastic singers a rest, so we just chant this one rather than sing it)

Book: Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton [library]

Action Song: Love Grows [KCLS]

Song: Skinnamarink [Sharon, Lois, and Bram] (I only explain the actions for the refrain with the littles, so we can point at our eyes, and have cuddles, and wiggle/wave our arms around)

Book: Huggy Kissy by Leslie Patricelli [library] or My Aunt Came Back by Pat Cummings [library]

Bounce: Up Up Up [Mel]

Book: I Love You Through and Through by Bernadette Rosetti-Shustak [library]

Fingerplay: This is Big, Big, Big [Mel]

Song: I'm a Book Baby [Denver Public Library]

Free play. During free play I get out a basket of developmentally appropriate toys that get more frequent baths than the general library toys, and are only used for this program. Since it's impossible to keep everything out of baby and toddler mouths, this helps us all stay healthy but play the way we were designed. I also have a staff member from ECFE who attends every storytime to share about ECFE classes and programs. She also brings a baby scale with, so parents can get weight checks between their well child doctor visits.

One of the things that changes when you're coming at storytime from a standards-based approach was that I needed an extra step: background reading. Before I starting thinking about books and songs and rhymes would work, I needed to be familiar with what exactly the component was talking about. I see hackles raising--"wait a minute-- you said you were a fun librarian!" And yes, it is always the goal to present the library and books as a fun, enjoyable part of life. However, I'm going one step further and imagining what sort of knowledge I hope caregivers and kids take home from the library. I'm intentionally putting the storytime together around a learning objective, which feels really meaningful and fulfilling.

So for instance, the first domain in the birth to three guidelines is social and emotional development. Our state provides a purpose statement, a list of components, and case studies for young infants, older infants, and toddlers to help demonstrate how this domain might be exhibited. Then each component is described in greater detail with examples given as well as caregiver strategies for each age range.

I read through this information and pull something from there that sparks my memory to start calling up titles or rhymes that reinforce a particular topic or element.

The first component of the first domain is trust and emotional security. Indicators provided in the documentation suggest that if a child is engaging in behaviors that build relationships with familiar adults and showing preference for them, they are developing trust and emotional security. As I read that, for instance, I started thinking of books like I Love You Through and Through by Bernadette Rossetti-Shustak (library), and Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton (library). I recalled the action rhyme "Up Up Up" (Mel's Desk) and how that includes a place where caregivers can substitute a nickname they might have for their child.

As with many people who program for this age group, I also have several storytime components that stay the same from week to week. I decided to switch to a new opening rhyme this year and was met with audible gasps from the regular-attendee caregivers-- it was great!

With those elements book-ending the program, I was already well on my way to a storytime about "Adults Who Love You," emphasizing the component of trust and emotional security.

Then I decided that as a way to tie things together even further, I wanted to choose an element (song, rhyme, flannel, bounce, etc.) that could be repeated each week while we were in that domain. So the first domain (social and emotional development) has four components. For the four weeks we're doing storytimes about social and emotional development, we're also learning the song "Love Grows" (KCLS).

In this sense, even though I'm not just pulling out a tried-and-true plan from past years, I'm remixing elements I'm already familiar with and putting them together in a really different way. I'm enjoying seeing new connections among "old" material and finding ways to work in things I have loved but never seemed to fit.

I'll be posting individual plans, but I wanted to write a "how to" type post to help narrate my thinking in case any of you out there are ready to try something similar with your state standards. :)

Most of the content in this storytime came from Melissa, at Mel's Desk. Thanks!

Sing: Hey Hey How Do You Do

Rhyme: Open Shut Them

Book: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr.

Guessing Game: Little Bird, Are You in the Green Tree?






Rhyme: 5 Little Leaves (with inflatable leaves... sadly discontinued)
     5 little leaves in the tall tall tree
     As bright and pretty as they can be
     Along came the wind
     Blowing all around
     And one bright leaf
     Fell to the ground

     Four little leaves...

Book: Max's Ride by Rosemary Wells








Flannel Rhyme: Blue is the Sky
     Blue is the sky
     Yellow is the sun
     Silver are the stars
     When the day is done
     Orange is the leaf
     Brown is the tree
     Red is the apple
     For you and me

Parachute Play: Gently play with the chute, then get out the leaves (fake ones I found at the dollar store) and make the leaves dance. Invite children to sit on the chute one by one if they'd like to be tossed with the leaves.

Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Sing: I'm a Book Baby

Sing: Hey Hey How Do You Do

Rhyme: Open Shut Them

Book: Pete the Cat I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin

Flannel Song: 5 Clean and Squeaky Pigs (Tune: 5 Green and Speckled Frogs)
     5 pigs so squeaky clean,
     Cleanest pigs you've ever seen.
     Wanted to go outside and play [shout: IN THE MUD!]
     1 jumped into the mud,
     Landed with a great big THUD! [clap or slap leg]
     Now there are 4 pigs squeaky clean [oink oink]



Book: Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman

Action Song: This is the Way (Tune: Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush)
     This is the way we wash our arms (pretend to do with washcloths)
     Wash our arms, wash our arms.
     This is the way we wash our arms
     When we're in the bathtub.
     [Also wash your legs, tummies, heads....]

Bubbles: Splish Splash by Bobby Darin

Sing: 10 Little Bubbles (Tune: Michael Finnegan)
1 little, 2 little, 3 little bubbles
4 little, 5 little, 6 little bubbles
7 little, 8 little, 9 little bubbles
10 little bubbles go POP! POP! POP! (clap)
 (count down from 10)

Book: Splish-Splash by Nicola Smee

Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Sing: I'm a Book Baby

Sing: Hey, Hey How Do You Do

Rhyme: Open Shut Them

Book: Barnyard Banter by Denise Fleming

Song: When Ducks Get Up in the Morning
I put up different animals on a flannelboard and we sang about them.




Bounce: A Farmer Went Trotting
     A farmer went trotting (bounce baby on lap, facing you)
     Upon his gray mare
     With his daughter behind him
     So rosy and fair
     Then a duck cried out, "Quack!" (lift baby up)
     And they all tumbled down (plop baby back into your lap)
     Off of the horse
     And upside down! (tip baby gently backwards)

Book: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Eric Carle

Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Book: I Went Walking by Sue Williams

Rhyme: As I Went Walking to Town One Day... (with puppets)
     As I went walking to town one day (bounce in laps)
     Oh it was a beautiful day (make big sun with hands)
     As I went walking to town one day
     I met a cow along the way.
     And what do you think that cow did say? (Moooo!)
    (Repeat with other animals)

Sing: I'm a Book Baby

Sing: Hey, Hey How Do You Do

Rhyme: Open Shut Them

Book: I Can Help! by David Hyde Costello

Tickle: Pizza Pickle Pumpernickel
     Pizza pickle pumpernickel
     My little guy (gal) shall have a tickle
     One for his (her) nose
     One for his (her) toes
    And one for his (her) belly where the hot dog goes!
(We did this one with the guy version, and once with the gal version)

Sing: If You're Happy and You Know It
     Clap hands / tap your toes / touch your nose

Book: Baby! Baby! by Vicky Ceelan

Sing: I'm a Book Baby

Prop play: Shakers (on different parts of your body)



Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Book: Whose Toes are Those? by Jabari Asim

Sing: Tony Chestnut
This is a traditional song, so there are many, many versions of it if you're not familiar. The Learning Station has a popular one, but for younger children, I prefer the slower version on the Toddlers on Parade cd.

Sing: Hey, Hey How Do You Do

Bounce: I'm a Little Cuckoo Clock!
     Tick tock, tick tock (rock side to side steadily)
     I'm a little cuckoo clock
     Tick tock, tick tock
     It's one o'clock!
     CUCKOO! (lift up)
     (Repeat for two, and three o'clock)

Book: Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard


Sing: I'm a Book Baby





Rhyme: Two Little Blackbirds (I have two finger puppets from ArtFelt i like to use with this rhyme)
     Two little blackbirds sitting on a wall (hold pointer fingers out in front of you)
     One named Peter, one named Paul (wiggle one finger, then the other)
     Fly away Peter! Fly away Paul! (move one finger behind your back, then the other)
     Come back Peter! Come back Paul! (bring one finger back in front, then the other)

Book: Whose Chick are You? by Nancy Tafuri

Prop play: Scarves (up, down, out, in, right, left, circles, etc)





Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Sing: Tony Chestnut
This is a traditional song, so there are many, many versions of it if you're not familiar. The Learning Station has a popular one, but for younger children, I prefer the slower version on the Toddlers on Parade cd.

Sing: Hey, Hey How Do You Do

Book: Faster! Faster! by Leslie Patricelli

Bounce: Trot Trot
     Trot trot to Boston (bounce on knees)
     Trot trot to Lynn
     Trot trot to grandma's house
     But don't fall in! (gently drop baby between knees)

Sing: I'm a Book Baby

Rhyme: I Can Stretch
     I can stretch like a kitten
     I can hop like a frog
     I can swim like a turtle
     I can shake like a dog
     I can  sway like a snake
     I can flap like a bat
     I can reach like a monkey
     I can move like that!

Book: From Head to Toe by Eric Carle


Sing: Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes





Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Sing: Tony Chestnut
This is a traditional song, so there are many, many versions of it if you're not familiar. The Learning Station has a popular one, but for younger children, I prefer the slower version on the Toddlers on Parade cd.

Sing: Hey, Hey How Do You Do

Fingerplay: Roll Roll Sugar Babies
     Roll roll sugar babies (roll hands)
     Roll roll sugar babies (roll hands)
     Push
     Pull
     Clap clap clap
     Repeat: up and down, right, and left, etc.

Sing: Five Little Monkeys (traditional) --> use monkey mitt

Book: Toot Toot  Beep Beep by Emma Garcia

Sing: I'm a Book Baby






Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Flannel: Red Jeep, Red Jeep, What Do You Hear?

Sing: Tony Chestnut
This is a traditional song, so there are many, many versions of it if you're not familiar. The Learning Station has a popular one, but for younger children, I prefer the slower version on the Toddlers on Parade cd.
Stay and play for as long as your like! There are many toys and books to explore.

Sing: Hey, Hey, How Do You Do

Fingerplay: Roll Roll Sugar Babies
     Roll roll sugar babies (roll hands)
     Roll roll sugar babies (roll hands)
     Push
     Pull
     Clap clap clap
     Repeat: up and down, right, and left, etc.

Sing: Five Little Monkeys (traditional) --> use monkey mitt

Book: Cuddle! by Beth Shoshan

Sing: I'm a Book Baby






Fingerplay: This is Big Big Big
     This is big big big (Hold arms out to side, gradually getting bigger)
     This is small small small (Move hands closer together, gradually getting smaller)
     This is short short short (Hold hands parallel to floor with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (Reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (Circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (Circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (Nod)
     This is no no no (Shake head)

Book: Little White Duck by Walt Whippo

Sing: Tony Chestnut
This is a traditional song, so there are many, many versions of it if you're not familiar. The Learning Station has a popular one, but for younger children, I prefer the slower version on the Toddlers on Parade cd.

Sing: Hey, Hey, How Do You Do

Several years back, I saw a post on Made by Joel about a DIY Design Felt Board for Babies. I loved the idea, and immediately knew I wanted to make sets for my library. I had a volunteer cover cardboard with felt, (we used black and dark blue because it was on hand), and cut out basic shapes in white. The high contrast makes it easier for little ones to differentiate between the background and the shape. I deployed them in a storytime and sat back to watch the interaction.


Some babies were content to just tap and slap their hands on the boards. Some grabbed onto some the pieces and curled them up tight in their fists. Some swatted the pieces off and weren't sure what to do next. Others carefully picked off the pieces and put them back on. Lots of pieces went straight into mouths. :) Caregivers let the babies explore, and talked about the different shapes and the texture of the felt. I heard many say how neat this was and thought they could make one at home.


Some of you do crafts with your babies and tots, and this could be a fun idea. Felt does come on bolts in the fabric section of a craft or fabric store, which would be great for a project like this so you're not limited to the size of a felt sheet for your background and can get nice big shapes that are appropriate for developing eyes for the pieces.

In terms of storage, my idea was to tape a Ziploc storage bag on the back of each board with packing tape to store the pieces in.

Sing: Hey, Hey, How Do You
     I sing this a capella with edited words: "welcome to the library"

Fingerplay: Big Round Sun
     Big round sun in the summer sky (Hold arms in a circle overhead)
     Waved to a cloud that was passing by (wave)
     The little cloud laughed as it started to rain (wiggle fingers downward for rain)
     And out came the big round sun again. (Hold up arms in circle about head again)

Sing: Itsy Bitsy Spider (extended version)

Book: Dancing Feet by Lindsey Craig

Sing: I'm a Book Baby

Fingerplay: This is Big, Big, Big
     This is big big big (hold arms out to side)
     This is small small small (cut hands together)
     This is short short short (hold hands with palms facing each other)
     This is tall tall tall (reach one hand above head)
     This is fast fast fast (circle fists quickly)
     This is slow slow slow (circle fists slowly)
     This is yes yes yes (nod)
     This is no no no (shake head)

Book: Quack Like a Duck! by Harriet Ziefert


Sing: Tony Chestnut
   The Learning Station has a version of this song, but I find it too complicated for younger kids. If you're not comfortable singing a capella, I recommend Carol Hammett's version from Toddlers on Parade.