Trucks, Trains and Buses Storytime

Toddler Storytime

Click Here for the complete toddler outline.

Books:
Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha
The Wheels on the Bus by Jane Cabrera

Rhyme:
Start with 5 trains on your feltboard.

(Tune: This Old Man)
Five little trains painted black,
They come chugging down the track,
With chug-chug, choo-choo,
Here the whistle blow,
One little train goes chugging home.

Remove one train and make it drive away while children make train motions and say chugga-chugga-chugga-chugga choo-chooo!

Four little trains....

Craft:
Feed the Trash Truck

Toddler Storytime Structure

Toddler Storytime Outline

-Children and adults read board books as we wait for the session to begin.

-Kids clean up the books.

Opening Song:
Clap In Time by Makin' Music

Activity:
Small, Tall: Stretch tall and then surprise the kids by alternating between small and tall (for example: small, tall, sm-tall!) Get faster as you go, finishing off with super speedy small, tall.)

Rhyme:
There were green alligators,
And long-necked geese.
Humpty-back camels.
And the chimpanzees.
Cats and rats and elephants,
As sure as your born.
But the lovliest of all was the unicorn!
(with animal gestures and signs)

Quiet Rhyme:
(With signs for listen, look and book-see http://www.aslpro.com/)
With our ears we will listen,
With our eyes we will look,
It's time to read a book.
Shhhhh!

Book

Fingerplay

Quiet Rhyme:
I wiggle, wiggle, wiggle my fingers.
I wiggle, wiggle, wiggle my toes.
I wiggle, wiggle, wiggle my shoulders.
I wiggle, wiggle, wiggle my nose.
Now no more wiggles are left in me,
So I will sit so quietly! Shhhhhhhh!

or

(With signs for sit down and listen)
Shhhh! Be quiet,
Please sit down, please sit down, please sit down.
Shhhh! Be quiet,
Please sit down.
Listen, listen, listen.
Shhhhh!

Book

Activity:
Bubbles or a song and dance with shaker eggs.

Closing Song:
Skinnamarinky Dinky Dink

Craft

Moose Storytime

School-Age Storytime

Books:
Moosetache by Margie Palatini
  The kids enjoyed this book, the illustrations of the moose with the moosetache were pretty funny. It also has good inspiration for crafts.

Z is for Moose by Kelly Bingham
   I had to do a little explaining before I started this book to set the scene, but once the kids knew what was going on they liked the story.

Making the Moose Out of Life by Nicholas Oldland
   This one has a few jokes that are over their heads but they seemed to enjoy the story.

Duck, Duck, Moose by Dave Horowitz
   I didn't really like this one but I read it anyway and, go figure, the kids loved it. One little boy begged to check it out after storytime.

This Moose Belongs to Me by Oliver Jeffers
   I ran out of time and didn't get to read this book but I love, love, love the illustrations.

Craft:
Moose with yarn moosetache.

Hat Storytime

School-Age

Books:
This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen
   Love this book! So did the kids. I thought it might be over their heads but they definitely picked up on all the plot clues in the illustrations. They were all so surprised the the big fish actually ate the little fish in the end. I think they're used to stories always having a happy ending so the somewhat morbid ending was a bit of a shock.

Magritte's Marvelous Hat by D.B. Johnson
   This book was a surprising success. Again, I thought this might be over their heads but they were  enchanted by it. 

Do You Have a Hat by Eileen Spinelli
   This book highlights hats worn by different historical characters. It was a good lead in to our craft as it gave the kids some good ideas for their hats.

Game:
Toss a hat and give each child a chance to try to catch it on their head.

Craft:
Design Your Own Hat

Moose Storytime

Preschool Storytime

Books:
If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Joffe Numeroff
Ernest, the Moose Who Doesn't Fit by Catherine Rayner
Looking For a Moose by Phyllis Root
Moose on the Loose by Kathy-jo Wargin

Song:
Do your antlers hang low,
Do they wobble to and fro.
Can you tie them in a knot,
Can you tie them in a bow.
Can you throw them over your shoulder
Like a continental soldier,
Do your antlers hang low.

Repeat several times, singing faster and faster each time.

Craft:
Handprint Antler Moose