Flying Airplanes Storytime

Storytime for 1 to 3 year olds:

• Opening - Skinnamarink, Sticky Sticky Bubblegum

• Book #1 – Maisy Goes on a Plane by Lucy Cousins

• Stand-up Activity – "The Airplane Song" action song from Whaddaya Think of That? by Laurie Berkner

• Bridge - Open, Shut Them (fingerplay)

Open, shut them
(open and close hands)
Open, shut them
Give a little clap (clap)
Open, shut them

Open, shut them
Put them in your lap
(put hands in lap)

Creep them, creep them
Under your chin
(creep fingers up chest)
Open your mouth, but don't put them in
(do as words say)

Open, shut them
Open, shut them
Give a little clap
Open shut them
Open shut them
Put them in your lap 

• Flannelboard - Hanger Home for My Airplane rhyme found in the book Artsy Toddler Storytimes by Carol Garnett Hopkins

Directions: On the board place five hangers with the airplane under one hanger. Say the rhyme and then have the children guess which building the airplane is under.

My airplane is in its home.

The hanger is its home.

Hi, ho, the derry-o,

Which hanger is it in?

• Book #2 – Flying by Donald Crews

• Activity – The Airplane (action song I have found in many places)

The airplane has great big wings

Its propeller spins around and sings -- Vvvvvrrrruuuummmm!

The airplane goes up

The airplane goes down

The airplane flies high

All over the town

• Closing - Scarves using the song "Flitter Flutter" from The Second Line by Johnette Downing 

  

 

  

• Art Experience – Stickers on paper airplanes

Fluttering Bugs Storytime

Storytime for 1 to 3 year olds:

• Opening - Skinnamarink, Sticky Sticky Bubblegum

• Book #1 – The Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle

• Stand-up Activity – "Baby Bumblebee" action song from Toddler Action Songs by Cedarmont Kids

• Bridge - Open, Shut Them (fingerplay)

Open, shut them
(open and close hands)
Open, shut them
Give a little clap (clap)
Open, shut them

Open, shut them
Put them in your lap
(put hands in lap)

Creep them, creep them
Under your chin
(creep fingers up chest)
Open your mouth, but don't put them in
(do as words say)

Open, shut them
Open, shut them
Give a little clap
Open shut them
Open shut them
Put them in your lap 

• Flannelboard - Bugs In a Rug rhyme found in Mailbox Preschool magazine, August/September 2007, page 6

• Book #2 – Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! by Bob Barner

• Activity – "Eensy Weensy Spider" fingerplay song from Toddler Tunes by Cedarmont Kids

• Closing - Scarves using the song "Flitter Flutter" from The Second Line by Johnette Downing 

  

 

  

• Art Experience – Crayon coloring on butterfly outline

Miss Carol's Favorite Book Finds of 2015 - Non-fiction Children's Books

Every year at my library, I spend the last couple days of the year compiling my favorite book finds of the year.  They are not always new books.  Just books I discovered for the first time and really, really liked.

CHILDREN'S NON-FICTION BOOK DISCOVERIES FOR 2015:

 

Animal Stories: Heartwarming True Tales from the Animal Kingdom by Jane Yolen and her children, Heidi E.Y. Stemple, Adam Stemple, and Jason Stemple, illustrated by Jui Ishida 

Presents a collection of true animal stories from different historical periods, including the tales of Balto the Alaskan sled dog, Smoky the Bear, and internet sensation Christian the lion.

The House that Jane Built: A Story about Jane Addams by Tanya Lee Stone, illustrated by Kathryn Brown 

Ever since she was a little girl, Jane Addams hoped to help people in need. In 1889, she chose a house in a run-down Chicago neighborhood and turned it into Hull House--a settlement home--soon adding a playground, kindergarten, and a public bath, By the early 1920s, more that nine thousand people visited Hull House each week. The dreams of a smart, caring girl had become a reality. And the lives of hundreds of thousands of people were transformed when they stepped into the house that Jane Addams built.

 

Little Melba and her Big Trombone by Kahteryn Russel-Brown, illustrations 
by Frank Morrison 

A biography of African American musician Melba Doretta Liston, a virtuoso musician who played the trombone and composed and arranged music for many of the great jazz musicians of the twentieth century. 

Strongheart: The World’s First Movie Star Dog by Emily Arnold McCully 

When silent movie director Larry Trimble decides to put Strongheart, a police dog, into his movies as the lead actor, he must first train him to play with toys and walk like a regular dog, but Strongheart becomes a sensation until his military training leads to trouble, and possibly the end of his career.

Miss Carol's Favorite Book Finds of 2015 -- Middle Grade Books

Every year at my library, I spend the last couple days of the year compiling my favorite book finds of the year.  They are not always new books.  Just books I discovered for the first time and really, really liked.

MIDDLE GRADE CHAPTER BOOK DISCOVERIES FOR 2015:

  

Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman 
Just after twelve-year-old Emily and her family move to San Francisco, she teams up with new friend James to follow clues in an odd book they find, hoping to figure out its secrets before the men who attacked Emily's hero, publisher Garrison Griswold, solve the mystery or come after the friends.

Cleopatra in Space: Book 1. Target Practice by Mike Maihack 
When a young Cleopatra finds a mysterious tablet that zaps her to the far, REALLY far future, she learns of an ancient prophecy that says she is destined to save the galaxy from the tyrannical rule of the evil Xaius Octavian.  This book was also highly praised by my non-reader 9 year old son! Don't forget to also check out Book 2: The Thief and the Sword.

Goblins on the Prowl by Bruce Coville 
When an accidental spell brings a mysterious stone toad to life, and it hops away with her human friend William between its jaws, Fauna must use her magic and her wits to save him, embarking on a journey through dangerous lands filled with fearsome giants, talking bears, and packs of rogue goblins.

 

Pieces and Players by Blue Balliett 
When thirteen high-value pieces of art are stolen from a secret museum, Calder, Petra, and Tommy are grouped with two new companions to solve puzzles that are complicated by the clever Mrs. Sharpe.

Princess Academy: The Forgotten Sisters by Shannon Hale 
Miri is eager to return to her beloved Mount Eskel after a year at the capital, but the king and queen ask her to first journey to a distant swamp and start her own miniature princess academy for three royal cousins, but once there she must solve a mystery before she can return home.

  

The Red Pencil by Andrea Davis Pinkney 
After her tribal village is attacked by militants, Amira, a young Sudanese girl, must flee to safety at a refugee camp, where she finds hope and the chance to pursue an education in the form of a single red pencil and the friendship and encouragement of a wise elder.

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry 
Seven very proper Victorian young ladies conspire to hide a murder from the authorities at their boarding school. 

The Zoo at the Edge of the World by Eric Kahn Gale 
Marlin, a stutterer, can talk smoothly and freely with the jungle animals that populate his father's zoo in South America--until a mysterious man-eating black jaguar that his father catches and brings back home talks back.

Miss Carol's Best Book Finds of 2015 -- Picture Books

Every year at my library, I spend the last couple days of the year compiling my favorite book finds of the year.  They are not always new books.  Just books I discovered for the first time and really, really liked.

PICTURE BOOK DISCOVERIES FOR 2015:

  

The Book with No Pictures by B.J. Novak 

In this book with no pictures, the reader has to say every silly word, no matter what!  This has been a very popular book!

Don’t Push the Button!  by Bill Cotter 

The only rule in Larry's book is that the reader not push the button, but when no one is looking, it may be irresistible. This was a favorite of my 2 year old son.  It was one of those books we read over, and over, and over, and over...

Gaston by Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Christian Robinson 

A proper bulldog raised in a poodle family and a tough poodle raised in a bulldog family meet one day in the park. I tried out this book with my 2 year old, with a preschool tour group, with a preschool daycare group, and a K/1st daycare group.  They all loved this book!

  

Hooray for Hat! by Brain Won 

Elephant wakes up in a grumpy mood, but a present on his doorstep--a hat--cheers him and he sets out to greet his neighbors who all, it seems, need hats of their own. This was another favorite of my 2 year old. It was a nightly tradition for several weeks in a row.

I’m Cool! by Kate & Jim McMullan 

When the ice is full of cuts and ruts, only one machine has the GUTS to clean it up. But can this slow-movin' ice fixer smooth the grooves before the next period? Or will he lose his COOL? The timer's ticking! BUZZZZZZ!

Little Tug by Stephen Savage 

The big ships in the harbor can count on Little Tug, and he feels their appreciation.

  

Not Every Princess by Jeffrey Bone and Lisa bone, illustrated by Valeria Docampo 

After listing activities that are stereotypically, but not always, attributed to princesses, fairies, pirates, superheroes, and more, encourages the reader to imagine what one could be, despite others' expectations.

The Short Giraffe by Neil Flory, illustrated by Mark Cleary 

When baboon comes to take a photo of the tallest animals in the world, there is just one small problem-- Geri is the shortest giraffe in the world! Giraffes have a special place in our family right now, so this was appreciated as a well written giraffe story.

Twelve Dancing Unicorns by Alissa Heyman, illustrated by Justin Gerard 

The king's beloved unicorns are hiding a secret and a little girl is determined to solve the mystery.

 

A Violin for Elva by Mary Lyn Ray, illustrated by Tricia Tusa 

As a child, Elva asks for a violin so that she can make beautiful music but many years pass before her dream can come true.

Water Is Water by Miranda Paul, illustrations by Jason Chin 

A spare, poetic picture book exploring the different phases of the water cycle in surprising and engaging ways.