The theme today was naptime and sleep, so we learned the American Sign Language sign for "sleep."
Our first story was Sleepyheads by Sandra J. Howatt. I learned last week to get mellower books out of the way earlier in storytime, so we started out with this short and quiet list of sleepy animals.
Then to wake up again, we danced to "Clap Your Hands" and "The Ants Go Marching."
Click here for the version of "Clap Your Hands" that I use.
I don't think I will be doing "Ants" too often. It's a fun song and the constant marching is great for solidifying rhythm patterns and getting the wiggles out, but it's more than three minutes long. As a storytime rule, I try to stick to songs that are no longer than two minutes, to make sure the kids stay engaged and their attention doesn't start to wander.
Next we read The Napping House by Audrey Wood, and I am lucky to have a big book copy at my library. The kiddos were really entertained by the fact that I had a giant version of a regular book! Plus, it helps everyone to see all the pictures when you're reading to a big crowd.
And then we got up and sang "The Goldfish Song," because it has sleeping fish in it to stick with the theme of the day, and also because there has never been a better storytime song in the history of the world.
Our last story of the day was Llama, Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney. I love reading rhyming books with the preschool crowd because you can ask them to finish your sentences.
Also, here is Ludacris rapping this book, a must see for any fan of hip hop music or picture books. (Disclaimer, I did not show this video in storytime.)
Sticking with the theme of sleep, we learned to sign "Hush Little Baby" and sang it twice through before saying goodbye for the day.
Click here to listen to the version of "Hush Little Baby" I use. And here are the signs:
After bubbles, we had a special treat: a Llama, Llama Red Pajama craft! I had a storytime volunteer cut out about 50 one-piece red pajamas out of construction paper before storytime, then passed out one to each child. We set out crayons and stickers, and let the kids decorate their pajamas however they wanted. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get any pictures, but here is one I stole from Pinterest (where I got the idea in the first place).
I love including a craft, or at least a coloring sheet, at the end of Preschool Storytime for a few reasons. First, gripping crayons and scissors helps the development of fine and gross motor skills. Second, a limited number of supplies in a large group of kids forces them to share. Third, sitting down and doing a guided activity gets them ready for kindergarten.
Here is my display list of sleep books:
- Creak! Said the Bed—Root
- Ten Sleepy Sheep—Root
- No Nap! Yes Nap!—Palatini
- How Does Sleep Come?—Blackmore
- The Sleep Sheep—McQuinn
- Where to Sleep—Radzinski
- Naptime—Mouy
- Sleep Tight, Anna Banana—Roques
- Sleepyheads—Howatt
- Slepy Places—Hindley
- No Go Sleep!—Feiffer
- Very Little Sleeping Beauty—Heapy
- Little Bunny’s Sleepless Night—Roth
- Click, Clack, Peep—Cronin
- Feet, Go to Sleep—Bottner
- Back to Bed, Ed—Braun
- The Princess and the Giant—Hart
- Time Now to Dream—Knapman
- Good Night Tiger—Knapman
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