Not sure if that's because I'm a more seasoned storytime presenter than I was in June, or I chose better books, or what, but I felt much more accomplished walking out of the room today than I did the last time we tackled feelings.
The idea to try again came to me by accident when I was browsing the stacks, looking for good storytime books. I came across the Sesame Street book We're Different, We're the Same by Jim Henson, which was our first story after saying hello. This book acknowledges that while people's physical features might be different, we are all the same on the inside and all deserving of respect and love. There is even a part that acknowledges that while we all feel them differently, our feelings are basically the same. I love this because it teaches young readers that their feelings are not only valid, but normal and nothing to be ashamed of.
After the story, we danced to "Clap Your Hands" because it is, in my opinion, a storytime classic.
Click here to listen to the version of "Clap Your Hands" that I use.
Our second story today was Too Shy for Show and Tell by Beth Bracken. I fell in love with this story about a shy giraffe navigating preschool immediately, which is why I'm surprised it wasn't better received by the group. No one hated it, but the kids were wiggly and a little bit louder than they would have been if they were truly engaged.
Next, staying in the theme of feelings, we sang two versions of "Happy and You Know It." The first one was a capella, and corresponded to some felt faces that my partner youth services librarian made last summer:
(pic to come)
After identifying the emotions each face seems to be feeling, we sang " If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands" for the happy face. Then we made up our own verses for the other faces:
If you're sad and you know it, say boo hoo. BOO-HOO!
If you're angry and you know it, give a growl. GRRR!
If you're scared and you know it, give a shriek. AAHHH!
If you're silly and you know it, make a face. (make silly face)
The kids had a great time with this spin on the classic song. After that, we danced to the Mr. Jon version of "Happy and You Know It."
Before saying goodbye, we had a few extra minutes so I tacked on an extra movement song: "Can't Sit Still" by Greg and Steve. I love this song because it presents loosely guided movements like wiggling your fingers, nodding your head, and waving your elbows, but also gives the kids plenty of opportunity for free dance time and burns off some of their seemingly endless energy.
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