Preschool Storytime 1-23-18: Names

The next installment in our exciting month of themed storytimes is the theme of names. Mostly, I wanted an excuse to read Chrysanthemum and make name trains. Plus, all kids love to hear their own names as much as possible.

After our regular hello, we learned the American Sign Language sign for "name." I encouraged the kids to practice the sign every time the word "name" came up in our first book.

Name

Our first story was Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes. I have always loved this story, and Henkes in general. This book is a little long to read to a large group so I ended up paper clipping the middle part of the story together so my preschool friends didn't get too wiggly. They were still a little restless, but they sat through the story with minimal disruptions and I think they enjoyed it.

After the story, I passed out egg shakers and we danced to "The Name Game." I chose to do this as a shaker song because in a 30 minute storytime, explaining and playing the name game with 40+ kids is an overwhelming concept. This way, they got to hear the song and enjoy as they played with their shakers. I also saw lots of parents singing along, so I hope that they taught their kids how to play the name game with their own names on the way home today.

Our second story was My Name is Elizabeth by Annika Dunklee. I like this book for preschoolers because it reminds them (or maybe introduced the concept) that we are all in charge of our own identity. The main character likes her name, Elizabeth, and not any shortened versions the people in her life use, like Liz or Betsy. Her preference is accepted by her friends and family, and by the end of the story they are all using her full name.

The next movement song was BINGO, a fun clapping song that everyone knows. Parents and kids sang and clapped along together, which was a fun way to get the energy level in the room back up after sitting for a story.

We said our regular goodbye, and then I passed out the materials to make our special name craft, name trains! This craft was so easy to prep for, and easy for the kids to put together as well. I printed and cut the trains beforehand, as well as making lots of 2-inch squares in different colors. Then it's just a matter of gluing the squares and trains to a larger piece of construction paper and writing the child's name. Some of our ready-for-kindergarten kiddos even wrote their own names, which was so great to see. (Note: All parents gave permission for these pictures to appear online)

Selfie culture: I asked her for a picture and she came over
next to me, waiting for me to turn the camera around.

Books displayed:

• My Father Knows the Names of Things—Yolen 
• From Anne to Zach—Martin 
• My Name is Elizabeth!—Dunklee 
• Chrysanthemum—Henkes 
• Princess Baby—Katz 
• Hello, My Name is Octicorn—Diller 
• Thunder Boy Jr.—Alexie 
• Write On, Carlos!—Murphy 
• Penny and Her Doll—Henkes 
• Jessica—Henkes 
• Wabi Sabi—Reibstein 
• On the Road—Nolan 
• Kuma-Kuma Chan, the Little Bear—Takahashi 
• Santa’s Book of Names—McPhail 
• The Cat with Seven Names—Johnston 
• Phoebe Sounds It Out—Zwillich