Monday, December 30, 2013

Soup Storytime

Opening Song: The More We Get Together 

*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.

Book: Carrot Soup by John Segal

Song: Pease Porridge Hot
Book: Duck Soup
Song: ABCs 
Book: Chicken Soup with Rice: A Book of Months by Maurice Sendak

Craft: Alphabet Soup.  Glue a print out of a soup bowl on to a piece of construction paper and then draw ingredients to your soup, don't forget to add your alphabet noodles. 

Other books to checkout:
Octopus Soup by Mercer Mayer
Bravery Soup by Maryann Cocca-Leffler
Chicken Soup by Heart by Esther Hershenhorn
Emeril's there's a chef in my soup!: recipes for the kid in everyone by Emeril Lagasse (JUV 641.5 LAG)



Monday, December 23, 2013

Lego Club 2013

Lego Club kicked off on Sept 19th with just a few Legos gathered from the community and a donation from a staff member.  The response was overwhelming and we had to add a third session.  We then received a wonderful donation from Elite Repeat which greatly increased our blocks.

Lego Club is held in the Storytime room on the 1st & 2nd Wednesday and 3rd Thursday of each month from 3:30-4:30.  We have a capacity of 20 kids.  Children grades K-5th grade can sign up for a session at the Children's Desk or call 405-372-3633 x8108 or email childrensreference@stillwater.org

Lego Challenge Themes
Sept 19th: Buildings
Oct 2nd: Nature
Oct 17th: Games & Sports
Nov 6th, 13th, & 21st: Things that fly
Dec 4th, 11th, & 19th: Food and/ or Holiday related


*Challenge themes are suggestions to get the creativity started but all children are encouraged to build whatever they can imagine. 



  
Find more images of what we have been building in our facebook album.

Books for the Lego fanatics:
LEGO play book: Ideas to bring your bricks to life  (JUV 688.725 LIP)
The LEGO ideas book: unlock your imagination   (JUV 688.7 LIP) 
Beautiful LEGO   (JUV 688.7 DOY)


Ho, Ho, Christmas Storytime

Spread the holiday cheer at the library! If the library is open we will be here doing our regularly scheduled storytimes.  This is a great time to bring out of town family members to a storytime, all are welcome!

Library Holiday Hours:
Dec. 24- Close at 5pm
Dec. 25- Closed
Dec. 26- Closed at 6pm
Dec. 30- Closed at 6pm (No evening storytime)
Dec. 31- Close at 5pm
Jan. 1- Closed


Opening Song: The More We Get Together 
*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.
 
Book: I've Seen Santa! by David Bedford
 
Song: Jingle Bells 
*we have jingle bells for the children to ring while singing

Book: Santa's Stuck by Rhonda Gowler Greene

Song: Ring, Ring, Ring the Bells (tune: Row, row, row your boat)
Ring, ring, ring the bells
Ring them loud and clear
to tell the children everywhere,
That Christmas time is here.

Book: Llama, llama holiday drama by Anna Dewdney

Craft: Ornaments.  We re-purposed old CDs to make ornaments to hang.  On one side the children glue an oversized circle piece of felt and on the other side is an image cut out of a greeting card.  We then add ribbon for it to be hung. 

Beyond Storytime: http://www.santa-t.com/

Other books to checkout:
Merry Christmas, Merry Crow by Kathi Appelt
The Christmas Magic by Lauren Thompson
The Mouse Before Christmas by Michael Garland
Plus many more!
   

Monday, December 16, 2013

Teddy Bear Storytime




Opening Song: The More We Get Together 

*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.



Book: Everybody Has a Teddy by Virginia Kroll

Song: Teddy Bear, Jingle Bells
Jingle bells, Jingle bells, Jingle all the way
Oh what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh! Hay!

Jingle bells, Jingle bells, Jingle all the way
Oh what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh! Hay!

Dashing through the snow, with a Teddy bear in tow
O'er the fields we go, He wears a big red bow

Bells on Teddy ring, eyes that are so bright
Ho what fun to laugh and sing with Teddy bear tonight!

Oh! Jingle bells, Jingle bells, Jingle all the way
Oh what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh! Hay!



Book: Best Bear by Emma Dodd

Action Rhyme: A Teddy Bear
Two tiny eyes
And a little, round tummy.
Two furry paws
For scooping up honey.
A soft, "snuggable" snout;
Ears that listen and care;
When you put them all together,
You have a teddy bear.


 
Book: Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear illustrated by Michael Hague

Craft: Colored a holiday teddy bear

Beyond Storytime: The big display case in the North Lobby is featuring Holiday Bears, have your child count how many bears they can find.

Other books to checkout:
Where teddy bears come from by Mark Burgess
Corduroy by Don Freeman
Alphabears by Kathleen Hague  (Ms Elizabeth remembers this book from childhood!)
Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne 
*Did you have a favorite teddy bear/ teddy bear story? Make sure to share those memories with your child.  My favorite will always be Pooh Bear!

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Clothing/ Body Parts Toddler Time

Toddler Time is on Thursday at 9:30am and 10:30am and geared towards little ones age 12 months to 36 months.  What we did at Toddler Time:

Enter the Storytime Room and say hello to our doves.
Get your name written on a shape to put on our flannel board to show who is here today
*Tell Miss Elizabeth your name if you already have a shape with your name on it

Start with our welcome songs

Sing "Wake Up and Wiggle" aka song of the month!

Sing songs -
Do your ears hang low? with actions
Clap your hands



Read: Under my hood I have a hat by Karla Kuskin

Sing songs-
If you're happy and you know it (went through various body parts)
Head, shoulders, knees and toes
I have a nose



Read: How do I put it on by Shigo Watanabe

Songs with scraves/ bean bags-
This is the way
Jelly on my head

Everyone is then welcomed to stay and play with our baskets of books, toys, and stuffed animals.

Early Literacy Tip
We did stories and songs about body parts like hands, feet, eyes and ears plus the clothing that goes on those body parts. It’s great for children to learn the words of their body parts. You might even want to expand on what we do today by teaching your child words like spine, scalp, shins and ankles. The more words your child learns now the better prepared he or she will be for kindergarten. (Practice: Talking)

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Moon and Stars Storytime




Opening Song: The More We Get Together 

*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.


Book: Kitten's first full moon by Kevin Henkes

Song: Twinkle, twinkle little star



Book: Papa, please get the moon for me by Eric Carle
(note this book is not available for check out due to fold out pages)

Song: Climb aboard (tune- Itsy Bitsy Spider)

Climb aboard the spaceship/ we're going to the moon
(make climbing motions with hands and feet/ arms around head in circle shape)
Hurry up get ready/ we're going to blast off soon
(run in place)
Put your helmets on/ and buckle up real tight
(pretend pull on a helmet/ pretend buckle)
Here comes the countdown/ let's count with all our might
(bounce knees)
10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 BLAST OFF!
(count down on fingers and jump for blast off)

Book: Star Climbing by Lou Fancher



Craft: Moon mobile. Hang stars off of a moon to create a mobile. We used construction paper shapes and yarn.

Beyond Storytime: http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forkids/kidsclub/flash/index.html#.UqeT5eL9yaM

Other books to checkout: 
The Moon over Star by Dianna Hutts Aston
And If the Moon Could Talk by Kate Banks
Mouse and the moon by M. Christina Butler

 

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Holiday Movie

Start a new holiday tradition at Stillwater Public Library's Family Film Night

family movie nightStart your holiday festivities with a big screen trip to the North Pole!  The Stillwater Public Library is holding its second “Holiday Family Film Night” on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 6:30 p.m.  Participants will take an adventure on a magical holiday train headed to Santa’s home.

“Last year we had an amazing crowd at our evening holiday cinema,” said Elizabeth Murray, children’s librarian.  “We hope that families will attend together each year and make it part of their new holiday traditions.  This year though, we want to encourage parents to bring their little ones early so they can also register for a library card.  It will be a fun early holiday gift!”

Library cards are free to anyone, of any age who lives, works or goes to school in Payne County.  Children need to be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian who will need to show a photo ID and proof of Payne County residency.  Cards may be mailed to the home address in lieu of documents that show residency.

“Holiday Family Film Night” is free of charge and open to all ages.  It features popcorn and a PG rated movie shown on the library auditorium’s giant screen.  Children are invited to wear their pajamas, with shoes, and to bring a pillow or stuffed animal to the movie.  Please bring a water bottle with a closeable lid.

For more information about the movie, please call 405-372-3633 x108 or e-mail askalibrarian@stillwater.org.  Visit the library online at http://library.stillwater.org.

Library programs are sponsored by The Friends of the Library and KOSU.

Bears Toddler Time

Toddler Time is on Thursday at 9:30am and 10:30am and geared towards little ones age 12 months to 36 months.  What we did at Toddler Time:

Enter the Storytime Room and say hello to our doves.
Get your name written on a shape to put on our flannel board to show who is here today
*Tell Miss Elizabeth your name if you already have a shape with your name on it

Start with our welcome songs

Sing "Wake Up and Wiggle" aka song of the month!

Sing songs -
Itsy Bitsy Spider/ Giant Big Spider

Read No by Claudia Reuda

Sing songs-
If you're happy and you know it
Bear Went Over the Mountain

Read Teddy Bear Teddy Bear Illustrated by Michael Hague
*We read and did the actions to this classic rhyme


"This is..." opposite repetition 

Shakers - shake: fast/ slow, high/ low, quite/ loud, in front/ behind, stop/go
Shaker song- "Shake it" to the tune of Jingle Bells

Everyone is then welcomed to stay and play with our baskets of books, toys, and stuffed animals.

                                                       

Early Literacy Tip
Not all books you share have to be stories.... when you look at the pictures in a non-fiction book or read a wordless book your child is building background knowledge about the world. This will help them make sense out what they read later on.  You can also extend the story and ask the child to narrate when you have books that have limited words such as No. Reading with your children will help them get ready to read! (Practice: Reading)

Beautiful wordless books to checkout:
The Lion & the mouse by Jerry Pinkney
Thunderstorm by Arthur Geisert
A ball for Daisy by Christopher Raschka
Flotsam by David Wiesner


November Babytime Recap

Babytime is Tuesdays at 9:30am in the Storytime Room.

In November we emphasized sounds.  Making noises such as animal sounds and action sounds are important aspects to your baby's development.  When you say animal sounds with your baby what your baby is really learning are the sounds WE say in our language.  This will help them become a good reader because they'll need to hear all those sounds in order to sound out words when they read.

                                             https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicSeH98CSQO5XWo1wguT8bVvBu5IiZt1NljcbJn5IV-Ruhyphenhyphen56-xyGj_j7cUmT9APAHmSy5I2KYLXlO2FvfHCytLhcx9rERvxt-Yd4TFVfom7tc7b1Y2qo7e3mIeyQe2M7S2qNyLwD08kaJ/s1600/parentplaywithbaby2.jpg

Books we read this month:
The Baby Goes Beep by Rebecca O'Connell
What the Baby Hears by Laura Godwin
The Babies on the Bus by Karen Katz
The Seals on the Bus by Lenny Hort

What Happens in Babytime:
Start with our Welcome Song: The More We Get Together
Sing a nursery rhyme or other songs
Read a book
Do movement songs or action rhymes
Read a book or pass out a board book to each family.  This time allows the parent to read with their child on their lap and create a safe and familiar space for the baby to explore a book such as holding it and turning pages.
Pass out scarves to play peek a boo
Repeat our welcome song
Bring out the bin of toys to play.

Parent Tip: http://www.playingwithwords365.com/2011/11/speech-and-language-development-birth-to-12-months/

Monday, November 25, 2013

Happy Thanksgiving

Library Holiday Hours:
Wed., 10/27 Close at 6pm
Thur., 10/28 Closed
Fri., 10/29 Closed
Sat., 10/30 Normal hours resume

Opening Song: The More We Get Together 

*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.

Book: The Perfect Thanksgiving by Eileen Spinelli

Song: We Eat Turkey (tune: Are you sleeping?)

We eat turkey, we eat turkey
Oh so good, oh so good
Always on Thanksgiving, always on Thanksgiving
Yum, yum, yum
yum, yum, yum

Mashed potatoes, mashed potatoes

Oh so good, oh so good
Always on Thanksgiving, always on Thanksgiving
Yum, yum, yum
yum, yum, yum

*Add your own favorite Thanksgiving feast foods.

Book: Run, Turkey, Run! by Diane Mayr

Flannelboard: Five little turkeys
5 little turkeys standing by the door,
one waddled off, and then there were 4.
4 little turkeys under a tree,
one waddled off, and then there were 3.
3 little turkeys with nothing to do,
one waddled off, and then there were 2.
2 little turkeys in the noon day sun,
one waddled off, and then there were 1.
1 little turkeys better run away,
For soon will come Thanksgiving Day.


Book: I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie by Allison Jackson

Craft: Turkey hats.  Using a brown piece of construction paper, cut a strip that will circle around the child's head.  Add a turkey face to the front and feathers in the back.

Beyond Storytime: Looking for an alternate perspective on Thanksgiving Day and its representation in today's culture? Check out this commentary by Debbie Reese (post on Nov 7, 2013).

Other books to checkout:  
Gobble, Gobble by Cathryn Falwell
This is the Turkey by Abby Levine
The Very First Thanksgiving Day by Rhonda Gowler Greene

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Toddler Opposites

Toddler Time is on Thursday at 9:30am and 10:30am and geared towards little ones age 12 months to 36 months.  What we did at Toddler Time:

Enter the Storytime Room and say hello to our doves.
Get your name written on a shape to put on our flannel board to show who is here today
*I am trying out keeping the names on the wall and asking the child their name.  This should help limit the temptation to grab lots of name cards plus it gives them practice telling an adult their name. :)

Start with our welcome songs

Sing "Mary Had a Little Lamb" aka song of the month!

Sing *opposite* songs -
Itsy Bitsy Spider/ Giant Big Spider
This is big/ this is small

Read Yes by Jez Alborough

Sing songs-
Row row row your boat (fast/slow, high, low)
Giddy up (fast/slow)

Read Opposites, Kaleidoscope Book which is kept with our Storytime books

Shakers - shake: fast/ slow, high/ low, quite/ loud, in front/ behind, stop/go

Everyone is then welcomed to stay and play with our baskets of books, toys, and stuffed animals.

Early Literacy Tip
Books about opposites are a great way to introduce new concepts, and the library has lots of opposite books! But kids really learn by doing! Acting out opposites helps them understand their meaning.
Understanding differences is the first step to being able to recognize and understand the differences in how the letters look. Try shapes and then move on to letters. 

Monday, November 18, 2013

Birds Storytime

Opening Song: The More We Get Together 

*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.

Book: Albert the Albatross by Syd Hoff

Fingerplay: Two Little Birds
Two little black* birds... siting on a hill
One named Jack... one named Jill
Fly away Jack... fly away Jill
Come back Jack... come back Jill
*can use a variety of colors

Book: Whose Chick are You? by Nancy Tafuri

Song: Chicks on the farm (sung to the tune of Wheels on the Bus)
The chicks on the farm go cheep, cheep, cheep....
The hens on the farm go cluck, cluck, cluck....
The ducks on the farm go quack, quack, quack....
The geese on the farm go honk, honk, honk....
The roosters goes cock-a-doodle-doo...
    ....All around the barn

Book: Little Green by Keith Baker

Craft: The children made bird feeders using cereal-o's strung on a pipe cleaner that was then shaped into a circle and hung with a string.
Other types of bird feeders include:  http://www.ehow.com/info_7747006_homemade-bird-feeders-craft-kids.html

Beyond Storytime: http://web4.audubon.org/educate/educators/younger_children.html


Other books to checkout:  
Seven Hungry Babies by Candace Fleming
Birds by Kevin Henkes
The Happy Owls by Celestino Piatti
General bird books can be found in 598 section of the nonfiction books.     

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Toddler Time, Nov 14

Toddler Time is on Thursday at 9:30am and 10:30am and geared towards little ones age 12 months to 36 months.  What we did at Toddler Time:

Enter the Storytime Room and say hello to our doves.
Get your name written on a shape to put on our flannel board to show who is here today

Start with our welcome songs

Sing "Mary Had a Little Lamb" aka song of the month!

Sing songs

Read A Fawn in the Grass by Joanne Ryder
*We shortened the story based on the attention of the group. This is a good book to start noticing animals in nature.

Flannel Board: I spy with my little eye...
... animal who's big, brown and furry and who loves honey (bear)
... animal who's long and green and slithers on his stomach (snake)
... animal who stays up at night and says 'whoo' (owl)
... animal who has a big, bushy tail and who loves to eat nuts (squirrel)
*I spy games can be played anywhere and at anytime- a great way to help build vocabulary and engage children in the world around them

Sing Songs

Read Wake Up, Big Barn! by Suzanne Tanner Chitwood
*Rhyming text and animal sounds entertain younger children, while older children can look closer to figure out what type of material and objects were used to make the pictures.

Made lots of noise with our shakers, including singing along with the shaking song


Everyone is then welcomed to stay and play with our baskets of books, toys, and stuffed animals.


Early Literacy Tip
When you say animal sounds with your child, what your child is really learning is the sounds WE say in our language! This will help them become a good reader because they'll need to hear all those sounds in order to sound out words when they read. Talking with your child will help them get ready to read!  (Practice: Speaking)

Forest Animal Storytime




Opening Song: The More We Get Together 
*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.



Book: A Fawn in the Grass by Joanne Ryder

Flannel Board: I spy with my little eye...
... animal who's big, brown and furry and who loves honey (bear)
... animal who's long and green and slithers on his stomach (snake)
... animal who's white and has long ears (rabbit)
... animal who's small and brown and has quills on its back (porcupine) 
... animal who stays up at night and says 'whoo' (owl)
... animal who has a big, bushy tail and who loves to eat nuts (squirrel)



Book: One Magical Morning by Claire Freedman

Song:  Bear Went Over the Mountain



Book:  The Happy Hedgehog Band by Martin Waddell



Craft: The children made a hedgehog by gluing on brown construction paper spines to a hedgehog body.

Beyond Storytime: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/animals/creaturefeature/

Other books to checkout:  
Porcupining: A Prickly Love Story by Lisa Wheeler
Forest Bright/ Forest Night by Jennifer Ward
Bedtime in the Forest by Kazuo Iwamura
At the Edge of the Woods: A Counting Book by Cynthia Cotten
Nonfiction books about forest animals can be found throughout the 500's. Ask your librarian to help find books about about your favorite forest animal.

Monday, November 11, 2013

Tuesday Movie Night

Tuesday Movie Night continues with a PG rated film that shows a young girl working her way to the National Spelling Bee competition. This movie is apart of our Dewey Decimal Theater and highlights the 400s section.  The 400s are the language section.

Popcorn and water provided.  Movie starts at 6:30pm on Nov 12th in the auditorium.

Monday, November 4, 2013

Fall Leaves Fall storytime



 I think everyone remembered to change back their clocks as we had great groups of kids at Monday storytimes!

Opening Song: The More We Get Together

*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.


Book: Fall Leaves Fall! by Zoe Hall

Rhyme: Four Little Leaves
Four little leaves hanging from a tree,
Looking lovely as can be.
Whoosh went the wind and one leaf said,
"I'll meet you on the ground. I'm the color red."

Three little leaves hanging from a tree,
Looking lovely as can be.
Whoosh went the wind and another fell down.
This little leaf was the color brown.

Two little leaves hanging from a tree,
Looking lovely as can be.
Whoosh went the wind. Oh my, it was cold!
Another leaf fell: it was the color gold.

One little leaf hanging from a tree,
Looking lovely as can be.
Whoosh went the wind and it started to sway.
But it was still green, so it had to stay.


Book: Leaves by David Ezra Stein

Song: Leaves Come Falling Down (tune: Shoo Fly)
Red leaves,
Come falling down.
Orange leaves,
Come falling down.
Brown leaves,
Come falling down.
Show us autumn's come to town.



Book:  Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert

Craft: Autumn wreath. Using a paper plate the children glued on leaves and squirrels and tied a string to hang the wreath.

Beyond Storytime: http://www.abchomepreschool.com/Crafts/LeafCrafts.htm

Other books to checkout:     
A is for Autumn by Robert Maass
Leaves! Leaves! Leaves! by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace
Autumn Leaves by Ken Robbins 

Clifford Halloween Party

Hi! My name is Emily Elizabeth (but you may know me as Ms Elizabeth).  My red dog Clifford and I had a great time with the Toddlers on Halloween 2013.

Toddler Time is on Thursday at 9:30am and 10:30am and geared towards little ones age 12 months to 36 months.  *The 9:30 session tends to be much smaller so if you have a child who is shy or unsure about being in a new place this may be a better option.

What we did at Toddler Time:

Enter the Storytime Room and say hello to our doves.
Get your name written on a shape to put on our flannel board to show who is here today
Start with our welcome songs
Sing "Old McDonald" aka song of the month!
Sing songs such as Itsy Bitsy Spider
Read Clifford the Big Red Dog by Norman Bridwell
Sing more songs and dance around
Read/ Picture walked through Clifford's First Halloween by Norman Bridwell

I think Clifford has his eyes on a pile of treats!

For our Clifford Party we tossed bean bags into Clifford's dog house, got out the shakers, and played with the toys.

Early Literacy Tip
The more children know and understand about their world, the more background knowledge they will be able to bring to the books they read. This helps them become good readers because what they already know gives them context for the new ideas that they read, and makes it easier to make sense out of what's on the page. Talking while you play with your child starts to build their understanding. Example- "Oh look the ball can't roll because it's stuck in a little hole. Balls can only roll when the ground is flat and smooth." (Practice: Playing)

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Happy Halloween Storytime




Trick or Treat! It's time for Halloween in Stillwater.

Opening Song: The More We Get Together

*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.


Book: 10 Trick-or-Treaters: A Halloween Counting Book by Janet Schulman

Rhyme: Brown Owl, brown owl, Who do you see?
              I see a White Ghost looking at me....
              Purple Bat.... Green Witch.... Black Cat
             Pumpkin pumpkin what do you see?
             I see a Jack O Lantern looking at me!


Book: Ghosts in the House! by Kazuno Kohara

Rhyme: Five Little Ghosts

Five little ghosts in a haunted house at play,
Along came a funny skeleton and chased one ghost away.

Four little ghosts in a haunted house at play,
Along came a giant monster and chased one ghost away.

Three little ghosts in a haunted house at play,
Along came a tiny spider and chased one ghost away.

Two little ghosts in a haunted house at play,
Along came an ugly witch and chased one ghost away.

One little ghost in a haunted house at play,
Along came a big fat cat and chased the ghost away.

Can you find the ghosts and say:
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ghosts come back and play!


Book: Ghost in the House by Ammi-Joan Paquette

Craft: Using orange paper plates and gluing on eyes, nose, and mouth the children created smiling pumpkins.
Real pumpkins can be decorated in a variety of ways besides carving find many examples at http://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=toddler%20pumpkin%20painting&rs=ac&len=10

Beyond Storytime: Stillwater loves Halloween! Many local churches host a trunk or treat, there are pumpkin patches to visit, and the annual City Festival! Other local events.

Other books to checkout:     
Sheep Trick or Treat by Nancy Shaw
The Scariest Thing of All by Debi Gliori
One Halloween Night by Mark Teague 

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Toddler Time Sheep




Toddler Time is on Thursday at 9:30am and 10:30am and geared towards little ones age 12 months to 36 months.  What we did at Toddler Time:



Enter the Storytime Room and say hello to our doves.
Get your name written on a shape to put on our flannel board to show who is here today
Start with our welcome songs
Sing "Old McDonald" aka song of the month!
Sing songs including a guest appearance by the Little White Lamb puppet

 
Read Sheep in a Jeep by Nancy Shaw
Sing more songs and dance around

 
Read the book Mary Had a Little Lamb by Sarah Josepha Buell Hale
Sang Mary Had a Little Lamb
New rhyme was about opposites called This is big



Everyone is then welcomed to stay and play with our baskets of books, toys, and stuffed animals. Great opportunity for kids to practice sharing and playing with other children plus the parents get to chat with other grownups!

Other sheep books by Nancy Shaw:
Sheep blast off!
Sheep trick or treat
Sheep take a hike
Sheep in a shop
Sheep on a ship

Early Literacy Tip
Rhyming songs (or books) allow your child to start to learn to hear that some words have similar sounds. This is a first step to understanding that words are made up of separate sounds. Being able to hear the separate sounds in words is a skill that children will need to have when they begin to sound out words on the page when they read. (Practice: Talking/ Singing)

***Can't wait to see everyone's Halloween costumes next week!

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Spider Storytime





Opening Song: The More We Get Together
*We sing and clap to our opening song.  All Stillwater Public Library story times start with this song and the children learn that song means story time is starting.


Book: The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle


Song: The Itsy, Bitsy Spider (or Eensy, Weensy Spider)


 Book: I Love Spiders by John Parker

(Large book from Storytime Collection)

Rhyme: Creepy Crawly
Once there was a creepy crawly (Stand up. Creep hand up from toes)
Climbing up the castle wall-y.
Weather changed to stormy, squally (Arms up. Sway like a tree in the wind)
And the rain began to fall-y. (Flutter fingers down)
Down from the castle wall-y.
Fell the little creepy crawly.
Flump! (All fall down!)


Book: Aaaarrgghh! Spider! by Lydia Monks

Craft: Build a spider using construction paper for the body, eight legs, and googly eyes!
Try making your own at home using these ideas: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/spider/

Beyond Storytime: Spiders do not have to be scary but it is a good idea to teach your child to recognize which ones definitely need to be left alone. Try doing an image search on spiders and ask your child to describe various aspects of the spiders and how they can tell them apart.  This will not only help improve the child's verbal skills but also give you the chance to teach them how to be safe around spiders.

Other books to checkout:    
The Roly-Poly Spider by Jill Sardegna
Little Miss Spider by David Kirk
Nonfiction spider books can be found in 595.4 & 595.7

Friday, October 18, 2013

Thank You Elite Repeat!!!

Elite Repeat has generously donated funds to our Lego Club!  We are very grateful and so excited to see our lego collection grow! You can view sample of the Lego Club's work in our Facebook photo album.

Director Lynda Reyonds accepting the donation from Elite Repeat.
Great teamwork from the table building a whole sporting and games complex.
The finished product.


Lego Club is held on the 1st Wed, 2nd Wed, & 3rd Thursday of each month.  Registration is required and spaces fill up very fast.  To register call 405-372-3633 x116 or email childrensreference@stillwater.org