Toddler Storytime - Being Sick and Getting Better!

Presented at Bellevue Public Library on Thursday, January 31, 2013.

Books:

Llama Llama Home With Mama by Anna Dewdney




How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon? by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Mark Teague



Songs:

Sneeze in Your Elbow
(tune: "Up on the Housetop")

My thanks to the wonderful students and staff at Welcome School for teaching me this song!!

Sneeze in your elbow, please, please, please,
So you don't get germs on me.
Sneeze in your elbow, quick, quick, quick,
So nobody else gets sick, sick, sick!

(Underlined words or syllables indicate the major beats in the song)

Storytime Has Ended
(tune: "Did You Ever See a Lassie?")

Storytime has ended, has ended, has ended.
Storytime has ended 'til we meet again.

(Children wave to each other as we continue)
'Til we meet, 'til we meet, 'til we meet, 'til we meet.
Storytime has ended 'til we meet again.



Activities:

Our Hands Say Hello!

Our hands say hello with a clap, clap, clap.
Our feet say hello with a tap, tap, tap.
Clap, clap, clap,
Tap, tap, tap.
Turn around and take a bow.
Sit right down. It's Storytime now!


Ten Little Fingers

I have ten little fingers (show 10 fingers)
And they all belong to me. (place hands on chest to indicate ownership)
I can make them do things. (let fingers dance in front of you)
Would you like to see?

I can put them up high, (reach up high)
I can put them down low. (bend down low)
I can make them hide, (hide hands behind back, in pockets, etc.)
And I can fold them so. (fold hands in front of you)

(Once you know this rhyme, try saying it again - a little faster...and even faster! How fast can you go??!)


Today we had a special guest join us for Toddler Storytime.  Her name is Monica Boeckman and she just happens to be a nurse...and my daughter!  Monica came to talk to the children about the importance of washing their hands.  Most of the children were a little suspicious of the stethoscope hanging around her neck!

Each Toddler Storytime includes activities that support one or more of the five early literacy practices identified as essential in helping your child develop the skills they need before they can learn to read. The five practices – singing, talking, reading, playing and writing –were developed for Every Child Ready to Read®, an initiative of the Association for Library Services for Children (ALSC) and the Public Library Association (PLA). 

Playing is a wonderful way to introduce your child to new (and possibly stressful) situations, such as going to the doctor.  Enjoy helping your child think about what kinds of things he might see and do when at an appointment.  You and your child can take turns being the doctor and the patient, or encourage your child to be the doctor and select a stuffed animal to be the patient. This type of play can have a positive affect on your child's first experiences at the doctor and can empower them by helping them anticipate what might happen at an appointment.

Here is a great site with information on the importance of handwashing.  With the cold and flu season upon us, it is especially important to do what we can to reduce the spread of viruses.