SLP 2017: Butterflies Storytime: In My Backyard

This Butterflies Storytime, for toddlers and preschoolers, was presented at Bellevue Public Library on June 13, 14, & 15, 2017.


Each Butterflies Storytime includes activities that support all or most 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 – talking, singing, reading, writing, and playing  – 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).



Stories:

Molly and Emmett's Camping Adventure by Marylin Hafner

It's a Firefly Night by Dianne Ochiltree, illustrated by Betsy Snyder

Action Rhymes:

Five Hungry Ants

Five hungry ants marching in a line,
Came upon a picnic where they could dine.
They marched into the salad,
They marched into the cake,
They marched into the pepper…
Which was a big mistake!
A..a..a..choo!



I Have Ten Little Fingers

I have ten little fingers 
(show fingers)
and they all belong to me.
(point fingers to self)
I can make them do things,
(make fingers dance in front of body)
would you like to see?
I can wave them up high,
(reach high to wave hands)
I can wave them down low,
(reach low to wave)
I can make them hide...
(quickly hide fingers in pockets, behind back, etc.)
And I can fold them, so.
(fold hands in lap)

The children in storytime love saying this rhyme several times, each time increasing the speed!


Songs:


Hello, Friends!
(tune: "Goodnight Ladies")

Hello friends.
Hello friends.
Hello friends.
We're glad you came today!


Everybody Say Hello!
(tune: "London Bridge")

Everybody say hello, say hello, say hello,
Everybody say hello, hello Wesley!

(Wesley is my turtle puppet who pops out of my apron pocket whenever we sing this song.  Then he sits quietly on his rock and listens to the stories and sings along with us.  At the end of storytime he says goodbye to the children, gives them high fives, eats pretend food from their hands, blows kisses, and plays hide and seek!)

In My Garden
(by Raffi - from the CD "One Light, One Sun")  

Digging, digging,
This is how we dig the ground,
In our garden, in our garden.
Digging, digging,
This is how we dig the ground,
Early in the morning.

Hoeing, hoeing,
This is how we hoe the weeds,
In our garden, in our garden.
Hoeing, hoeing,
This is how we hoe the weeds,
Early in the morning.

Planting, planting,
This is how we plant the seeds,
In our garden, in our garden.
Planting, planting,
This is how we plant the seeds,
Early in the morning.

Growing, growing,
This is how the peas will grow,
In our garden, in our garden.
Growing, growing,
This is how the peas will grow,
Early in the morning.

Picking, picking,
This is how we'll pick the peas,
In our garden, in our garden.
Picking, picking,
This is how we'll pick the peas,
Early in the morning.


Eating, eating,
This is how we'll eat those peas,
From our garden, from our garden.
Eating, eating,
This is how we'll eat those peas,
Early in the morning.

Goodbye, Friends!
(tune: "Goodnight Ladies")

Goodbye friends.
Goodbye friends.
Goodbye friends.
We're glad you came today!

Home Activity:
I encourage our storytime families to spend time this week helping your children explore the variety of places where children live around the world.  While the stories I shared today feature children who live in a house, with a large grassy backyard in which to explore, many children experience a much different vista!  Be on the lookout for stories that feature children living in a high-rise, along a seashore, in the mountains, on a farm, near a rice field or an oasis!  These stories will help broaden your child's understanding of the world and his/her place in it!

Every Child Ready to Read^® @ your library^®, PLA and ALSC logos are registered trademarks of the American Library Association and are used with permission.