Luckily no one yawned during our Infant and Toddler Storytimes today. I understand that our theme could make a person very, very sleepy. Check out some of the stories, activities and songs we explored.
Stories
During our infant storytime, we read Sleepyheads by Sandra J. Howatt and Yawn by Nick Sharratt. In Sleepyheads we are introduced to all kinds of “animal” sleepyheads that curl up in different places – a bear who nestles in a cave, a rabbit snoozing in the weeds, a piglet burrowed in the hay…and many others. Finally we see a house and decide to “peek inside” to see if we can find where all the wee ones lay their sleepy heads. We find a puppy and kitty near the fireplace and a teddy bear, a pillow and a bed. But where is the sleepyhead that belongs here? In Mama’s arms of course! The visuals are strong, yet slightly muted to fit the theme and the ending is just so sweet. A great one for bedtime. Yawn is the opposite in feel. It is a board book that takes us through quite a bit of yawning. (They do say it’s contagious!) It begins with Sean who gives a yawn to cat who gives a yawn to bird who gives a yawn to fish…well I think you get the picture. The yawn ends up with Nellie (the elephant) who says it’s time to put some jammies on and go to bed! A really fun book with a big cutout mouth for Sean and each animal that follows.
The toddlers were able to handle three books today so we read Sleepyheads along with two others: Shhh! this Book is Sleeping by Cedric Ramadier and A Book of Sleep by Il Sung Na. A Book of Sleep illustrates how different animals curl up. Koalas sleep in peace and quiet, while elephants make lots of noise, giraffes stay standing and a whale sleeps on the move. Na’s illustrations are subtle yet beautiful, clear and rich. The book concludes with the morning sunrise and everyone waking up EXCEPT for nocturnal owl who is just beginning to nod off. Ramadier’s book, Shhh! this Book is Sleeping is a fabulous board book that engages toddlers in unexpected ways. During storytime the kiddos were convinced that the book we were reading was actually sleepy. So what do the parents of toddlers do when it’s bedtime? They ask lots of question like, “Did you brush your teeth?” and “Did you go pee-pee?” There is also the bedtime story, the offering of a “blankie” and a hug and kiss goodnight. We enacted all of those steps until we finally turned out the lights (I turned off the storyhour room lights, just to make sure we wouldn’t wake our book). The children were mesmerized by this simple yet familiar tale about bedtime rituals.
Flannel Board Story
INFANT STORYTIME
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Five Little Monkeys
(using the handheld flannel board)
Five little monkeys jumping on the bed,
One fell off and bumped his head.
Momma called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
(Repeat with 4, 3, 2, 1)
And finally…
No little monkeys jumping on the bed,
Momma called the doctor and the doctor said,
“Put those monkeys back to bed!”
TODDLER STORYTIME
Five Little Monkeys
(using the standing flannel board & a makeshift bed)
Five little monkeys jumping on the bed,
One fell off and bumped his head.
Momma called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
(Repeat with 4, 3, 2, 1)
And finally…
No little monkeys jumping on the bed,
Momma called the doctor and the doctor said,
“Put those monkeys back to bed!”
Rhymes & Songs We Shared
We have a lot of fun doing action rhymes at storytime! Here are the ones we shared without musical accompaniment.
INFANT STORYTIME
Welcome Song (tune: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star)
Welcome, welcome everyone
Now we’re here let’s have some fun.
First we clap our hands just so
Then we bend and touch our toes
Welcome, welcome everyone
Now we’re here let’s have some fun.
Dickery Dickery Dare (tune : Hickory Dickory Dock)
Dickery dickery dare, (bounce baby on lap)
The pig flew up in the air. (lift baby up in air)
The man in brown
Soon brought him down! (bring baby back down to lap)
Dickery dickery dare. (bounce baby on lap)
The Grand Old Duke of York (See video of Grand Old Duke of York)
The grand old Duke of York (bounce baby on lap)
He had 10,000 men, (bounce baby on lap)
He marched them up to the top of the hill (lift baby up in the air)
And he marched them down again. (bring baby down onto lap)
When they’re up, they’re up (lift baby up in the air)
And when they’re down, they’re down, (bring baby down onto lap)
And when they’re only halfway up, (bring baby halfway up)
They’re neither up nor down. (lift baby up and bring baby down again)
One Little Nose
One little nose (touch baby’s nose)
Two little feet (touch baby’s feet)
Three little tickles on your tummy so sweet (tickle baby’s tummy)
Four little kisses on five little toes (kiss baby four times)
Then one more kiss for you sweet little nose. (kiss baby’s nose)
Mr. Moon (See video of Mr. Moon)
Mr. Moon, Mr. Moon, you’re out too soon,
The sun is still in the sky,
So go back to your bed and cover up your head,
And wait ’til the day goes by.
TODDLER STORYTIME
Welcome Song
(to tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star)
Welcome, welcome everyone
Now we’re here let’s have some fun.
First we clap our hands just so
Then we bend and touch our toes
Welcome, welcome everyone
Now we’re here let’s have some fun.
Open Shut Them (See a video of Open Shut Them)
Open, shut them. (hands palms out with fingers stretched, then close into fists)
Open shut them. (hands palms out with fingers stretched, then close into fists)
Give a little clap, clap, clap. (clap hands on each clap)
Open, shut them. (hands palms out with fingers stretched, then close into fists)
Open shut them. (hands palms out with fingers stretched, then close into fists)
Place them on your lap-lap-lap. (pat lap three times)
Creep them, crawl them (creep fingers up from lap towards chin)
Creep them, crawl them (creep fingers up from lap towards chin)
Right up to your chin-chin-chin (tap fingers on chin)
Open up your little mouth (open mouth wide)
BUT DO NOT LET THEM IN! (say quickly and hide hands behind back).
INFANT & TODDLER STORYTIMES
Goodbye Friends (in sign)
Goodbye friends, goodbye friends, goodbye friends,
It’s time to say goodbye..
See video here: Goodbye Friends
(For infants we replace “friends” with “babies”)
Music We Shared
Singing is a great way to share words and rhythms with your baby. While you don’t need a music cd to do this, we do share some songs from cds in our storytimes.
INFANT & TODDLER STORYTIMES
“Ladies Ride”, “Trit Trot” & “Trot, Trot, Trot”
“My Little Hands”
Children’s Favorite Songs Volume 3 from Walt Disney
“Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”
“Row, Row, Row Your Boat”
“You Are My Sunshine”
“Goodbye, Goodbye”
Songs for Wiggleworms by the Old Town School of Folk Music
“I’m a Little Teapot & Two Little Blackbirds”
“Clap Everybody and Say Hello”
Sally Go Round the Sun by Kathy Reid-Naiman
“Roll Your Hands”
Toddlers on Parade by Carol Hammett & Elaine Bueffel
Film We Watched in Toddler Storytime
More Fun
If you’d like to read more bedtime books, check these out at your local public library:
