WE read some great scary stories for Halloween during today’s Preschool Storytime! There were monsters, ghosts and even some creepy carrots.
Here are the books, songs, flannel board, prop story, action rhymes and video we shared.
Books We Read
Creepy Carrots written by Aaron Reynolds and illustrated by Peter Brown sure makes you think twice about eating your vegetables! Jasper Rabbit loves carrots which doesn’t come as a great surprise since he’s a rabbit! He especially loves the carrots growing in Crackenhopper Field – they are crisp, orange and ripe for the taking. Every day (at all times of the day), Jasper grabs bunches of carrots and eats them ALL UP! Until he notices he is being followed by some “creepy carrots”… A really funny story about some carrots who hatch a clever plan to save themselves from Jasper’s appetite.
Edouard Manceau’s Tickle Monster is about a monster who slowly disappears as different parts of his body are “tickled away”. A great visual teaser that deconstructs the monster to make it less threatening while creating a new scene with his monster parts! If you have a preschooler who fears monsters in the dark, this book may just put those fears to rest!
The classic book Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley never loses its charm. Visually stunning with bright bold colors and precise cutouts, each turn of the page brings the different parts of the green monster’s face to life. However, when things get too scary, each turn of the page in the second half of the book takes the monster apart bit by bit.
FLANNEL BOARD & PROP STORY WE SHARED
The Chocolate Chip Ghost!
Once upon a time, there lived 5 little ghosts. As everyone knows, ghosts are white and to stay white, the only thing they can eat is vanilla ice cream and the only thing that they can drink is milk. One day when Mama ghost went to the refrigerator, there was no vanilla ice cream and no milk. So she had to go to the grocery store and before she left she said, “No matter how hungry you get, do not eat anything or something dreadful will happen. We don’t have anymore white food left, so I must go out and get some. I will be back soon.”
While mommy was gone, the first ghost became so very thirsty. He looked in the refrigerator and saw a little glass of lemonade and thought, “just one teeny sip wouldn’t hurt.” So he took a one teeny sip of lemonade and what do suppose happened? He turned yellow! The other ghosts looked at him and said “Mommy told us that something dreadful would happen and she was right.” The little ghost did not want his mommy to see him all yellow so he ran upstairs and hide in the toy box.
The second ghost became so hungry that he just had to look in the refrigerator for something to eat. He saw some broccoli and thought, “just one teeny bite wouldn’t hurt.” So he took a one teeny bite of the broccoli and what do suppose happened? He turned green! The other ghosts looked at him and said “Mommy told us that something dreadful would happen and she was right.” The little ghost did not want his mommy to see him all green so he ran upstairs and hide in the closet.
The third ghost became so hungry that he looked in the refrigerator and saw a bowl of blueberries and thought, “just one teeny bite wouldn’t hurt.” So he took a one teeny bite of a blueberry and what do suppose happened? He turned blue! The other ghosts looked at him and said “Mommy told us that something dreadful would happen and she was right.” The little ghost did not want his mommy to see him all blue so he ran upstairs and hide under the bed.
The fourth ghost became so hungry and he looked in the refrigerator and saw a bowl of strawberries and thought, “just one teeny bite wouldn’t hurt.” So he took a one teeny bite of a strawberry and what do suppose happened? He turned red! The other ghosts looked at him and said “Mommy told us that something dreadful would happen and she was right.” The little ghost did not want his mommy to see him all red so he ran upstairs and behind the door.
The fifth ghost said, “I’m so hungry but I will not do what my brothers did. I’ll look in the freezer and see if there is just maybe a little vanilla ice cream left.” When he looked in the freezer there was some ice cream….and it was almost vanilla – it was chocolate chip ice cream. So the ghost said, “This shouldn’t hurt me – those chocolate chips are so tiny.” So he ate one spoonful and became a chocolate chip ghost! He certainly didn’t want his mommy to see him all spotty so he ran upstairs and hid in the bathtub.
When Mommy ghost returned, she knew something was wrong when she didn’t see her children, so she started looking for the little ghosts. She found the first one upstairs in the toy box, and an 2nd one in the closet, and the 3rd one under the bed, the 4th one behind the door and the 5th and last one in the bathtub. When she found all of them, she said, “Little ghosts, I told you that something dreadful would happen and it did.” Whatever can we do to get you white again for Halloween?
Mommy Ghost called the ghost doctor and this is what he told her to do. Keep all the little ghosts in bed for five days and give them nothing but vanilla ice cream and milk to eat. If you do this, they should be ready and all white again for Halloween. So that is what she did and by Halloween night, the five little ghosts were all white again to go out haunting and spooking and shouting “BOO!” And they never again ate something they shouldn’t. The End!
{author unknown}
Credit: Sandy Toes & Popsicles
Five Little Pumpkins
(Flannel Rhyme or Fingerplay)
Five little pumpkins sitting on the gate. (Hold up 5 fingers.)
The first one said, “Oh, my it’s getting late.” (Hold up thumb.)
The second one said, “There’s a chill in the air.” (Hug arms.)
The third one said, “But I don’t care.” (Hold up middle finger.)
The fourth one said, “I’m ready for some fun” (Hold up ring finger.)
The fifth one said, “Let’s run and run and run.” (Pretend to run in place.)
Ooooo! Went the wind, and out went the light. (Blow through hands, then clap.)
And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight! (Roll hands behind back.)
Action Songs & Fingerplays We Shared
We share a lot of songs, bounces & rhymes during storytime! You’ll find lyrics/words to those songs & rhymes we shared without CD accompaniment here.
Welcome, Welcome Everyone
(to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle)
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 – Video: Open Shut Them
Open, shut them, open, shut them, (open and close hands)
Give a little clap, clap, clap. (clap three times)
Open shut them, open shut them (open and close hands)
Put them in your lap, lap, lap. (place hands in lap and bounce them 3X)
Creep them, crawl them, creep them crawl them, (crawl fingers up arms)
Right up to your chinny chin chin. (place fingers on chin)
Open up your little mouth (open mouth and say ahhhhhh)
But do not put them in!! (put hands behind your back)
Credit: Mel’s Desk
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star – Video: Twinkle Twinkle
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
How I wonder what you are
Up above the world so high
Like a diamond in the sky
Twinkle Twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are.
Goodbye Friends (in sign) – Video: Goodbye Friends
Goodbye babies, goodbye friends,
Goodbye friends, it’s time to say goodbye.
Music from CDs We Shared
Children love to sing and dance to music. Here are some of the action songs & rhymes on CD that we used in storytime. Click onto the CD titles to find these items in our library catalog.
“Clap Everybody and Say Hello” from Sally Go Round the Sun by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel
“We’re Going to the Market” from I Love to Hear the Sounds by Kathy Reid-Naiman [With Shaker Eggs]
“Oh Children Ring Your Bells” from I Love to Hear the Sounds by Kathy Reid-Naiman! [With Shaker Eggs]
“Jazzy ABCs” from Go Baby Go! by Baby Loves Jazz
Video We Shared
Georgie from A Very Brave Witch…and more Halloween stories for kids!
Continue the Fun at Home
If you want to read more books about monsters/ghosts/goblins, check these out at your local Pasadena Public Library.
