Trains: Infant Storytime

All aboard for Infant storytime! In honor of the library’s “STEAM 18” initiative, we put the “STEAM” in our storytime by counting, learning colors, singing songs, and playing percussion instruments, all while reading stories about steam engines and trains.

Books We Shared

Trains

Freight Train by Donald Crews is a classic that teaches babies about the names of the cars as well as the colors. Since it was a board book I created felt pieces to share the images more clearly.

While we read Chugga Chugga Choo Choo by Emma Garcia, I had the parents help me make the clickety clack of the tracks, doing a kind of drumroll using their hands and feet before each page turn. “Clickety clack on the track going to… (drumroll)… the seaside!”

Flannel Boards We Shared

Freight Train by Donald Crews

Down By The Station

Down by the station early in the morning
See the little puffer trains all in a row
See the engine driver turn the little handle
Puff puff, chuff chuff, off we go! (remove one train, and count)

Nursery Rhyme We Shared

“Engine, Engine” from
Songs & games for toddlers featuring Bob McGrath & Katharine Smithrim

Engine, engine number 9
Coming down Chicago Line
If the train goes off its track
Do you want your money back?
Yes? (sway to the side)
No? (sway to the other side)
Maybe so? (sway back and forth)

A little bit faster…

Action Songs & Bounces 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.

The Wheels on the Train

The wheels on the train go round and round,
Round and round, round and round.
The wheels on the train go round and round,
All through the town.
(step slowly drawing out each “chug”)
The engine on the train goes “Puff, puff, puff;
Puff, puff, puff; Puff, puff, puff.”
The engine on the train goes “Puff, puff, puff”
All through the town.
(raise your hand and shake the bell)
The bell on the train goes “Ding, dong, ding;
Ding, dong, ding; ding, dong, ding.”
The bell on the train goes “Ding, dong, ding,”
All through the town.
The whistle on the train goes Whoo Whoo Whoo
Whoo Whoo Whoo, Whoo Whoo Whoo
The whistle on the train goes Whoo Whoo Whoo
All through the town.

Here Comes the Choo-Choo Train

This is a choo-choo train, (bend arms at elbows)
Puffing down the track. (rotate forearms in rhythm)
Now it’s going forward, (push arms forward, continue rotating motion)
Now it’s going back. (pull arms back, continue rotating motion)
Now the bell is ringing, (pull bell cord with closed fist)
Now the whistle blows. (hold fist near mouth and blow)
What a lot of noise it makes, (cover ears with hands)
Everywhere it goes! (stretch out arms)

(Source: https://kcls.org/content/this-is-a-choo-choo-train/)

“Going on a Treasure Hunt”

Going on a treasure hunt, X marks the spot (draw an X on baby’s tummy)
Big circle, little circle (draw)
Dot, dot, dot. (gently poke baby’s tummy)
Spiders crawl up your tummy (tickle with fingers)
Bite, bite, bite! (gently pinch baby)
Snakes slither up your tummy (drag fingers)
Bite, bite, bite! (gently pinch baby)
Tight squeeze, (hug baby)
Cool breeze. (hug baby)
Now you’ve got the chillies! (tickle baby)

“Two Little Blackbirds” (action song)

Click here for video: Two Little Blackbirds

Two blackbirds sitting on a hill,
One named Jack and the other named Jill.
Fly away, Jack, fly away, Jill.
Come again, Jack, come again, Jill.

“Goodbye Friends” (song in sign)

Click here for video: Goodbye Babies (Friends)

Goodbye friends, 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 songs/bounces on CD that we used in storytime.

“Clap Everybody and Say Hello” from Sally Go Round the Sun by Kathy Reid-Naiman

Clap everybody and say hello, (clap hands)
Clap everybody and say hello,
Clap everybody and say hello,
No matter what the weather.

Stamp everybody and say hello, (stomp feet)
Stamp everybody and say hello,
Stamp everybody and say hello,
No matter what the weather.

Wiggle everybody and say hello, (wiggle baby)
Wiggle everybody and say hello,
Wiggle everybody and say hello,
No matter what the weather.

Jump everybody and say hello, (lift baby up high)
Jump everybody and say hello,
Jump everybody and say hello,
No matter what the weather.

Sing everybody and say hello, (wave hi)
Sing everybody and say hello,
Sing everybody and say hello,
No matter what the weather.

“Little Red Caboose”
We shook shaker eggs to the song “Little Red Caboose” from Wiggleworms Love You by Old Town School of Folk Music:

Little red caboose chug, chug, chug
Little red caboose chug, chug, chug
Little red caboose behind the train, train, train
Smokestack on its back, back, back, back
Coming down the track, track, track, track
Little red caboose behind the train

“Smooth Road to London Town” from More tickles and tunes by Kathy Reid-Naiman

A smooth road to London town (sway baby gently on your lap)
A smooth road to London town
The road goes up and the road goes down
A smooth road to London town

But…

(bounce baby fast)
By and by we come to a dell
And there the roads are not so swell
A bumpy road! A bumpy road!
A bumpy road to London town

A smooth road to London town (sway baby gently on your lap)
A smooth road to London town
The road goes up and the road goes down
A smooth road to London town

(bounce baby fast)
By and by we come to a wood
And there the road is not so good
A rough road! A rough road!
A rough road to London town