For our first storytime of the winter session we read stories about ANIMALS ~ all kinds of animals! It was so much fun (and a bit noisy with all those animal sounds).

What follows are the books, rhymes, songs, tickle, bounces and flannel activity we shared.


Books We Shared

   

I Love Animals by Flora McDonnell is filled with animals you’re likely to find on a farm!  We met Jock the farm dog, some hopping hens, a runaway goat, a loud donkey, a casual cow, a mama pig and her piglets a rolling pony, some sheep, a mama and her kittens AND a strutting turkey!  Did I miss anything?  Both written and illustrated by Flora McDonnell, the text is simple and the visuals are bold, bright and unusually large making this the perfect read aloud for an infant.

Roger Priddy’s board book, Hello Bear makes a great read aloud and lap sit book!  Since this is a touch and feel book, the visuals are stunning and the sensory possibilities endless.  We say hello to a different animal on each page.  The book is not only visually attractive but offers a good introduction to animal identification.  Children can touch the various textures on each page adding to the fun!


Nursery Rhyme Flannel

Hey Diddle Diddle…

Video:  Hey Diddle Diddle 

Hey, diddle, diddle,
The cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon;
The little dog laughed
To see such sport,
And the dish ran away with the spoon.

FUN FACT:  The rhyme is the source of the English expression “over the moon”, meaning “delighted, thrilled, extremely happy”.


Action Songs, Rhymes & 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.

Welcome Song
(to the 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!

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.

Dickery Dickery Dare (bounce)

Video:  Dickery Dickery Dare

Dickery dickery dare,
The pig flew up in the air –
Wooooo!
The man in brown,
Brought him back down,
Dickery dickery dare!

The Grand Old Duke of York (bounce)

Video:  The Grand Old Duke of York

Oh, the grand old Duke of York,
He had ten thousand men;
He marched them up to the top of the hill
And he marched them down again.
When they were up, they were up,
And when they were down, they were down,
And when they were only halfway up,
They were neither up nor down.

Peas Porridge Hot! (nursery rhyme)

Video:  Peas Porridge Hot

Peas porridge hot
Peas porridge cold
Peas porridge in the pot, nine days old!
Some like it hot
Some like it cold
Some like it in the pot, nine days old!

Tickle:  Round and round the garden, goes the Teddy Bear, a one-step, a two-step, a tickle under there.

Goodbye Friends (song in sign)

Click here for video:  Goodbye Babies (Friends) 

Goodbye babies, goodbye babies
Goodbye babies, 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.  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 Kathy Reid-Naiman

“Ladies Ride” from More Tickles & Tunes by Kathy Reid-Naiman

“Smooth Road” from Baby’s Boat by Kathy Reid-Naiman

“With My Little Hands” from  Active Baby by Tumble Tots

“I’m a Little Teapot” from Toddler Favorites by Music for Little People

“Two Little Blackbirds” from by Circle Time: songs and rhymes for the very young by Lisa Monet

“Itsy Bitsy Spider” from It’s Toddler Time by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel


Continue the Fun

If you’d like to read more books about animals, check these out from your local Pasadena Public Library!