It was all about the colors of the rainbow during Toddler Storytime this week.  We also learned that the word Colors begins with the Letter C and we discovered that the words Cat, Cupcakes & Cloud also begin with C!  Take a look at the books, flannel activities, songs, rhymes & video we shared.

Books We Shared

“Colors, colors everywhere!  Can you find the colors just like bear?”  We hear this refrain in Karma Wilson’s book, Bear Sees Colors.  With each turn of the page bear discovers a new color in nature. A great book to teach toddlers color identification and to become familiar with elements in the natural world (fish, ponds, bees, berries, bears, badgers and more.)

Animal Colors by Christopher Silas Neal is a kooky book about colors and color mixing.  The kooky part?  Its the animal mixing that takes place throughout!  “When a Blue Whale and a Yellow Lion mix they make a…GREEN WHION.”  Even if the color mixing concept is too complex for a toddler, the illustrations and the primary colors throughout will appeal and offer opportunities for stimulation and learning.

Flannel & Prop Stories We Shared

White Rabbit’s Color Book by Alan Baker introduces us to a white rabbit who runs into three cans of paint – one blue, one yellow and one red.  Although this was probably a bit too much for the toddlers (and me) to handle in terms of the color mixing – it sure was fun to see their faces as I put the white rabbit into each of the cans and pulled him out a different color.  As you can see from the second photo I used a little magic to pull that off.  The book is a great introduction to the primary colors and to the secondary colors that emerge when you mix various primary pigments together.


Scat the Cat – A File Folder Story

Credit:  Dr. Jean 

   

CHORUS: (everyone says)

I’m Scat the Cat. I’m sassy and fat. And I can change my colors ~ (snap) ~ just like that!

One day Scat decided he was tired of being black. He wanted to be a new color so he said: CHORUS. (Remove the black sheet of paper to make the cat blue.) And he changed blue! Scat went down to the pond to look at himself in the water. Unfortunately, he fell in, and he couldn’t swim. Timmy Turtle came along and helped Scat get back on shore.

Scat decided he didn’t want to be blue any more, so he said: CHORUS. (Remove the blue sheet of paper to make the cat red.) And he changed red. He went walking down the street, and everybody started laughing at him. “Whoever heard of a red cat!” they said.

Scat decided he didn’t want to be red any more, so he said: CHORUS. (Remove the red sheet of paper to make the cat yellow.) And he changed yellow. Scat went walking in the woods, and who did he run into but his cousin Leo the lion. “Grrrrrr!” roared Leo. “I’m the only cat who can be yellow.”

Scat decided he better not be yellow any more, and he quickly said: CHORUS. (Remove the yellow sheet of paper to make the cat green.) Scat wanted to play with his brothers and sisters in the grass. He tried to play with them, but he was green like the grass, and they couldn’t see him.

Scat decided he didn’t want to be blue, or red, or yellow, or green, so he said: CHORUS. (Remove the green sheet of paper to make the cat black.) Scat knew that being himself was the best thing to be. And do you know what? Being yourself is the best thing you can be, too. Because there’s nobody else exactly like you. And I like you just the way you are!

Mary Had a Little Lamb (with a twist)

Mary lost her little lamb so we tried to help her!  We sang the nursery song until we found her little lamb with “fleece as white as snow.”  In the process lambs of many different colors came out to play!

Original verse:

Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb,
Mary had a little lamb,
It’s fleece was white as snow.

And everywhere that Mary went, Mary went, Mary went, 
Everywhere that Mary went,
The lamb was sure to go.

Alternative colors:

Mary had a little lamb…

It’s fleece was green as grass;

It’s fleece was yellow like the sun;

It’s fleece was red like an apple;

It’s fleece was black as the night;

It’s fleece was blue as the sky

Below is the “long” version of the nursery rhyme song:

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Action Songs & Rhymes

We share a lot of songs & rhymes during storytime!  Below you’ll find lyrics/words to these songs & rhymes.

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!

Clap Everybody and Say Hello! (see “CDs section” below to find this song in our CD collection)

Clap everybody and say hello, clap everybody and say hello, clap everybody and say hello, no matter what the weather

Stamp everybody… (stamp feet)

Wiggle everybody… (wiggle your body)

Jump everybody… (jump up and down)

Sing everybody… (open arms wide)

Roll Your Hands (see “CDs section” below to find this song in our CD collection)

Roll, roll, roll your hands as fast as fast can be! (roll hands)

Do it now, let me see, do it now with me.

Clap, clap, clap your hands as loud as loud can be!  (clap hands)

Do it now, let me see, do it now with me.

Tap, tap, tap your feet as softly as can be! (quietly tap feet)

Do it now, let me see, do it now with me.

Shake, shake, shake your feet as quickly as can be!  (quickly shake feet onto the ground)

Do it now, let me see, do it now with me.

Roll, roll, roll your hands as fast as fast can be! (roll hands)

Do it now, let me see, do it now with me. (keep rolling until the end of the song)

Two Little Eyes  fingerplay rhyme)

Two little eyes to look around (point to eyes)
Two little ears to hear a sound (point to ears)
One little nose to smell what’s sweet (point to nose)
One little mouth that likes to eat! (point to mouth)

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)

This is Big

This is big, big, big (stretch hands far to sides)
This is small, small, small (cup hands together)
This is short, short, short (hold palms close vertically)
This is tall, tall, tall (hold palms far apart vertically)
This is fast, fast, fast (roll hands quickly)
This is slow, slow, slow (roll hands slowly)
This is yes, yes, yes (nod head)
This is no, no, no (shake head)
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.

You are My Sunshine (short version)

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are gray.

You’ll never know dear, how much I love you
And I love you more every day.

Goodbye Friends (in sign) – Video:  Goodbye 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 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

“Roll Your Hands” from Toddlers on Parade by Kathy Reid-Naiman

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

“Itsy Bitsy Spider” from Its Toddler Time by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

“ABC”  from Go Baby Go! Baby Loves Jazz by Baby Loves Jazz Band

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

“We’re Going to the Market” from I Love to Hear the Sounds by Kathy Reid-Naiman

“Head, Shoulders, Knees, Toes” from Its Toddler Time by Carol Hammett and Elaine Bueffel

“I know a Chicken” from Whaddya Think of That? by Laurie Berkner

“Sing” from Shining Like a Star by Laura Doherty

“Time to Say Goodbye” from Shining Like a Star by Laura Doherty

Video

Play Time – Maisy (Playground & Maisy Sets Sail)

CONTINUE THE FUN

If you want to read more books about colors make sure to check these out from your local Pasadena Library!