I is for Imagination!

Books

He Saves the Day by Marsha Hayles and Lynne Cravath

What Shall We Play? by Sue Heap

Songs/Rhymes/Fingerplays

Let's Imagine

Let's hear you roar like a lion!
Let's see you jump like a frog!
Let's see you snap your jaws like a crocodile!
Let's hear you bark like a dog!

Pretend you're an elephant with a long, long trunk
Pretend you're a monkey and jump, jump, jump!
An now you're a mouse.  Just let me see
How very quiet you can be!

Shake Your Sillies Out
(Found on Raffi's CD:  Raffi in Concert with the Rise and Shine Band)

Usually we just sing without a CD, but it was fun today to shake with Raffi!

Gotta shake, shake, shake my sillies out
Shake, shake, shake my sillies out
Shake, shake, shake my sillies out
And wiggle my waggles away.

Gotta clap, clap, clap my crazies out...
Gotta jump, jump, jump my jiggles out...
Gotta yawn, yawn, yawn my sleepies out...
Gotta stretch, stretch, stretch my stretchies out...
Gotta shake, shake, shake, shake my sillies out...

There was an old woman

There was an old woman who lived in a shoe
She had so many children she didn't know what to do!
She gave them all broth, without any bread
Then kissed them all soundly and put them to bed.

Where else did the old woman live?  
Answers included: sock, light bulb, monkey, cave

See our repeated songs and chants here!

Enrichment Activities

All of our activities today were to encourage imaginative play!  They included:

Playdough

Play dishes, pot, pan, etc.

Cardboard Boxes (which became a kitchen, cars, rocket ship...)

Dress-up Clothes

Children's Grief Awareness Day

Many children will experience the death of a person close to them.  Children's Grief Awareness Day is the day to acknowledge the grief children go through when they have experienced a death in their lives.

Loving and understanding parents and caregivers are key for children as they grieve.  However, sharing books about death and dying can also be very beneficial to children.  Books are something children are familiar with and to be able to identify with a character in a story who is facing similar feelings can be comforting to a child.  Books can also help parents and caregivers understand their children's feelings and how to help them through the difficult times.

The Bellevue Public Library has a special kit specifically for this purpose.  It was donated to the library from Ted E. Bear Hollow--a center for grieving children and teens in the Omaha Metro.  This kit, First Aid Kits for Grieving Hearts, contains books about death and dying which are written specially for children.  They address tender feelings in appropriate ways and answers questions simply for children.

The kit includes these items:

• A bunch of balloons
• A complete book about death for kids
• Children grieve, too
• Finding Grandpa everywhere
• I heard your Daddy died
• I heard your Mommy died
• I know I made it happen
• Lifetimes : the beautiful way to explain death to children
• Lilacs for Grandma
• Lost and found : remembering a sister
• Since my brother died (Desde que murio mi hermano)
• The healing tree
• The saddest time
• What does that mean? : a dictionary of death, dying and grief terms for grieving children, and those who love them
• When Mommy went to Heaven
• When someone dies
• A benefit for BearHUGS (DVD)--An introduction to Ted E. Bear Hollow and what parents can do to help their grieving child(ren)
• Flyer and information about Ted E. Bear Hollow
• A teddy bear to cuddle (and keep!)

Although parents and caregivers hope they will never have to deal with death, being aware of local resources can benefit families when the need arises.  A special educational event at the library is being planned for January for parents, caregivers, and other adults who interact with children.  This event will feature a workshop for these caring adults, facilitated by Ted E. Bear Hollow, while children will enjoy stories, songs, and activities in another room.  Watch for details in our January calendar!

T is for Turkeys

An outreach storytime presented at KinderCare on November 4 and Welcome School on November 19.

Five Fat Turkeys
(sung to: This Old Man)

This old road, hard and bumpy
Five fat turkeys wild and jumpy
Driver, driver not so jerky
Or you'll make us loose a turkey.

Spoken:  Driver! Driver! Stop I say!
One fat turkey got away!

Continue to count down to zero

Turkey Surprise
Written by Peggy Archer; illustrated by Thor Wickstrom

Stand-up Song:  Run Turkeys!
(sung to: 1 little, 2 little, 3 little Indians)

1 little, 2 little, 3 little turkeys
4 little, 5 little, 6 little turkeys
7 little, 8 little, 9 little turkeys
10 little tur-r-keys!

Run, run, run little turkeys
Run, run, run little turkeys
Run, run, run little turkeys
It's almost Thanksgiving!

Turkeys
by Hollie Endres

Albuquerque Turkey
Adapted by B. G. Ford; illustrated by Lucinda McQueen

I'm Glad I'm Not a Turkey
(sung to:  "Did you ever see a Lassie?")

I'm glad I'm not a turkey, a turkey, a turkey
I'm glad I'm not a turkey on Thanksgiving Day!
They stuff you and bake you
And then they will taste you
I'm glad I'm not a turkey on Thanksgiving Day!

H is for Horse...and other animals on a farm

Books

Horses: Trotting, Prancing, Racing!  by Patricia Hubbell; illustrated by Joe Mathieu

The Hat  by Jan Brett

Songs/Rhymes/Fingerplays

Old McDonald had a Farm

Wiggle your Toes
(sung to: Row, row, row your boat)

Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle your toes
Wiggle them up and down
Wiggle them every which way
As you turn around.

Wave your arms
Stomp your feet
Clap your hands

Little Bo-Peep
Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep
And doesn't know where to find them
Leave them alone and they'll come home
Wagging their tails behind them.

What other animals did Bo-Peep lose?
We had farm animals...horses, cows, pigs...but we also sang about alligators and giraffes!

Enrichment Activities

Glue yarn onto horse picture for tail and mane

Farm Counting Matching Worksheet

Heart Matching Game

The Hat reenactment...stuffed animals/puppet with clothes to dress up in!

And here's a cutie enjoying the horse puppet!

G is for Green...and other colors!

A great day to explore the color green...by mixing yellow and blue!  We also explored all the colors of the rainbow!  Check out our repeated weekly songs here.

Books

Monsters Love Colors  by Mike Austin

Wow! Said the Owl  by Tim Hopgood

Songs/Rhymes/Fingerplays

G-R-E-E-N
(sung to Bingo)

I take some yellow, I take some blue
I mix them together to make something new
G-R-E-E-N
G-R-E-E-N
G-R-E-E-N
And green is that color!

I take some yellow, I take some blue
I mix them together to make something new
G-R-E-E-(clap)
G-R-E-E-(clap)
G-R-E-E-(clap)
And green is that color!

Continue taking one letter away until all letters are gone and you only clap.

Parachute Opposites
A colorful movement song!
(sung to: The Farmer in the Dell)

The parachute goes up
The parachute goes down
Up! Down! Up! Down!
The parachute goes up...and down!

The parachute goes left
The parachute goes right
Left! Right! Left! Right!
The parachute goes left...and right!

The parachute goes fast
The parachute goes slow
Fast! Slow! Fast! Slow!
The parachute goes fast...and slow!

The parachute goes in
The parachute goes out
In! Out! In! Out!
The parachute goes in...and out!

Repeat 1st verse and on the last UP have the kids run under the parachute and let it settle down on them!

Nursery Rhyme

Baa, baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir; yes, sir
Three bags full.
One for the master
And one from the dame
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.

What other color sheep could we ask to get wool from?

Enrichment Activities

M & M Sort and Count

Teddy Bear Counters sort and patterning

Color/decorate the letter G with various shade of green crayons, markers and colored pencils