Family Storytime: Numbers

For this family storytime we focused on all things numbers!

Here’s what we did:

I always start with the same warm ups:

1. Song – Top of the Morning
   

2. This is a good song to warm up with because we stretch all the parts we will be using in storytime. Eyes, arms, legs, mouth, nose.

3. Rhyme – Say Hello

4. I love this rhyme. Everyone claps along and at the end we say hello how ever I tell them to. Loud, soft, quick, slow.

1. Movement Exercise – Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
   

2. We do this three times, faster and FASTER each time.

3. Song – SkidamarinkIt’s a classic, I know you all know it!

From here we get into our theme.

1. ASL – Numbers 1-10
   

2. I like to include a few new ASL signs in storytime. I usually print my own flash cards from Baby Sign Language. This time I taught the kids how to sign the numbers 1 through 10. And quite a few adults and kids tried to do the signs throughout storytime!

3. 
   

Joke – Why was 6 afraid of 7? Because 7 ate (8) 9!

1. I couldn’t resist sneaking this little numbers joke in. The parents laughed and I laughed at myself.

2. Story – Pete the Cat and his Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin

1. This was such a good story! You can work on number identification, counting, subtracting and colors. It also has such a good moral: “Buttons come and buttons go. But do we cry? Goodness no!”

2. I am totally making a Pete the Cat puppet next time!

3. Song – The Ants Go Marching
   

4. I used Freegal to download a decently paced version of this song. We only let it play to 5 ants marching.

5. Flannel Board – Woosh Went the Wind

6. This was a flannel I made a while ago. Basically, the dandelions get blown away one by one.

7. Game – All the Children Were Sleeping

1. This is a game my mom taught me (she’s a nanny). You go “sleeping, sleeping all the children were sleeping. And when they woke up, they were ____.” Lions, tigers, bears. You get the kids to act out different movements and sounds. It’s a big hit for my kids. Remember to turn them back to boys and girls at the end.

2. Movement Exercise – 10 Little Bubbles

3. We do this one to the tune of “Ten Little Indians.” The kids all help me “pop” the bubbles at the end by clapping their hands.

4. Story w/ Flannel – Turtle Splash! by Catheryn Falwell

1. So for this one I created a flannel of the turtles on the log and then I got my puppets out to represent the different animals who scare the turtles away.

2. During storytime, I passed out my puppets to the kids and they had to run up to the flannel board and scare my turtles away.

3. Song w/ Shakers – Mr. Sun
   

4. Always a risk, but I passed out shakers and we shook our fanny’s off to the song.

Finally, I always end with the same three things:

1. Movement Exercise – If You’re Happy and You Know It
   

2. I tell the kids that I want to know how happy they are.

3. Rhyme – Say Goodbye

4. This is the same rhyme we started with, so the new guys are familiar with it by the end of storytime.

5. Song – Goodbye, So Long, Farewell my Friends by Music Together
   

6. I always put this one on as I go to open the door. Its a nice, slow, peaceful song to wind down on.

How’d it go: This storytime started out really great but got a little boisterous once we got to Turtle Splash!. I think this group was just a little too big to pass out puppets. Once the puppets were out there, there was no getting them back and no focusing. It was worth a try but I think I’d only ask for volunteers in a smaller storytime, going forward. Other than that, not bad.

That’s all for now!

-M-

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