Out of this world songs and stories 7/30/19

Book read: 
Firefly home by Jane Clarke

Other book suggestions:
Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson
Old MacDonald's Things that Go by Jane Clarke
Don't let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems

If you're a firefly and you know it 
Actions: Flap your wings (move arms), Blink lights (open and close hands), Make a trail (move finger through air)

This is Big (from Mel's Desk)
This is big, big, big. (arms wide)
This is small, small, small. (bring arms together)
This is short, short, short. (crouch down)
This is tall, tall, tall. (reach high)
This is fast, fast, fast. (run fast)
This is slow, slow, slow. (run slowly)
This is yes, yes, yes. (shake head yes)
This is no, no, no. (shake head no)

Come along and march with me (from Storytime Underground)
Come and march along with me,
Along with me.
Come and march along with me,
So early in the morning.
(Other actions can include spinning, hopping, bouncing, flying, etc)

Craft: We used bingo daubers to stamp fireflies in a jar printout. Then we added construction paper wings and heads to the fireflies. 

Literacy tip: Tracing the words and shapes in a book with their fingers will help prepare your child for making the shapes in letters.
 

Baby Storytime 7/25/19

Book read: 
Five little chicks by Nancy Tafuri

Bumpin' up and down in my little space shuttle (from Jbrary)
Bumpin' up and down in my little space shuttle,
Bumpin' up and down in my little space shuttle,
Bumpin' up and down in my little space shuttle,
Won't you go to the moon with me?

Other verses:
My space suit's on and my boots are too...
We step on the moon and we bounce up and down...

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

I'm a little cuckoo clock
Tick tock, tick tock, (rock back and forth)
I'm a little cuckoo clock.
Tick tock, tick tock,
It's one o'clock! (jump once)

Tick tock, tick tock,
I'm a little cuckoo clock.
Tick tock, tick tock,
It's two o'clock! (jump twice) 

10 Little Bubbles (while popping bubbles, to the tune of "Ten Little Indians")
One little,
Two little,
Three little bubbles,
Four little,
Five little,
Six little bubbles.
Seven little,
Eight little,
Nine little bubbles.
Ten little bubbles in the air.

Literacy tip of the week: Reading to your baby should not be stressful. Go with the flow and know that every minute counts!

Letter U Storytime 7/23/19

Book read: 
The Underpants Zoo by Brian Sendelbach

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Underwear (from Miss Sarah's Storytime)
Head, shoulders, knees and underwear!
Head, shoulders, knees and underwear!
Eyes and ears and mouth and underwear!
Head, shoulders, knees and underwear!

Here we go up, up, up (from Reading With Red)
Here we go up, up, up! (reach up)
Here we go down, down, down! (touch floor)
Here we go back and forth! (sway side to side)
And here we go round and round! (turn around)

Up and down (from Storytime Katie)
Put your arms up,
Put your arms down,
Put them through the middle and move them all around.
One arm to the left,
And one arm to the right.
Give yourself a hug and hold on tight!

The Grand Old Duke of York
The grand old Duke of York,
He had ten thousand men.
He marched them up to the top of the hill (lift arms in the air)
And he marched them down again (touch ground)
And when they're up, they're up. (lift arms)
And when they're down they're down. (touch ground)
But when they're only halfway up (raise hands halfway)
They're neither up nor down. (reach up then down)

Leaky Umbrella by Jim Gill

Rain on the grass (with scarves, from Jbrary)

Rain on the grass (wave on ground)

Rain on the tree (wave in air)

Rain on the roof (put hands above head)

But not on me! (hands over head)

Literacy tip of the week: Directional concepts such as up and down are important when you child learns to write.

Baby Storytime 7/18/19

Book read: 
Star Baby by Margaret O'Hair

These little hands of mine (to the tune of "This Little Light of Mine", from 2019 CSLP manual)
These little hands of mine,
I'm going to make them clap!
These little hands of mine,
I'm going to make them clap!
Make them clap, make them clap, make them clap!
Other verses: feet stomping, body bouncing

I'm a little cuckoo clock
Tick tock, tick tock, (rock back and forth)
I'm a little cuckoo clock.
Tick tock, tick tock,
It's one o'clock! (jump once)

Tick tock, tick tock,
I'm a little cuckoo clock.
Tick tock, tick tock,
It's two o'clock! (jump twice) 

10 Little Bubbles (while popping bubbles, to the tune of "Ten Little Indians")
One little,
Two little,
Three little bubbles,
Four little,
Five little,
Six little bubbles.
Seven little,
Eight little,
Nine little bubbles.
Ten little bubbles in the air.

Rocketship version of "Motorboat, motorboat" (with parachute)

The chute is on my head (to the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell", from Laughter and Literacy)
The chute is on my head, the chute is on my head!
Hi ho the dairy-o, the chute is on my head!
The chute goes up and down, the chute goes up and down!
Hi ho the dairy-o, the chute goes up and down!
The chute goes fast and slow, the chute goes fast and slow!
Hi ho the dairy-o, the chute goes fast and slow!
The chute is on my head, the chute is on my head!
Hi ho the dairy-o the chute is on my head!

Literacy tip of the week: Songs and books are great for keeping baby distracted during diaper changing time.

Rockets and Space Storytime 7/16/19

Book read:
On the launch pad by Michael Dahl

Other book suggestions:
Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! I'm off to the moon! by Dan Yaccarino
The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers

I'm a little rocket (from Mel's Desk, to the tune of "I'm a little teapot")
I'm a little rocket, tall and thin. (reach hands up high)
Here is my nose cone. (make triangle with hands)
Here are my fins. (touch feet)
When I get all fired up, launch begins.
Watch me rise and see me spin!  (spin around)

Who is the astronaut (from CSLP manual, using puppets)
Who is the astronaut with ears so long and funny?
She hops around the rocket ship.
She's a bunny!
Who is the astronaut jumping on a long?
"Ribbit, Ribbit, Ribbit!"
It's a frog!
Who is the astronaut with the long tail of course?
"Neigh, neigh!"
It's a horse!
Who is the astronaut with four legs and a horn?
We rarely ever see one.
It's a unicorn!

Let's go riding in a rocket ship (modified from "Let's go riding in an elevator", with parachute)
Let's go riding in a rocket ship!
Let's go riding in a rocket ship!
Up, up, up we go!
Down, down, down we come!

Rocketship version of "Motorboat, motorboat" (with parachute)

Craft: We made space collages with space stickers.

Literacy tip of the week: Peeling stickers is a great way to help your child develop the fine motor skills needed for writing.

Baby Storytime 7/11/19

Book read:
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown (big book)

Twinkle Little Star

Wheels on the Bus

I'm a little cuckoo clock
Tick tock, tick tock, (rock back and forth)
I'm a little cuckoo clock.
Tick tock, tick tock,
It's one o'clock! (jump once)

Tick tock, tick tock,
I'm a little cuckoo clock.
Tick tock, tick tock,
It's two o'clock! (jump twice) 

10 Little Bubbles (while popping bubbles, to the tune of "Ten Little Indians")
One little,
Two little,
Three little bubbles,
Four little,
Five little,
Six little bubbles.
Seven little,
Eight little,
Nine little bubbles.
Ten little bubbles in the air.

Pretending countdown and "blastoff" into space

Literacy tip of the week: Babies have eyesight that is still developing, so larger books are a great way to help them see the pictures as you read with them.

Moon and Stars Storytime 7/9/19

Book read:
Journey to the Moon: A pop up lunar adventure by Andy Mansfield

Other book suggestions: 
Touch the Brightest Star by Christie Matheson
Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! I'm off to the moon! by Dan Yaccarino
The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers

ASL Sign of the Week: Stars

If you're going to the moon (from Mel's Desk)
If you're going to the moon wear your boots.
If you're going to the moon wear your boots.
If you're going to the moon, this is what you have to do.
If you're going to the  moon wear your boots.
Other verses include: wear your gloves, wear your helmet, etc.

Bumpin' up and down
Bumpin' up and down in my little space shuttle, (bounce)
Bumpin' up and down in my little space shuttle,
Bumpin' up and down in my little space shuttle,
Won't you go to the moon with me?
Other verses: Flying all around among the stars, Stomping all around on the moon, etc.

When the moon comes up (from CSLP Early Literacy Manual)
The moon comes up when the night begins (make circle with arms)
Sometimes it's full (spread arms wide)
Sometimes it's thin (move arms close together)
It shines on the houses, it shines on the trees (flutter fingers)
It shines on you and it shines on me! (point)

Five Stars Counting (with flannelboard)
No little stars, next to the sun. One shoots by and then there is one.
One little star with nothing to do. Another shoots by and then there are two.
Two little stars, winking at me. Another shoots by and now there are three.
Three little stars, blinking once more. Another shoots by and then there are four.
Four little stars, wait for another to arrive. Another shoots by and now there are five.

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star 

Craft: We decorated a moon template with torn paper.  

Literacy tip of the week: Made up words like "bloop" are fun way to help kids learn to recognize the sounds that make up words.