1/4, 1/5 Story Hour

This is Ms. Megan's last Story Hour before going on Maternity Leave. She will resume Monday/Tuesday programs on March 1st and hopes to bring baby Patrick by for a visit!

Theme: New Baby
Book: The Baby Shower by Eve Bunting
Song: to the tune of "Twinkle Twinkle"
Baby, baby wants a nap
Rock him gently in your lap (rock arms like holding baby)
Watch him as he falls asleep (pretend to sleep)
Quiet now, don't make a peep (finger to lips)
Baby, baby wants a nap
Rock him gently in your lap.
Activities: Guess how much Patrick will weigh and look at baby pictures
Craft: Water bottle rattles. Take an empty water plastic bottle and fill with beads, bells, or anything that makes noise. Cover top with fabric and tie on lots of ribbons to decorate.

Beginning on Monday January 11th, Story Hour will be held on Mondays only from 10:30-11:30. Come next week to hear Ms. Margaret read about arctic animals and make a furry polar bear!

12/28, 12/29 Story Hour

Theme: The New Year
Book: Twelve Hats for Lena by Karen Katz
Activity: Practice numbers by counting down from 10 to 0. Be sure to yell "Happy New Year" at the end! We made extra noise using musical instruments.
Craft: Make a 2010 calendar. Children glued a calendar to cardstock and added a loop of yarn so they can hang it up at home. Everyone had their picture taken which was then printed and glued above the calendar. Now they can remember library Story Hour every day of the new year. Have your child color in their birthday as well as other special days they look forward to.

Note the upcoming schedule change:
Story Hour will only be held on Mondays from 10:30-11:30 beginning Monday, January 11th. We will resume programs on Mondays and Tuesdays starting Monday March 1st, 2010.

Story Hour with Santa

Theme: Christmas
Book: The Night Before Christmas by Clement Moore
Song: Jingle Bells
Activity: Share what you want for Christmas
Activity: Have your picture taken with Santa Claus. Pictures were then printed at the library for children to take home.
Craft: Make a candy cane ornament to decorate your tree.

12/14, 12/15 Story Hour

Theme: Santa Claus
Rhymes: Shake Your Sillies Out and the letter "G"
Book: What Santa Can't Do by Douglas Wood
Activity: Share what you want for Christmas
Song: Jingle Bells
Craft: Make your own stocking. Decorate a paper stocking with cotton balls, stickers, yarn, and pictures cut from old Christmas cards. Don't forget to hang it from your chimney with care!

Next week, Santa will be visiting Story Hour on Monday and Tuesday from 10:30-11:30 and on Tuesday from 6-7PM. Hope to see you then!

12/7, 12/8 Story Hour

Theme: Reindeer
Book: Olive the Other Reindeer by J. Seibold
Song: Practice Jingle Bells to perform when Santa visits Story Hour on 12/21 and 12/22
Activity: Pin the nose on Rudolph
Craft: Make magic reindeer food. Mix oats, birdseed, sugar, and sprinkles in a baby food jar. Top with festive fabric and a tag with instructions-
"Sprinkle on the lawn at night. The moon will make it sparkle bright. Santa's reindeer fly and roam, this will guide them to your home!"

Next week we will read a book about Santa Claus and make stockings. Santa will join us for Story Hour on Monday and Tuesday, 12/21 and 12/22 from 10:30-11:30. He will also make an appearance at our 6:00PM Story Hour on Tuesday, December 22nd.

11/30 Story Hour

Theme: Winter Clothes
Book: The Mitten by Jan Brett
Song: The Winter Pokey
Sing using winter clothing such as hat, mittens, boots, and scarf
Flannelboard: Match the mittens
Each child gets a mitten and has to place it with it's match on the flannelboard
Craft: Make a mitten ornament for your Christmas tree. Kits can be purchased from Oriental Trading or make your own at home using construction paper and collage materials.

11/23, 11/24 Story Hour

Theme: Thanksgiving

Book: I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie by Alison Jackson

Flannelboard: Gobble, Gobble, Turkey

Song: Pumpkin Pie (to “Peanut Butter and Jelly”)

First you take the pumpkin and you pick it, you pick it, you pick it, pick it, pick it.

(Chorus in Deep voices) Pumpkin, Pumpkin Pie-Yummy! Pumpkin, Pumpkin Pie-Yummy!

Then you take the pumpkin and you carve it, you carve it, you carve it, carve it, carve it.

Chorus

Next you take the spices and you mix it, you mix it, you mix it, mix it, mix it.

Chorus

You put it in the oven and you wait, you wait, you wait, you wait, you wait.

Humming Chorus while tapping foot

You take it out the oven and you bite it, you bite it, you bite it, bite it, bite it (sing like mouth full)

Sing chorus like your mouth is full

Activity: Play Duck, Duck, Turkey

Activity: What are you thankful for? Add it to the Thankful tree

Craft (targets Fine Motor Skills): Make a placemat to use at your Thanksgiving feast! Make a picture with magazine cutouts or trace your hand and decorate it like a turkey. Use a laminator or contact paper to turn your artwork into a surface you can eat on!

For Further Reading:

Arthur’s Thanksgiving by Marc Brown (E)

The Best Thanksgiving Ever by Nancy Inteli (E)

Five Little Turkeys by William Boniface (E)

Happy Thanksgiving by Margaret McNamara (E)

The Night Before Thanksgiving by Natasha Wing (E)