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Books Are Windows Story Window Storytime Blog

Peek inside for storytime ideas! Wilmette Librarians share suggestions for age-appropriate books, rhymes, songs, and crafts.

March 10, 2010

Colors
(For 1.5-2.5 Year Olds)


Who is ready to identify colors? The storytime kids are! Meeow and his animal friends are named by the sounds they make in the boldly colored story, Meeow and the Little Chairs, by Sebastian Braun. In the exuberant Mouse Paint, by Ellen Walsh, a lesson in colors, white mice jump into jars of paint, thereby changing the color of their fur. Animals of exotic colors are explored in the toy book Creepy Crawly Colors, by Robin Koontz. The flannel story "Little Red House" demonstrates sizes and colors as the colorful houses diminish in size.

Posted by Sue at 9:11 AM | TrackBack (0)

March 3, 2010

Hide and Seek
(For 1.5-2.5 Year Olds)


The storytime kids enjoy lift-the-flap books where they can be always surprised by what is hidden. Daisy duckling looks for Pip the duck in the farmyard, pigsty, meadow and pond in Jane Simmon's toy book, Daisy's Hide and Seek. A mouse tries on the shoes of all the members of her family as we guess which shoes fit her best in Whose Shoes? by Anna Hines. Cold weather equals mittens and gloves. We named the colors and counted the various mittens along with the flannel board story, "Ten Warm Mittens".

Posted by Sue at 9:34 AM | TrackBack (0)

February 23, 2010

"Here Is a House"
(Songs & Fingerplays)

Here is a house built up high (raise hands to make a peaked roof)
With two big chimneys reaching for the sky (raise two fists high)
Here is a window (make a square with your hands)
Here is the door (knock)
If we look inside (peek)
We see a mouse on the floor (make your hand into a scampering mouse)

Posted by Lisa at 11:38 AM | TrackBack (0)

Work Machine Storytime
(For 2.5-3.5 Year Olds)

I Am a Backhoe, by Anna Grossnickle Hines. We read this book about a boy and his father pretending to be various work machines. Then we got out the scarves and did some pretending of our own: pushing the scarves like bulldozers, smoothing them like steamrollers, scooping them like backhoes, lifting them high like cranes...

I'm Dirty, by Kate and Jim McMullan. A day in the life of a backhoe. Full of jargon and humor.

Hush, Little Digger, by Ellen Olson-Brown, illustrated by Lee White. A work machine-filled adaptation of the old song. The kids get a kick out of the funny pictures, and adults appreciate the clever rhymes.

We also did our "Little Red House" flannel board and our "Here Is a House" action rhyme.

Posted by Lisa at 11:28 AM | TrackBack (0)

February 22, 2010

Storytime Fun
(For 1.5-2.5 Year Olds)


Cabrera's bright, energetic and bold illustrations are a favorite of the storytime kids. There are many ways to transport one's baby in the animal kingdom as shown in Mommy, Carry Me Please!, by Jane Cabrera. In this version of the familiar nursery rhyme, a bunny leads four chicks that are somewhat hidden but can be discovered on each page, on their way to a birthday party in One, Two, Buckle My Shoe, by Jane Cabrera. Silly Sally walks upside down, dances a jig and plays leapfrog in the amusing big book Silly Sally, by Audrey Wood. The storytime kids love this story. The children enjoyed examining their faces as I read the flannel board story, "Two Little Eyes".

Posted by Sue at 6:28 PM | TrackBack (0)

Getting Dressed Storytime
(For 2.5-3.5 Year Olds)

Nothing elicits giggles like our flannel board version of Shigeo Watanabe's How Do I Put It On?: Getting Dressed. Who would have thought putting pants on a bear's head and shoes on its paws could be so hilarious? Yet somehow, any 2 or 3 year old will prove to you, it is.

Ella Sarah Gets Dressed, by Margaret Chodos-Irvine. Children will understand exactly why Ella Sarah wants to wear the "fancy" outfit she picks out herself.

In My New Yellow Shirt, by Eileen Spinelli, illustrated by Hideko Takahashi. A boy pretends he can be all sorts of things in his yellow shirt. A nice look at imagination and creativity as well as getting dressed.

I'm All Dressed, by Robie H. Harris, illustrated by Nicole Hollander. A boy (who would rather wear only his underpants) shows his parents that his own way of getting dressed is just as effective as theirs... if not what they're expecting! I wish this book was larger in format, but fortunately the illustrations are simple and bright. I also appreciate that the characters are incidentally African American. Ethnic diversity in books for this age group is not easy to find.

Posted by Lisa at 2:14 PM | TrackBack (0)

Silly Chicken Storytime
(For 2.5-3.5 Year Olds)

None of the chickens in these books acts as a chicken should, but they're so much fun.

A Hat for Minerva Louise, by Janet Morgan Stoeke. I confess I can't get enough of this book. My favorite Minerva Louise book, it's perfect as winter drags on.

Cock-a-doodle Quack Quack, by Ivor Baddiel and Sophie Jubb, illustrated by Ailie Busby. Baby Rooster can't figure out quite what to say to wake everyone up in the morning. The book's strong pattern, animal noises, and humor draw in the toddler set.

Mrs. Hen's Big Surprise, by Christel Desmoinaux. Chickless Mrs. Hen is determined to hatch and raise the giant egg she finds in her garden. Her faith in the face of criticism and certain failure, and her unconditional love for the creature that hatches from the eggs, warm the cockles of my heart.

Posted by Lisa at 2:07 PM | TrackBack (0)

Love Storytime
(For 2.5-3.5 Year Olds)

Valentine's Day doesn't need to be about romantic love... or even candy. It's a great time to talk about love for family and friends. Here are the books we read the week of Valentine's Day:

If You Love a Bear, by Piers Harper. A boy responds to his bear's various moods and desires much as a parent would to a toddler.

Katie Loves the Kittens, by John Himmelman. Katie, a dog, loves the new kittens but her excited howling scares them. This story tells how she finds a way to show her love in a more tender way.

Lost and Found, by Oliver Jeffers. A boy tries to return a lost penguin to the South Pole only to realize the penguin simply wanted a friend. Very sweet.

Posted by Lisa at 2:00 PM | TrackBack (0)

February 15, 2010

Valentine's Day Celebration
(For 1.5-2.5 Year Olds)


Valentine's Day is my favorite as I like beautiful valentines, candy, flowers and the colors pink and red! I showed the storytime kids a box of child valentines and my pink Valentine's bear who held a silken heart in his paws to demonstrate the fun of this holiday. Creating and giving away valentines was the motif of the following three stories. In Sweet Hearts, by Jan Carr, panda parents find hidden valentines in a game of hide and seek with their toddler panda. Giving and receiving Valentine's presents is even more fun if you are an animal waiting for your own special surprise such as a tasty bone in Be Mine, Be Mine, Sweet Valentine, by Sarah Weeks. Minka makes her brother Mouse a special valentine using glue, paste, ribbon and paper in Mouse's First Valentine, by Lauren Thompson.

Posted by Sue at 2:17 PM | TrackBack (0)

February 10, 2010

Let's Drive!
(For 1.5-2.5 Year Olds)


Vehicles are alluring to the storytime kids. They make great noises too! Who is Driving? by Leo Timmers had the kids guessing which funny looking animal would drive each vehicle while making interesting driving noises. We enjoyed singing to the Whistle on the Train, by Margaret McNamara, a beautiful pop-up railroad version of the popular song "The Wheels on the Bus". The big book version of Freight Train, by Donald Crews indicated the name of each car on the train, and had us guessing the colors of them. We had fun naming the parts of the "Construction Machinery" flannel board.

Posted by Sue at 9:27 AM | TrackBack (0)