Ice Cream Themed Storytime

I got a little ambitious with my last Spring Evening Storytime session this year.  I wanted to have something really fun that the kids would remember and talk about for a long time.  So I decided to have an ice cream themed storytime and make ice cream.  It was crazy, loud, and a whole lot of fun!  I had a few parents stay in the room with us which proved to be extremely useful.  THANKS!
Because of the time factor in making the ice cream I only read one story.
Here's what we did:

We made an ice cream craft:

I used the template from here and added a cute little ice cream poem and a red pom pom as the cherry on top.  The kids had fun deciding what flavors they were going to color each scoop of ice cream. We used glue sticks to put everything together.  I had the kids start this craft as the came into storytime.

We read:
Should I Share My Ice Cream? by Mo Willems

The kids went wild when they saw we would be reading and Elephant and Piggie book!

Then we made our ice cream.
Here's what I used: YayLabs Play and Freeze Ice Cream Ball.  I had two pint sized ones for the kids to use.  We followed the instructions for the vanilla ice cream.  Each kid was able to add an ingredient and mix our ice cream mixture.  We all helped fill the ice cream makers with ice and then we played some games.

These little guys have to be rolled/shaken for 20 minutes with a break half way through to scrape the sides down.  I played the Freeze song by Greg and Steve.

I had the kids sit in two circles and each group was given one ice cream maker.  They rolled the ball between their circle until the music stopped.  Whoever had the ball in their hands when the music stop had to pick it up and give it a good shake until the music started again.  This was a lot of fun for them.  We played the song on repeat a few times.  When we grew tired of the song I had the kids pass the ball and give it five shakes and pass it to the next person.  They got creative and came up with their own games to keep the ball moving.  Then we had some delicious ice cream sundaes to end out storytime.

*This is an extremely messy activity, but well worth it.  Just plan on some extra time for clean up.

Enjoy! 

Beach Storytime and Felt Board

For my evening Storytime this week I decided to do a beach theme.  The kids loved it.  I pulled out my coconut and pineapple bowling set for the beginning play time and the kids couldn't get enough of it!  I had a hard time narrowing my book selection for this one but I got it down to three books and a poem.  

The books:

 

I found the poem Five Little Seashells  and made a printout for the kids to color and take home.  You can print your own copy here.

I turned it into a felt board as well.  Below is my quick attempt at an ocean wave.  

I found pictures of shells on the internet to trace onto felt.  

For our craft we made a seashell wreath.  I cut out paper plates and tied a ribbon to the top.  The kids used glue sticks to add squares of tissue paper to the plates.  I had the kids pick out 6 small seashells and used glue dots to attach them to their wreaths.  The glue dots were perfect for this craft.  I didn't want to pull out the hot glue gun for this project and school glue takes to long to dry.  If you don't have glue dots go get them.  They are wonderful for crafting!

Here is my sample wreath.

Enjoy!

Umbrella/Rain Felt Board

I decided to do a rain Storytime this spring and came across some adorable felt board stories in my search. I will be using 10 Little Raindrops by Storytime Katie and 5 Umbrellas by Christine at Felt Board Ideas.  There are so many cute flannel board ideas for rain!

Here are my pieces.  I couldn't resist adding a little glitter to the raindrops.  I think I might have a problem with glitter.  I want to put it on EVERYTHING.

I also made a sheet for kids to color and take home.  You can print it out and use it.

I plan to read some of these books.  I haven't quite decided which ones yet.  They're all good!

The Thingamabob by Il Sung Na

 Rain by Manya Stojic

This Is the Rain by Lola M. Shaefer

 The Water Hole by Graeme Base

Confetti Bird Story and Craft

I'm working on my Spring Evening Storytimes and came across the Confetti books.  I will be using Roly-Poly Egg  Snack Time for Confetti by Kali Stileman. 

What you will need:

• Blue yarn
• Blue pipe cleaners
• Brightly colored paper
• Scissors
• Hole punches in different sizes
• Wiggly eyes
• Liquid glue

I found a fun and easy way to make Confetti out of yarn and a pipe cleaner. One of my oh-so willing Pages made large pompoms out of blue yarn.  My first attempt I used a large store bought pompom, but it didn't look fluffy enough.  I folded a blue pipe cleaner in half and then fold the ends to create feet and glued it to the bottom of the pompom.  Using two different sized hole punches I punched circles out of  brightly colored scrap paper.  I made the beak by cutting a diamond shape out of orange card stock and folding it in half.  Then I glued the eyes (I used two different sizes), paper dots, and beak to the pompom to create Confetti!  Isn't he cute?  The kids will have fun making this little bird and the stories are adorable.

Here's a closer look at Confetti:

Enjoy!

Hatching Chick Farm Craft

I'm going to a preschool visit next week and I always bring a craft with me for the kids to do.  This month's theme for the class is Farming.  I decided to do a variation of the hatching dinosaur egg and turn it into a hatching chick.  

I plan to pair this craft with the book Chicken Soup by Jean Van Leeuwen

For this craft all you need is:

• 2 small white paper plates
• Scissors
• Crayons
• Markers
• Glue Stick
• Paper/felt/card stock etc. (to make your chick)
• Wiggly eyes
• Stapler

For detailed instructions on how to make this craft check out the hatching dinosaur egg link above.

Once the craft is complete kids can fold back the flaps and see the baby chick they colored hatch!

For my chick I used an Ellison die 4"Chick

The chick is made out of Smart-Fab which is super fun to work with and decorate.  

It gives this little chick a nice soft look. 

Enjoy!

Coffee Filter Butterfly Craft

Tonight in Storytime I will be making coffee filter butterflies with the kids. 

What you need:

• Liquid water color
• Droppers
• Coffee filters
• Clothespins (wood or plastic)
• Pipe cleaners
• Wiggly eyes
• Glue
• Magnet strips or fish line
• Spray bottle with water
• Markers

 To color the coffee filters I used liquid watercolor and droppers.  The kids will have a selection of colors and use the droppers to place small spots of watercolor all over their coffee filter.  Once the are satisfied with the color they will mist the coffee filter with water in a spray bottle.  This will blend the colors and give it a tie-dyed look..  While the coffee filter is drying I will be doing The Very Hungry Caterpillar felt board story (see post here).  Once the filter is dry (or nearly dried) scrunch the center together and use a clothespin to keep it in place.  Fold a pipe cleaner in half and use the clothespin to hold in place with the wings. You can curl the pipe cleaner or bend it whichever way you like.  I added some wiggly eyes and the kids will have markers if they want to add anything to the clothespin.  A magnet strip can be easily added to the back or you can use clear fishing line to hang the butterflies.

Enjoy!

Summer Reads for Teens

Here's a collection of YA novels that are great for the summer:

Perfect for the beach!

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson

High Heat by Carl Deuker

Holes by Louis Sachar

We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

Forget You by Jennifer Echols

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown

Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

That Summer by Sarah Dessen

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares

Cruel Summer by Alyson Noel

Rock On by Denise Vega

My Big Mouth: 10 Songs That Almost Got Me Killed by Peter Hannan

Spring Flower Magnet

For my Spring Evening Storytime I wanted a simple craft that could be used for Mother's Day. I decided to go with a foam magnet.  Recently I was able to purchase new Ellison dies for my die cut machine This 4" flower was one of them.  I cut several different colored pieces of foam and kept the centers to use on top.  My collection of craft supplies includes bags of cute little gems.  I decided to bling this craft up a bit with them.  

The kids will be able to select one large flower and two smaller ones.  They will then be able to select gems for their flowers and color with markers.  When the kids are all done they can add a magnetic strip to the back.  This craft can be used as a gift to their mother or grandmother or kept for themselves.  :-)

Enjoy!

Sheep Craft

This is a quick and easy craft to do in storytime or for a school visit.  I found this craft here and adapted it a bit.  

What you will need:

• White cardstock (cut into strips)
• Small Piece of Green Paper
• Stapler
• Glue stick
• 3 cotton balls (1 will be cut in half)
• Markers or crayons

All this is is a piece of white printer paper cut length-wise into a strip (I will be using a heavier paper like cardstock for my preschool visit).  Mine is about 2 1/2" wide. Staple the ends of the paper together to form a cylinder (lamb's body).  Using a piece of green paper have the kids cut out a shape for the grass.  Staple or glue the lamb body to the grass.  I pre-cut cotton balls in half to use for the feet.  For the top I used one cotton ball stretched out.  The are made by cutting two oval shapes out of the extra cardstock.

The kids are sure to have fun making this cute little guy and it can be used for so many occasions.  

I will be using this with the book Little Bo Peep.   It can also be used as a spring/Easter.

Enjoy!

Here is what the final craft looks like.  These were completed by three-year-olds.  Instead of cutting out a shape for the grass they cut fringe into the rectangle I provided them.  

*Note: I also used half a cotton ball for the tail.