DOOR 2 DOOR STORYTIME

EARLY CHILDHOOD LITERACY SKILL: Narrative Skill & Phonological Awareness

BOOKS TO DISPLAY

Henry in Love by Peter McCarty
Froggy’s First Kiss by Jonathan London
A Kiss Like This by Mary Murphy
Love and Kisses by Sarah Wilson
The Perfect Hug by Joanna Walsh
I Loathe You by David Slonim
Big Hugs, Little Hugs by Felicia Bond  
Pigs in Love by Teddy Slater
Woof: A Love Story by Sarah Weeks   
Snuggle Puppy!: A Little Love Song by Sandra Boynton
I Love You So Much by Carl Norac
Love You With All My Heart by Kern Norris 
Snowy Valentine by David Peterson
Where’s My Sweetie Pie? by Ed Emberley
The Biggest Valentine Ever by Steven Kroll

BASIC TIMELINE

1. Intro
2. Read-a-Loud Book
3. Flannelboard Rhyme
4. Read-a-Loud Book
5. Music & Movement Song
6. Flannelboard Rhyme
7. Read-a-Loud Book
8. Flannelboard Rhyme
9. Read-a-Loud Book
10. Craft

READ-A-LOUD BOOKS

The Day it Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond
How Do You Hug a Porcupine by Laurie Isop
The Biggest Kiss by Joanna Walsh
Be Mine, Be Mine, Sweet Valentine by Sarah Weeks  

ACTIVITIES

Flannelboard Rhyme: I’m a Little Valentine (via Perry Public Library)

I’m a little valentine,
Red and white
With ribbons and lace
I’m a beautiful sight
I can say “I Love You” 
On Valentine’s Day
Just put me in an envelope  
And give me away!

Music & Movement Song: You Are My Sunshine (Songs for Wiggleworms) (w/ shakers & eggs)

Flannelboard Rhyme: Five Little Hearts (via Lap Time Songs)

Five little hearts, all in a row
The first one said, “I love you so.”
The second one said, “Will you be my Valentine?”
The third one said, “I will, if you’ll be mine!”
The fourth one said, “I’ll always be your friend.”
The fifth one said, “We’ll all be friends until the very end.”

Flannelboard Rhyme: modified version of Five Little Kisses (via storytimesecrets.blogspot.com)

I have five kisses that I want to give away.
Who should I kiss this Valentine’s Day?
I’ll kiss kitten!

I have four kisses that I want to give away.
Who should I kiss this Valentine’s Day?
I’ll kiss dog!

I have three kisses that I want to give away.
Who should I kiss this Valentine’s Day?
I’ll kiss rabbit!

I have two kisses that I want to give away.
Who should I kiss this Valentine’s Day?
I’ll kiss frog!

I have one kiss that I want to give away.
Who should I kiss this Valentine’s Day?
I’ll kiss you!

CRAFT: Love Birds!

This week’s Valentine’s Day craft was inspired by a pair of love bird cupcake-toppers I spotted on etsy.com. I upcycled red file folders to create the giant, red background heart. The love birds were fashioned out of appropriately colored cardstock. I purchased a pack of Valentine’s Day themed scrapbook paper from the dollar bin at Target, and used some of the sheets to cut out different sized hearts. Heart stickers were provided by the GBL Manager.

This was a “paste heavy” craft.  However, it was not an issue in this instance given the age of the children who attend storytime at GBL. They tend to skew higher in age, and most regular attendees are between 4-8 years old. Adults tend to help and prompt the 2-3 year olds who occasionally attend storytime. To meet the needs of a younger, preschool audience, it would make more sense to have teen volunteers construct the lovebirds ahead of time, and replace the scrapbook shaped hearts with stickers.

REVIEW:

Six children attended Saturday’s storytime at GBL (4 regulars and 2 visiting grandchildren). Overall, the children were excited by this storytime theme and game to read a fourth book. They had  a lot of fun finishing the rhymes in Be Mine, Be Mine, Sweet Valentine. The children had a blast constructing their Valentine’s themed craft, and I was pleased to see that most were unique. Ironically, adults have the hardest time deviating from my “example.” Instead of asking the littlest children, “where should I paste this piece?” they tend to decide for the children.

 

Storytime crafts Door 2 Door Storytime early childhood literacy hearts home school library lovebirds narrative skill Valentine's Day