And we are back! I haven’t presented a baby storytime in over two months, which feels a little odd, but makes it more refreshing to come back to this age range. Trying out some new bounce rhymes, a new action rhyme, and a new puppet activity. I’m also super excited about my Shaker Song this week–Baby Loves Beignets by Jazzy Ash.
I also really wanted to use this perfect new baby storytime book, but alas, my August counterpart claimed it for storytime two weeks ago. But you should use it!
Early Literacy Tip: Sing all the time with your little one—make it a part of your routine. Tune “Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush” is great for singing about daily activities.
Book:Wheels on the Bus by Jane Cabrera
Song: Row, Row, Row Your Boat by Old Town School of Folk Music
We are on a brief live storytime hiatus as we re-adjust for whatever the fall will bring, so I thought I would highlight one of my favorite storytelling tools: Book Retellings! (Post updated 11/8/20.)
Book retellings were a part of my storytimes well before COVID and the move to virtual programs, though I’ve been happy to dig into them more since I am presenting more storytimes for toddlers and preschoolers. I sometimes use a book retelling element for babies with puppets, but mostly any “story” element is for the caregivers, with me focusing on and emphasizing the puppet reveal and animal sound for the babies.
Looking for more storytime tools? Check out our Storytime Resources page for links to more content.
Book Retellings Pros and Cons
Book retellings allow you to:
appeal to visual or action-based learners and listeners (so, most toddlers)
make things larger–puppets are often bigger than the pictures on a page, especially when presenting to a large in-person crowd (this distinction isn’t such a big deal behind a camera)
include more repetition – a book you read earlier in storytime or the week before could be used as a flannel or puppet activity
give caregivers ideas for ways to get excited about familiar stories that might be read over and over and over again at home
include props, puppets, and other manipulatives in your program
On the other hand, book retellings put more pressure on you as a presenter. Reading the words on a page with the proper inflection, emotion, timing, and engagement is a challenge on its own. Pulling that off without exact words to guide you can be more challenging. However, I also like to think of book retellings as more freeing–viewers can’t see the words, so if I mix up an animal or two, or intentionally skip an entire portion of the story or rearrange something to make more sense visually, as long as I keep my cool, the audience doesn’t have to know. (I think there is a better word than “audience” here. Storytimes are presentations, in a way, but there is a back and forth–what is the word for an engaged, participating audience? Is that still audience? I’m digressing.)
To Memorize or Not To Memorize
I’m going to say something here that may make some library folks cringe–yell in the comments. Please. I know this is my opinion, and it isn’t a popular one, but I still feel strongly about it, so: it is better if you memorize.
Yes, we aren’t actors. Yes, our caregivers know this. No, most kids don’t really notice if we read. But there are kids that do, and there are adults who also notice, and…well I was that totally judge-y preschooler who really didn’t know any better, and compared you (rightfully or not) to Barney and Sesame Street and the Wiggles, and those real people aren’t reading off of a page or constantly glancing off screen to read their next line.
Yes, there will be mistakes, and no, you shouldn’t refilm a 30-minute pre-recorded storytime 17 times because of one error toward the end. Have a cheat sheet somewhere but don’t make it a script and don’t rely on it. I normally put a list of key words taped either directly below my camera on my tripod or right beside the location where I am hiding the puppets or flannel pieces. If I decide to do a dramatic reveal and look back and forth a few times with fun facial expressions–I’m probably re-reading the next line.
I know this isn’t the way most librarians view or encourage this type of storytime experience, especially because it can make it harder or scarier to jump into something like this. But…I do, personally, feel like it makes it a little better. The storytelling experience is stronger and less stilted. But if you need that script, try it with the script. With time and repetition, you’ll know the story so well that you may be able to stop relying on the piece of paper. (End of Annamarie being rude and judge-y. Please berate me in the comments.)
How to Make Props and Flannels
I steal. I am not as creative as some of my coworkers. Do not be fooled by awesome flannel sets in videos. Some of these things are made by them. Other things are designed based off of me seeing someone else’s work online and remaking piece by piece. Other selections are my personally owned purchased sets, made by awesomely talented people who are not me.
I am not going to continue rambling here because my skills are not great or varied. My one tip, which is obvious to regular crafters but not to those of us new to this domain: get. scissors. just. for. felt. Use for nothing else. The world is a much, much more magical place.
Book Retellings Examples
There are so many great ways to retell stories, but now that I’ve made so many videos for our patrons to watch online, I decided to collect some of my favorites below, in alphabetical order by book title.
Bark George by Jules Feiffer (prop & puppets) Learn about how I made George in this blog post.
The Bridge Is Up by Babs Bell (magnet)
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr. (puppets) Change to whatever animals you have on hand. I tried to select stuffed animals that were different colors to continue the color emphasis from the physical book.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr. (flannel)
Brown Owl, Brown Owl What Do You See? (Adapted from Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.) (flannel)
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. (flannel) Abbreviated because you don’t realize how long this book is, and how many letters there really are, until you are halfway through.
Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell (flannel)
Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell (puppets)
Do Cows Meow? by Salina Yoon (puppets)
Do Crocs Kiss? by Salina Yoon (puppets)
Do Sharks Bark? by Salina Yoon (puppets)
Dog’s Colorful Day by Emma Dodd (flannel) I’ve also seen this done as a really cool dry-erase marker activity. I was going to do this on a physical stuffed dog with flannel dots, but my velcro dots didn’t work the way I imagined. Still curious about doing this with a stuffed animal though!
Froggy Gets Dressed by Jonathan London (flannel) Filming this was the worst because socks kept falling off the flannel board. Something to keep in mind during creation or execution–so many small parts.
Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley (magnet) Download the printable template from Kizclub.
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown (flannel) I re-wrote part of the story to create the all-items-enter and all-items-exit effect.
The Great Big Enormous Turnip (magnet)
I Spy on the Farm by Edward Gibbs (puppets) I made an I Spy window with a piece of cardboard hanging from a floor lamp. Change out the animals to whatever you have on hand.
I Went Walking by Sue Williams (puppets) Change out the animals to whatever you have on hand. I focused on having animals of different colors.
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff (flannel)
I’m the Biggest Thing in the Oceanb by Kevin Sherry (magnet) Download magnet template from Kizclub.
Is Your Mama a Llama? by Deborah Guarino (Llama Llama Red Pajama edition) (magnet)
Jump! by Scott Fischer (puppets)
Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle (flannel)
The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams (magnet)
Move Over, Rover! by Karen Beaumont (magnet)
One Red Sock by Jennifer Sattler (flannel)
Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin and James Dean (flannel)
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin and James Dean (flannel)
Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? by Bill Martin Jr. (puppets) Change out the animals to whatever you have on hand.
Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? by Bill Martin Jr. (flannel)
Polar Bear’s Underwear by Tupera Tupera (flannel)
Red Truck, Red Truck A transportation adaptation of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.
Row, Row, Row Your Boat by Jane Cabrera (puppets)
The Seals on the Bus by Lenny Hort (puppets)
Tickle Monster by Edouard Manceau (flannel) If you want to try retelling, this is the story for you. The set is super easy to make, and the order of body parts really isn’t that important. Caregivers can tickle little ones throughout.
Tip Tip Dig Dig by Emma Garcia (magnet)
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle (flannel) This is a great example of a story where you don’t need to memorize or have a script–just have your flannel pieces in the order you need them. The words are essentially the foods that you are adding to your board.
White Rabbit’s Color Book by Alan Baker (props)
I am always, always looking for more books to retell, especially stories that are about diverse characters or by diverse authors. This video list is very white, and and in storytimes I try to balance that, at least a little, with diversity in my physical book for the week. What are some of your favorite stories to retell?
I’m going to be honest–this is my third time writing this paragraph and WordPress keeps deleting this draft post. Essentially, this is my last baby storytime for a while, and this is a new book for me this week.
Early Literacy Tip: Sing to your babies! Your voice is better than a recording, and the quality of your voice doesn’t matter. Do you hear me singing on the Internet every day?
While we look at moving back into the library (I’m back in the library two days a week now–starting today!), virtual programs continue. We are discussing how to transition to filming in the library, especially since our building will most likely be opening to the public soon, any regular programming spaces are being used for quarantine of deliveries or returns, and an open-office staff space with no area for private filming. Returning to the library gives others staff members who don’t have the at-home tech an opportunity to film storytimes…but that also means restarting a learning curve about the technology and the differences between an in-person and virtual storytime, at a time when the patron expectation in program quality is higher (after all we’ve been doing this a while).
Early Literacy Tip: Babies understand more than they can say. Using gestures, including simple hand signs is a great way to communicate with your little one. More, Stop, and No are great words to practice.
Book:Leo Loves Baby Time by Anna McQuinn
Song: She’ll Be Comin’ Round the Mountain by Old Town School of Folk Music
Babies, babies, babies! I’m adding a couple new items this week I haven’t tried before–a new action rhyme and puppet activity. I’ve really enjoyed book retellings with toddlers and preschoolers, and I’m going to try to rethink some of my puppet activities to still include those animal noises that are so important for this age while theming them to stories instead of mostly rhymes. Not sure how that will actually work in person, but I think it works well virtually. This was the first time I used Everybunny Count as well–not for lack of trying, as I kept meaning to use it and then I would get sick or something like a pandemic would happen and my storytimes would be cancelled.
Early Literacy Tip: When playing, have fun making noises like animal sounds or truck sounds. Hearing different noises and experiencing different pitches and volumes helps baby’s language development.
Book:Everybunny Count! by Ellie Sandall
Song: What Shall We Do with the Sleeping Baby? by Rainbow Songs
I am bouncing with ages quite a bit in June, and while I will be presenting two more virtual preschool storytimes this month, I am also back to Baby Storytimes the whole month. I’m excited to be back with babies, though not so much to have to live up to my coworker’s adorable baby who made appearances throughout May.
As I expected, I am recycling some of my content here that I used in the first six weeks. Repetition is good for this age, and I also keep to a more strict routine with this age range week to week (though I am reordering my middle slightly). I have had more time than I may have had in the library, so I was able to do more research than usual, and I am planning to scatter a few new content pieces throughout, especially new body rhymes and puppet activities, which will mean a couple new videos a week.
Early Literacy Tip: Talk to your baby as you go about your day, even if they can’t respond with words yet. Encourage, listen, and respond to your baby’s babbling.
Book:Peek-a-Baby by Karen Katz
Song: Row, Row, Row Your Boat by Old Town School of Folk Music
This has been a crazy past week of storytimes, but I kicked off May family storytime Saturdays with Baby Shark Storytime!
I ran this program in person back in January to a whopping 185 people! While that was just a few months ago, it feels closer to three years, and it was also something easy enough for me to replicate virtually that has a strong following.
We had a 30 minute storytime followed by about 10 minutes of Baby Shark bubbles and dancing. Videos of most content can be found below–as usual, there are a few more videos than I actually had time for during the storytime.
I also made a PDF for families filled with Baby Shark activities to do at home. See and download below:
We had about 63 live viewers, with 100 one-minute views by the end of the live recording. Not a bad turnout for one of our slowest virtual storytime days of the week.
Background: While my library is closed during the COVID pandemic, we are hosting five virtual storytimes a week, livestreamed through our Facebook page. While those livestreams are deleted soon after they are complete, we are also making YouTube clips of select elements of our storytimes that our patrons can view anytime they would like–and that I can share with all of you!
Week 6 of virtual baby storytime! (And my last baby set for a while as a I pass the baby baton off to my coworker Sarah and her actual baby.)
There is some more repetition here from previous weeks than usual, which isn’t too surprising for me. I generally have a set of my best storytime material (developmentally appropriate, early literacy connections, parent and child response, I enjoy) that I tend to rotate through over about 4-6 weeks. I sprinkle in new material regularly too, but the repetition is good for everyone.
I’m getting ready to shift to Toddlers on Monday, which is a bit of an adjustment for me, though not quite as much as I expected. A lot of activities that I’ve stopped using in Baby Storytime because they involved too many full body motions (jumping, spinning) work great for toddlers. I’m also breaking out of my box a little bit because, while I’m keeping a sense of routine like I do with babies, I’m not trying to also bring the comfort and familiarity of the routine of our regular in-library programs. I don’t regularly present toddler storytimes (and neither did my coworker doing virtual toddler storytimes before me)–so I get to make up my own rules.
Views stayed low, but steady this week. I turned this craziness into an Instagram story to try to boost views. It didn’t work, but I had fun anyway (it is right-side-up when you play it):
Week 4 of virtual baby storytime! I am finally at a 30 minute storytime, woot!
Views dropped this week, with about 35 watching live and about 60 one-minute-views before the livestream was taken down. However, we did have more comments from regulars than we did on previous recent recordings. I’m also not sure if people just didn’t want to see my face twice in one week.
Folks on one of the state library web meetings also mentioned dropping viewers, and they had some interesting feedback regarding Facebook Live algorithms starting to stop notifying people when they go live due to the frequency–they could tell based on the decrease in impressions on their posts.
I’ve seen some libraries live streaming to multiple sources at once via two different devices, which is interesting. We have such a large built-in audience on Facebook, though we are also getting quite a response from our registered school age events. I can’t quite picture Zoom or a similar software working well though, just based on the number of meetings I’ve sat in on where people won’t turn their mute on–one person has rustling papers or pets in the background, and suddenly their face is the only one anyone participating can see, even if they aren’t the person talking or hosting. Any solutions out there?
