Mother Goose storytime

From Susan Mankowski at the Jacksonville (FL) Public Library:

“Mother Goose Storytime (is) a 20-minute program for babies up to 18 months and their caregivers. Begin your child's appreciation for books and develop their early literacy skills through stories, songs, lap rhymes, and movement.”

Sample program

Pre-Literacy Skill Focus: Oral Language & Vocabulary Development

Expanding vocabulary and oral language skills through animal sounds and animal signs. 

Theme

Farm animals

Hello Song

Fingerplay

Open Shut Them

Book

Moo, Baa, La la la! by Sandra Boynton

(Introduce the animal signs of cow, pig, duck, and cat.  Encourage parents to help children make these signs during the read-aloud.)   

Songs

On The Farm

with egg shaker musical instruments  (to the tune “Wheels on the Bus”)

The cow on the farm says moo, moo, moo.
 Moo, moo, moo. Moo, moo, moo.
The cow on the farm says moo, moo, moo all day long. 

Additional verses:  pig = “oink”, duck = “quack”, cat = “meow”    

Old Macdonald’s Farm

with movement not sound

Old MacDonald had a farm, EIEIO.
And on that farm he had a cow, EIEIO.
With a sway, sway here and a sway sway there.
Here a sway, there a sway, everywhere a sway, sway.
Old MacDonald had a farm, EIEIO.

(cow: sway, pig: roll, duck: waddle, cat: stretch)

Fingerplay

Two Little Black Birds

Two little black birds, sitting on a hill.
                (raise the index finger of both hands in front of you)

One named Jack, and one named Jill.
                (indicate the right hand as Jack and the left as Jill)

Fly away Jack.
                (place your right hand behind your back)

Fly away Jill.
                (place your left hand behind your back)

Come back Jack.
                (bring your right hand with index finger raised in front of you again)

Come back Jill.
                (bring your left hand with the index finger raised to join the right hand)               

Book

Color Farm by Lois Ehlert

Select one or two animals from the book to feature in storytime.  Prior to storytime, use the book as a stencil to make flannel shapes for the flannel board.  Name the color and shape of each flannel piece as you re-create the animal from the book on the flannel board. 

Closing Song

Follow-up 15-30 minutes: Parent Practice

Color Zoo by Lois Ehlert 

Allow parents and children to use flannel shapes to re-create animals from the storytime.  They can use the flannel board, or the carpet.    

Other Activities

Farm Animal Signs

Directions: Cow: pinky up, fingers down in fist.  Place next to temple and wave down.

Pig: fingers together sideways under the chin.  Wave, fingers together.                       

Cat: pointer finger and thumb pull away from the upper lip making a whisker

Duck: back of hand against the mouth, two fingers and thumb open & close in front