Well, since everyone else seems to have a blog these days, I thought I'd try my hand at it. I don't know if anyone will be interested in anything I have to say, but it will at least be a creative outlet for my interests & experiences working in children's services at the library.
As the blog title indicates, I am not a librarian, and though I would love to be, it is probably not in the cards. For more on the backstory, see my "About Me" page. While I don't get to do programs at work, I have found a wonderful volunteer opportunity at a local daycare, with my manager's support. So every other week for the last 6 months, I present a storytime to the 3-year old class, complete with books, songs, fingerplays, & rhymes. And I absolutely love it!!
When I first started going to the daycare last fall, the kids were pretty unruly. Some could not sit still, some would wander off, some would talk amongst themselves. Still others would be overly engaged, jumping up in front of the book so others couldn't see, interrupting me to comment on the pictures, etc. It was a little frustrating at first, and not knowing their names yet made it harder to reign them in. That first time I kept it very short, only 15-20 minutes, and did two books and a couple of other activities. Now I have stretched it out to 25-30 minutes as they have learned the routine and matured a little bit. I have learned their names, too, which makes it so much easier to keep them engaged.
I love hearing them say "Miss Jennifer's here; Miss Jennifer's here!" when they see me at the door, and all the mob hugs! It is so rewarding to see how they have learned the routine and sing along with the regular songs, and now can handle doing 3 books instead of 2, and longer books than before (they even asked for longer stories last time!). If only I could get paid for doing this :sigh:
Next time I will describe my general storytime routine in more detail....
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