Christmas Pajama Storytime

I just started my new job in December, and I felt bad I didn't really get there quite early enough to really plan any special holiday programs or take-home kits, so somewhat at the last minute I decided to at least do a special evening pajama Christmas storytime.

Christmas - Virtual Storytime

 At first I wasn't sure about doing a Christmas storytime, having previously worked in a very diverse, multinational community with a wide array of ethnicities, cultures, and religions where we did not do Christmas programs. However, the library and community where I work now is very different and Christmas celebrations and programs are the norm. There was a wide array of non-Christmas programs available as well, and I made sure the theme was announced in advance so those who preferred to opt out could do so. But with storytime falling just two days before Christmas, and knowing so many in our already economically depressed community have had even more hardship due to the pandemic, I really felt a cheery Christmas storytime would best serve this particular community at this time, plus my manager had requested some type of Christmas program.

(I know this is a very divisive topic in our profession, and I have discussed my thoughts and opinions on the matter in previous articles, here and here, so I prefer not to debate the issue on this post.)

Last Round of Storytimes for the Year

Today I finished up my last round of storytimes for the year, with a Christmas theme (keep in mind these are outreach storytimes and the theme was requested). It was a lot of fun, with several humorous stories, a great flannel board, and singing Christmas songs, which we all know are SOOOO much better when accompanied by bells!

I had all the same books as I've used before, with the addition of two others I came across in our stacks, that I'll highlight here:

That's Good! That's Bad! On Santa's Journey by Margery Cuyler & Michael Garland. I've used Cuyler's original book before in a series of Zoo-themed storytimes and thought this one would be fun, too. It works better with some groups than others, as not all kids get the humor and irony, but the ones that catch on to the pattern of things that seem to be one one turning out to be the other will really enjoy this book. 

Santa has a number of seeming misfortunes, like being stuck in the chimney, bumping his head, being left behind by the reindeer, falling out of the sleigh, splitting his pants, etc., but it all works out and he gets all the presents delivered.

Are You Grumpy Santa? by Gregg and Evan Spiridellis is another funny book that has our poor Santa running into one mishap after another. Mrs. Claus' snoring wakes him up, he stubs his toe, no hot water in the shower, a skimpy breakfast, being chased by a poodle in France, slipping on a noodle in Italy, nearly run down by bulls in Pamplona, and bumping his tush into a Christmas cactus in Phoenix, Arizona!

Poor Santa is upset and miserable, and then spies a card someone left for him, along with a plate of cookies. And now he's no longer grumpy! This story gives an explanation for why we leave cookies for Santa, and shows that anyone can have a bad day and get the grumpies, even Santa.

I had the same Rudolph flannel I used last week, and we sang a lot of "Jingle Bells", with real bells of course, and a few rounds of "Frosty the Snowman" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" during the two-week rotation.

The kids really loved all the stories and the Rudolph flannel, but what I think most of them loved the most was getting to use the bells. Most groups were so excited and yelled out "Jingle Bells!" as soon as they heard them. In fact, two of my little friends loved them so much they wanted to keep them. One little boy sweetly asked if he could take them home to his mom, but understood when I explained I had to keep them for other kids to use. But one little girl was much more sneaky, hiding them behind her back and slipping to the back of the group so I never noticed she didn't turn hers in. But one of the other kids ratted her out, and she was so mad about giving them up! Ah, the seductive lure of the jingle bells...

While I love doing storytime, I am looking forward to having a little break from it for a bit. I will be taking 3-weeks off from storytime over the holidays, for 3 reasons: (1) there are so many closings and low attendance it isn't worth it, (2) the kids just get too crazy as we get closer to Christmas, and (3) the Storytime Bus needs to have it's annual inspection and maintenance, and scheduled repairs. This gives me a chance to take time off for the holidays or a vacation, but this year I may take a day off, but will be at work most of the time.

I'm looking forward to a break and having a chance to do something different. My major projects will be catching up on some much needed collection development, and working on a presentation I've been asked to give in January. I also might pick up an extra shift at the Children's desk or help with one of their programs, which is always a nice change of pace.

Christmas Fun - Preschool Storytime

I had a last-minute idea to make this a full-fledged "Reindeer" storytime rather than a general Christmas one, but of course I had waited too late, and there were no suitable reindeer stories to be found, so I stuck with the original plan.

We started with our welcome song, then talked about Christmas a little bit, and sang our story song, with a couple of special Christmas verses added (say "Ho, ho, ho!" & say "Merry Christmas"), and settled down for our first story, Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! by Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewis. 

This is a good book for groups that are less attentive as it is relatively short, little text, but a fair amount of action going on. Kids can identify the animals, predict what's going to happen when the next ones go up, say the "Ho, Ho...Oh, No!", and predict whether Santa will get stuck or not. This has been very well enjoyed by every group I've ever read it to.

Since they did such a good job of listening and staying engaged with the first book, I decided to go straight to the second book and save all the songs and flannel until the end ['If it ain't broke, don't fix it' is my motto!]. 

Since this group needs highly interactive books, I decided on the Snappy Little Christmas book with it's pop-ups and bright illustrations (though the pop-ups are not quite as impressive as some of their other books as they don't really have as much"pop" or movement). There is a snowman, reindeer, angel, tree, carolers, penguins, and of course, Santa! One thing that I think is funny and always point out is that the reindeer (who, while unnamed, must be Rudolph as it has a red nose) has ornaments hung all over its antlers.

Next we did a great flannel activity I found a few  years ago that the kids all love:

Rudolph, Rudolph


Rudolph, Rudolph pattern from Library Quine 

Rudolph, Rudolph, what will you do?
You can't guide Santa's sleigh if your nose is BLUE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, you're such a silly fellow.
Who will know it's you if your nose is YELLOW.

Rudolph, Rudolph, your way cannot be seen,
Through the wintry weather if your nose is GREEN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa gave a wink.
But what will he say if your nose is PINK?

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to fly at night.
But you can't get through the snow if your nose is WHITE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to go to town.
But you can't help Santa if your nose is BROWN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa has his sack.
But you're not ready if your nose is BLACK.

Rudolph, Rudolph, the children are in bed.
And now you can get on your way because your nose is RED!
  *Poem found at Crafty Chic Mommy

The more I ham it up, the better they seem to like it! Each time I try to convince them that whatever color I have is good enough, and of course they always insist we have to keep trying. Usually they cheer and applaud by the time Rudolph *finally* gets his red nose. 

After that, I said that since we just helped Rudolph find his nose, and Rudolph was in our book, and Rudolph was on my sweater, that I thought we needed to sing Rudolph's song; they readily agreed. So, we sang "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", then sang it again because the kids didn't know all the words and motions well enough to do the whole thing the first time and faded out very quickly after the initial "Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer..." They did much better the second time.

Then I said "Let's sing another Christmas song. Listen, and see if you can guess which one I'm thinking of..." and gently jiggled my bag to make the jingle bells I had brought ring softly. Immediately their faces lit up and they all yelled, "Jingle Bells!" I don't think there's anything better to them than singing "Jingle Bells" with actual bells.

We sang it twice, just repeating the first verse because I don't know the others well enough, and since they were enjoying the bells so much, I also played "Jingle Bell Rock" and we all danced along. 

I was tempted to do either another song or book because they were doing so well, but I just had a gut-feeling I would lose them if I did, so I decided to quit while I was ahead! We sang our closing song, then I told them about the bags of special "Reindeer Food" (oats, colored sugars, & sprinkles) I was giving their teacher to give them to take home, and how they should sprinkle it outside on Christmas Eve for the reindeer, then passed out stickers.

How It Went

I was a little concerned about how they would be today since it had been a month since I'd seen them because of the Thanksgiving holidays and mandatory training I had to attend. But they were really good and we all had so much fun! They loved Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! and wondering what the duck was up to. This class surprised me, as most kids think Santa will get stuck, too, like everyone else, but they were all sure he wouldn't. They also liked the Rudolph flannel board and song, but I have to say, the highlight for them was getting to play the jingle bells!

Now, I'm sure some will look at this and immediately judge and disapprove that I did a Christmas storytime, but my response is that I am here to serve the needs of my patrons and my community, and this was an outreach storytime to a church-sponsored daycare who incorporates Christianity into their curriculum and had not only approved, but requested the holiday theme, and it was enjoyed by all. 

Christmas

Today was my last storytime of the year, and yes, I did do a Christmas theme. I know this is a controversial topic, but as I've explained before, I (and many others) don't share the view that all libraries must be completely sanitized of anything remotely related to Christmas in the name of inclusivity ("And Here We Go Again", "To Holiday, Or Not"). Additionally, my storytimes are all outreach rather than for the general public, and the daycares I serve specifically request holiday and seasonal themes; I see no reason not to give it to them.

We started with our usual welcome song, followed by a brief introduction. Normally I would follow that with our story song, which [hopefully] helps them settle down and be ready for our first story, but since I was starting with a very active book first, I saved the song for afterward.

I borrowed our first book, The Santa Shimmy by Christianne Jones

and Emma Randall, from a co-worker who had bought it as part of a set for her own children. This is a really fun little book with a lot of movement: shimmy, shake, jump, and spin with Santa. I knew they'd have fun with it and *hoped* (perhaps in vain) that it would help get their wiggles out.

There are 3 others in the series: The Elf Boogie, The Reindeer Dance, and The Snowman Shuffle. Unfortunately, they are only sold to the general public as board books, but are also available as paperback 8x8's from Scholastic book fairs.

I then followed that with our story song, ending with the kids sitting down criss-cross applesauce and saying "shh". I chose a short, simple funny book from Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin that came out last year, Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! This book seems to always work well, since it is short and simple enough for the younger kids, but the humor keeps the older kids engaged, too, and they love the repetition. It's Christmas Eve, and Duck is up to something, but what? He climbs the pole and zip-lines over to the roof of Farmer Brown's house, where he promptly finds himself stuck in the chimney. The other animals go up to help and end up getting stuck as well! Along comes Santa; can he get them out or will he get stuck. too?? 

Next we did a great flannel activity I found a couple of years ago that the kids all love:

Rudolph, Rudolph


Rudolph, Rudolph pattern from Library Quine 

Rudolph, Rudolph, what will you do?
You can't guide Santa's sleigh if your nose is BLUE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, you're such a silly fellow.
Who will know it's you if your nose is YELLOW.

Rudolph, Rudolph, your way cannot be seen,
Through the wintry weather if your nose is GREEN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa gave a wink.
But what will he say if your nose is PINK?

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to fly at night.
But you can't get through the snow if your nose is WHITE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to go to town.
But you can't help Santa if your nose is BROWN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa has his sack.
But you're not ready if your nose is BLACK.

Rudolph, Rudolph, the children are in bed.
And now you can get on your way because your nose is RED!
  *Poem found at Crafty Chic Mommy

The more I ham it up, the better they seem to like it! Each time I try to convince them that whatever color I have is good enough, and of course they always insist we have to keep trying. Usually they cheer and applaud by the time Rudolph *finally* gets his red nose. Of course we had to follow the activity up by singing "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "Jingle Bells" for which I had brought actual jingle-bells for them to use (if you'd like to use a recorded version, I highly recommend Laurie Berkner's).

Then we settled back down for our last book, Stowaway In A Sleigh by C. Roger Mader. This is a sweet little story about a curious cat who can't resist snooping in Santa's sack, and ends up accidentally being taking home with Santa to the North Pole. This is a nice short, calming story, and since it takes place at night I tell the kids they have to be very quiet.

This would be a good bedtime/naptime story. I had hoped it would help the kids settle down a little bit because I try hard to avoid getting them worked up, then leaving the teachers to deal with it.

As we prepared to close, I first told them about the special treat I had brought for them since it was Christmas - bags of magic reindeer food that they could sprinkle on their lawn on Christmas Eve to help the reindeer find their way. 

The "reindeer food" was made by mixing oats, red/green sparkle sugar, and confectionery sprinkles (some use glitter, but we keep everything edible just in case the kids decide to try it themselves). A small amount was placed in a ziplock bag and then inside a small brown paper sack, with a poem that gives instructions attached. I also attached a small candy cane to each (not shown) and reminded the kids that while the candy cane was for them, the food inside was just for reindeer.

[Click on the image at right for a full-sized picture to read the poem.]

I gave the bags of reindeer food to the teacher to send home with them, and we sang our closing song and passed out stickers.

How It Went 
The kids are always glad to see me, but they were *really* glad to see me today and I was greeted with lots of enthusiastic hugs and cries of "Miss Jennifer's here!" This is the best part of my job, hands down! 

As to be expected this time of year, they were a little harder to keep engaged and extra chatty. But we made it through and I think they really enjoyed it. The loved all the movement with The Santa Shimmy, and I found myself wishing I had borrowed at least one of the other books in the series since it was pretty short and they had lots of energy! Like every other group, they really got into Duck's antics in Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! and predicting everyone else that went up to help would get stuck too, and cracked up at being proved wrong when it came to Santa getting stuck. The ones with cats particularly liked Stowaway In A Sleigh, but I found I had to break my rule about substituting words with that one because they couldn't understand that "Mr. Furry Boots" was how the cat thought of Santa, and were very indignant about it, so to avoid arguments, I just said "Santa" after the first time.

The "Rudolph, Rudolph" flannel activity was a big hit as usual, and they loved having the bells for "Jingle Bells". I did accidentally commit one horrific act while I was there, though. Their class elf was hanging from the ceiling, which I wasn't used to being there and forgot about. When we reached up high to stretch between stories, I accidentally touched him, which is apparently a BIG no-no! There were immediate gasps and comments, and hushed cries of"She touched him!" and "Now he'll lose his magic!" I felt so bad, and didn't really know what to say, not being well-versed on the mythology of the elf-on-the-shelf, so just tried to quickly move to the next thing. Luckily only a few saw it and most were not too concerned and the rest seemed to forget it soon enough. Whew!

Rough Week..... (or, Impromptu Holiday Dance Party!)

So, I think I jinxed myself last week by planning a "Germs" storytime 😡. Just a couple of days before that I ended up coming down with what I thought was just a cold, but on Friday I was really hoarse, and by Saturday I had lost my voice completely! When I was not really any better on Sunday, and had 6 back-to-back storytimes scheduled for Monday morning (with another 4 on Tuesday and 6 more on Wednesday), I knew I was in big trouble!

Most of the time I have a volunteer to help me with storytime, but as luck would have it, I had NO ONE sign up for December; everyone was too busy with the holidays I guess. I sent out an e-mail practically begging for someone to find the time to help, with no response, and I knew my boss would have a meeting and the one of the children's librarians was on maternity leave, so they were already spread too thin. I really didn't want to cancel because it was our last rotation before taking a two week break over the holidays, and we had planned a holiday theme and made packets of "reindeer food" to give to all the kids (for my thoughts on the whole holiday controversy please see my previous posts "And Here We Go Again" and "To Holiday Or Not To Holiday").

So, what do you do if you have a scheduled storytime but you have no voice? Turn it into an impromptu "Preschool Dance Party"! I already had Laurie Berkner's Christmas CD, and I quickly downloaded a few more songs to my phone as well after getting the OK from my boss to change the format and sending an e-mail to give the preschool a heads-up. I only needed enough songs til fill about 20 minutes, and I tried to choose ones that (1) the kids would know, and/or (2) had a fast tempo and good beat to dance to. Here's a list of songs that I ended up using:

• "Jingle Bells" (Laurie Berkner), with jingle bells, of course
• "Jingle Bell Rock" (Bobbie Helms), also with the bells
• "Frosty the Snowman" (Laurie Berkner), with shaky eggs
• "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Laurie Berkner), with hand motions
• "Rocking' Around the Christmas Tree (Brenda Lee)
• "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" (Frank Sinatra)
• "All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth" (Kidsongs)
• "Let It Go" (Idina Menzel)

I also offered movement scarves and/or ribbons with the songs that didn't have motions or bells. I also hoped that my voice would come back enough to at least be able to read 1 story to each class, but I wasn't very optimistic.

How It Went  

I won't sugar-coat it; the first day was pretty rough. I still had almost no voice, just barely enough to explain why we weren't having a regular storytime, and singing was impossible. I did manage to read 1 short book (Mouse's First Christmas) to three of the classes before my voice gave out completely. In one class the teacher read a couple of books from my selection, and the other two just did music. It went okay, except for whatever reason, the kids at this facility just never seem to get into the music as much, and only a few would dance. I managed to coax a couple of reluctant participants by pulling them up front to dance with me.

The second day was a little better (and mercifully shorter); I still only read 1 book to each class, but my voice was slightly better. These kids really got into the music and dancing, so it was a lot of fun. Then today I managed to make it almost like our usual storytime, and was able to read two books, or do 1 book and 1 flannel activity, to each class, then finished up with 2 or 3 songs. Some of the classes got into dancing, some just wanted to sit and listen/sing along, and one class got SO into it, we decided it was best to sit after the first song 😉.

The kids really liked "Rudolph" and "Frosty the Snowman", which I expected as they were the most familiar, and of course loved doing "Jingle Bells" with actual bells. Some recognized "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" from the movie "Home Alone" and a few knew "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". One word of caution, "Let It Go" (the song from "Frozen") did NOT get a good reception, much to my surprise! I guess the kids are finally as sick of it as everyone else. When it started playing, I immediately heard several choruses of "Awwww", "Not 'Frozen'", and "I hate this song!"; I didn't dare to try it again after that as I had plenty of others.

While not ideal, I think everything went okay, and no one seemed to mind the change in format. We did end on a positive note, though, when one of the classes today gave me a Thanksgiving Day card that they had not been able to give me before Thanksgiving, full of handprint turkeys made by each of the kids, and a little Christmas notepad. Things like that just make my day! 

The Ghost of Christmas Past

This is the Christmas storytime that I did last year, before I started my blog.  At that time, I was still a storytime newbie with only 3 storytimes under my belt, but I had already learned a lot from those 3 storytimes.  By this point I had established a basic storytime plan with a beginning routine of a welcome song, followed by an introduction, then a lead-in song which has now become known as our "story song".

For our first book I chose one that just came out the year before, Is It Christmas Yet? by Jane Chapman.  I really liked the cute story of little Teddy Bear who just can't wait for Christmas, and annoys Big Bear by asking him every few minutes if it's Christmas yet, which most kids (and adults) can relate to.  I fell in love with the illustrations as well, and if they seem familiar, it's because Jane Chapman is also the illustrator of Karma Wilson's Bear books.

Then, I decided to go straight into a second, short book, Eight Jolly Reindeer by Ilanit Oliver.  They enjoyed counting the turkeys in Ten Fat Turkeys during our Thanksgiving storytime, so I thought they would like counting reindeer as well, and it would be a great lead-in to singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer".

After we sang about Rudolph, then we did an action rhyme about him,

 "Rudolph, Rudolph":

Rudolph, Rudolph, turn around.

Rudolph, Rudolph, touch the ground.

Rudolph, Rudolph, touch your nose.

Rudolph, Rudolph, touch your toes.

Rudolph, Rudolph, jump up high.

Rudolph, Rudolph, touch the sky.

Rudolph, Rudolph, touch your knees.

Rudolph, Rudolph, sit down, please!

I like how this action rhyme ends with having them sit down, and ready for the next book.  For our last story I chose Lauren Thompson's Mouse's First Christmas.  It has a simple, sweet story of a little mouse exploring around the house on Christmas Eve after everyone else is asleep, showing all the interesting things he finds.  The kids can guess what each thing is; some are easy, but others are a little more challenging.  This works well for younger kids who need something shorter and very interactive.

After that, we closed with a rousing round of "Jingle Bells" and I surprised them by bringing real jingle bells to use with the song.

How It Went

I had a small group today, and the kids just seemed a little off and out of their normal routine.  Usually they crowd too close to me, but today they were all spread out way too far away and didn't really want to participate much and didn't seem that excited about Christmas like I expected.

I also had a heated argument break out between two of the kids as we were talking about Christmas and traditions during the introduction.  I never could quite figure out exactly what the point of contention was, only that it had something to do with chicken and they both felt very strongly about it.

I was really surprised that they seemed to have no interest in the reindeer counting story after they liked the Thanksgiving counting story so much, but it totally fell flat.  They did finally perk up and get interested when I read Little Mouse's First Christmas and got into guessing what each discovery was.  Then they really got interested when I pulled out the bells for "Jingle Bells", so we at least ended on a positive note.

I have learned since then that doing storytimes close to any of the big holidays can be tricky.  You never know what the kids are going to be like because they are usually out of their normal routine, and often over-stimulated.  They may be bouncing off the walls with excitement, or they may be past that stage and starting to crash and withdraw from sensory overload and be hard to get engaged.  So, you have to be prepared with back-up books and activities, and adjust on the fly.  But, sometimes, if you're lucky, you get them right at the point where they are really enthusiastic but still in control, and you can have a lot of fun!

The Sixth Day of Christmas

This was my sixth and final day of Christmas storytimes for this year.  The first 5 days were with the storytime bus, but this last one was with my regular daycare I had been going to for about a year before I got the position with the storytime-to-go program.  Even though I sometimes use the same theme, it's a little different because I go in to the classroom and it's the only one I do that day.  So I don't have to worry about a tight schedule, I have a larger group, and I can experiment a little and include a little more since there's more time and flexibility.  I also take the time for a little longer beginning routine and a closing song.

I started with our usual greetings, welcome song, and introduction.  I knew with it being the last day of school before Christmas and the day of special Christmas activities that the kids would be more hyped up, so I did several extra verses of our "story song" to try to get them more settled and focused.

For our first story, I chose The Three Bears' Christmas by Kathy Dival and Paul Meisel.  This is a cute re-telling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears with a Christmas theme.  Instead of porridge, it's gingerbread bear cookies; and instead of Goldilocks, it's Santa who has been in their house nibbling their cookies, sitting in their chairs, laying in their beds, and leaving presents!  The story is cute and I like how there are little clues throughout the story that become more and more obvious as you go along.  It's interesting to see when the kids start picking up on them. 

Next we did the "Rudolph, Rudolph" rhyme and feltboard:

                Rudolph, Rudolph


Rudolph, Rudolph pattern from Library Quine 

Rudolph, Rudolph, what will you do?
You can't guide Santa's sleigh if your nose is BLUE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, you're such a silly fellow.
Who will know it's you if your nose is YELLOW.

Rudolph, Rudolph, your way cannot be seen,
Through the wintry weather if your nose is GREEN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa gave a wink.
But what will he say if your nose is PINK?

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to fly at night.
But you can't get through the snow if your nose is WHITE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to go to town.
But you can't help Santa if your nose is BROWN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa has his sack.
But you're not ready if your nose is BLACK.

Rudolph, Rudolph, the children are in bed.
And now you can get on your way because your nose is RED!
  *Poem found at Crafty Chic Mommy

And of course we had to follow that by singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer".

Since the kids were really getting wound up, I decided to skip the second book (Shhh! by Julie Sykes and Tim Warnes) and go straight to the last book, Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! by Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin as it is shorter and more simple, but still funny.  In this book mischievous Duck is up to something on Christmas Eve.  He climbs up the telephone pole and zip-line's across to the roof, where he falls in the chimney and gets stuck.  All the other animals zip over to the roof, and try to help Duck get unstuck, but they all end up stuck, too!  Finally Santa arrives and saves the day.  The story is simple, and the kids will enjoy predicting that the other animals will get stuck, too, and being tricked into wrongly predicting Santa will get stuck as well. 

Then we ended by singing a couple of rounds of "Jingle Bells", with bells of course.   Then I told them about the magical reindeer food I was leaving with the teacher for them to take home at the end of the day and save until Christmas Eve, sang the closing song, and gave them all hand stamps.

How It Went
Things went as well as could be expected, considering it was the last day of school before Christmas and they had special activities planned, and this group is generally less disciplined and much more chatty and squirrely than last year's class anyway.

I was surprised at how quickly one girl caught on to the fact that it was Santa in the three bears' house.  She spotted the first clue, just a tiny glimpse of Santa's sleigh up in the corner of the page, and when the bears saw their door open, she knew right away it was Santa.  It took the other kids a little longer to figure it out.  They liked this story, but not quite as much as I hoped they would.  I think they have to be really familiar with the original story to fully appreciate it, and only 4 or 5 of them said they knew the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

Just like with every other group, the "Rudolph, Rudolph" activity went over really well, and just like most every other group, they guessed it was a turkey when I had just put up the face without the ears, antlers, or nose.  I find that really interesting, as I really wouldn't have thought of it that way, but that response was very consistent.  I guess the head could kind of look like a turkey's tail, with the darker colored snout looking like a turkey's neck and head.  Some guessed it right when I added the ears, the rest got it with the antlers.  One little boy guessed "moose" which made sense as he was wearing a shirt with a moose on it.

They all really liked the silly antics of the Duck in Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! and how everyone else got stuck.  Not everyone is this group was fooled; however, and some correctly guessed that Santa would get them out and not get stuck himself.

They had a great time with the jingle bells, though at first I realized some were just singing random songs while shaking the bells, and not actually singing "Jingle Bells"!  I've never noticed that happening before.  Then, once I got them all on track, they didn't want to stop, continuing on with another round after I had stopped.  Which was perfectly fine with me; I enjoyed just listening to them and appreciated the enthusiasm!

I remember last year I saw a noticeable improvement in listening skills and being able to sit quietly after we came back from the winter break, so I hope the same happens this year.  I feel like there are just so many more great books available to them once they get to the point they can sit still and listen for 5-10 minutes and I don't want them to miss out.  I don't mind the interruptions to ask a question or make a brief comment related to the story, but when they are constantly moving around, talking to each other, and interrupting with comments unrelated to the story, it makes it difficult to read anything other than the very short, simple books that don't really have much of a story or more complex language.

Happy Holidays!

Ho, Ho, Ho! Christmas Storytime

Today finished the last day of the 2-week rotation on the Storytime Bus featuring a Christmas theme (approved in advance by the daycare directors).  Again, while I used a variety of books over the course of the 2 weeks and approximately 26 groups, I generally used 2 books and 2 activities with each group, give or take.  Here are all the books I used at some point during the two weeks:

Shhh! by Julie Sykes and Tim Warnes is a cute and funny story about all Santa's noisy mishaps as he delivers presents on Christmas Eve.  All the animals keep telling him, "Shhh, Santa!  You musn't wake the children."  The kids love the humor and often need little or no prompting to join in with the repeating line. 

Children can relate to young Teddy's eager anticipation in Is It Christmas Yet? by Jane Chapman (illustrator of Karma Wilson's Bear books), and adults can relate to Big Bear's growing frustration with his constant asking, "Is it Christmas yet?".  Children will be horrified when the Christmas tree breaks as they try to get it in the house, but it all works out in the end, and when Teddy wakes up it is finally Christmas.

Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! is the latest book by Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin.  It is a simple, purely silly story with the mischievous duck getting himself in trouble, which soon involves all the other animals.  This has a simple story, with repeating lines that the kids can say, as well as a plot they can easily predict once they see the pattern.  Until the very end, when they will undoubtedly predict Santa will get stuck, too, only to be told, "Don't be silly, Santa would never get stuck".

In Karma Wilson's Bear Stays Up - For Christmas (illustrated by Jane Chapman), Bear's friends are determined to keep the normally hibernating Bear from missing Christmas this year.  Will he be able to stay awake?  As you know, I love Bear books, and this one is no exception, and I can certainly relate to the over-tired, sleepy Bear.

Jingle-Jingle by Nicola Smee is basically a winter version of Clip-Clop, a known storytime hit.  Jingle-Jingle has a short, simple, but funny story with repeating elements and sound effects that kids enjoy.  This is particularly good for younger kids, or for a general winter theme as well.


When Cows Come Home For Christmas by Dori Chaconas and Lynne Chapman is a very funny story about a cow who gets her hooves stuck in the floor where the Christmas tree is supposed to go, and is unable to get out.  Eventually, they decided to decorate her instead, spawning a new family tradition!  This is a little long for the younger kids, but older ones will love it.

Mouse's First Christmas by Lauren Thompson is a cute little story with Little Mouse exploring around the house on Christmas Eve, leaving the children to guess what he finds.  The one issue I have with this book is that a couple of the illustrations are ambiguous or misleading, and usually require extra hints for the kids to guess.

Of course, Clement Moore's 'Twas The Night Before Christmas is a classic, and I've always loved it; though it is a little long for many preschoolers.  I hoped this version with more simple, modern illustrations by Daniel Kirk would be more appealing so I could read it with at least a couple of the older groups, for the sake of tradition, and it seemed to work pretty well.

The What Am I? lift-a-flap books are always good to use with younger or more restless kids that need something short, simple, and very interactive, so of course I included the Christmas one by Anne Margaret Lewis and Tom Mills.

And last but not least, I'm Not Santa by Jonathan Allen has a very confused Baby Hare mistaking fluffy Baby Owl in his red and white hat for Santa.  When Baby Owl tries to explain he is not Santa, Baby Hare starts crying, so Baby Owl in desperation agrees he is Santa.  This just makes Baby Hare cry harder, which then makes Baby Owl cry, too!

Activities
At Christmas, I like to stick with traditional and fun Christmas songs like "Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer", "Jingle Bells", "Frosty The Snowman", etc.  For one, the kids usually know them, and we can add movements or bells and dance around a little.  They always love it when you get out the bells!  I'm guessing most people know these songs or could easily find them, so I'm not going to bother writing them all out.

I also made a great Rudolph flannel board activity that I saw last year, but too late to use.  I saved the pattern provided by Library Quine and was sure to make it this year, and found the poem from Crafty Chic Mommy.

               Rudolph, Rudolph

Rudolph, Rudolph

Rudolph, Rudolph, what will you do?
You can't guide Santa's sleigh if your nose is BLUE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, you're such a silly fellow.
Who will know it's you if your nose is YELLOW.

Rudolph, Rudolph, your way cannot be seen,
Through the wintry weather if your nose is GREEN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa gave a wink.
But what will he say if your nose is PINK?

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to fly at night.
But you can't get through the snow if your nose is WHITE.

Rudolph, Rudolph, it's time to go to town.
But you can't help Santa if your nose is BROWN.

Rudolph, Rudolph, Santa has his sack.
But you're not ready if your nose is BLACK.

Rudolph, Rudolph, the children are in bed.
And now you can get on your way because your nose is RED!

I usually start by first putting the face on and see if the kids can guess what it is, and rarely will anyone get it (I get a lot of "turkey"s).  Then I add the ears, and a few might guess then.  But of course as soon as a start to put on the first antler, they all know it's a reindeer (though I did have one guess "moose").  Next, I ask them if they know any special reindeer, and after they come up with "Rudolph", I ask them what is special about Rudolph.  When they say something about his nose, I then ask what is our Rudolph missing, and should we help him find it?

I read the poem, carefully putting on each nose without revealing it until the end of the line, and let them call out the color.  I really ham it up, trying to convince them each color is good enough because it's bright, pretty, a Christmas-y color, made with a little red, etc.,  They think it's funny and of course insist we must keep trying until will get the right color.  I keep telling them they are awfully picky, and "reluctantly" try another "if you insist".  Then we finally get to red, and of course have to follow with a rousing round of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" with all the hand motions and shout-outs.

For really small groups of 7 or less, I pass out the noses to the kids and let them bring them up and put them on when the color is called.

How It Went
This rotation started off with a lot of improvising and "Plan B" followed by "Plan C"!  The night before the first day, the driver for our RV/mobile storytime called in sick, and I have neither the desire nor capability to drive that thing.  So I just planned on picking up the kit from the branch where we normally meet (they are taken to this location in advance for the volunteers to have a chance to review) and going to the daycares myself and having storytime in the classroom.  My flannel board and bells were on the bus, which is stored in a secure location that I don't have access to (or even know exactly where it is), so I rigged one up with a flannel pillow case clamped tight around a memo board from home.

The next morning I got to the branch to grab my kit, only to find the custodian who is normally there to let us in was not there, and I don't have keys for that building!  I knew I didn't have time to go to my building that I did have a key for, and likely anything good was checked out anyway.  Fortunately, I did happen to have one Christmas book and a handful of winter books in my van, and I had just finished making the Rudolph felt pieces, so had them with me rather than in the kit.  There was a Wal-Mart down the street, so I zipped over there and ran in and quickly bought a couple more Christmas books, and headed over to the preschool with my improvised flannel board and smaller-than-normal book selection.

But, though I was a little flustered at first, it all worked out great!  Actually, I found I really like doing it that way better.  I didn't have to worry about limiting the group size, had more space, and I felt more connected to the kids and teachers.  The kids loved the Rudolph, Rudolph flannel, and were fine with what books I had.  Though I felt bad they didn't get some of the great Christmas books I had planned, they didn't know what they were missing.  We ended up having a great time.

The rest of the rotation all went well (up until today).  There were so many good stories, but I would say that Shhh!, Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho!, When The Cows Come Home For Christmas, and Jingle-Jingle were all big hits because of their humor.  The younger ones also enjoyed Mouse's First Christmas and What Am I?.  I don't think there was anything that I would say didn't work.  Sometimes it was hard to decide what to read because they were all so good.  The Rudolph, Rudolph flannel was a HUGE hit!  They absolutely loved it, and so did the teachers and volunteers.  And of course what kid doesn't like singing "Jingle Bells", especially when you get to have real bells!

As for today, I went in expecting another day of jolly good fun, but it didn't quite go that way.  Almost every group I saw was just off somehow.  The first one, the young ones, just seemed lifeless.  Except of course for the two that were SO disruptive it was an exercise in futility.  After the second story, I basically called it quits and did one last song and sent them on their way.  They second group was overall slightly restless and just could not get them to engage in anything.  The third group is usually one of my best, but their teacher was out and the sub got them there late, so they missed almost half their time slot.  They were well-behaved, but not as enthusiastic as usual.  Thankfully the fourth group were their usual wonderful selves and were well-behaved AND very enthusiastic.

Then we went to the next location for one last group, and they were completely out-of-control!  Interrupting, banging heads on the wall, kicking feet on the floor, getting up walking around, trying to go behind us and snoop around in our stuff, just would not listen.  The only thing that seemed to hold their attention fairly well was the Rudolph, Rudolph flannel activity.  It was not an awful day, but it was frustrating and disappointing.  I hate ending a theme on a sour note, especially Christmas.  I chalk all the squirrely behavior up to (1) being too close to Christmas, and (2) to the unusual spring-like weather we've been having.  I'm glad we are taking a break from storytime until after the holidays!

I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday season, whatever you choose to celebrate (or not)!