Penguin Storytime, Friday, January 13 @ 10:30

We started off by waddling like penguins and then belly diving (hand motion) at the beginning.  They really wanted to jump up and down though.

Note:  Penguins do a lot of talking in these books. Work out a penguin accent. 

Books

Waddle! Waddle!  by James Poimos.  Plenty of action here. Waddle, slide, sing, and blow your horn.  The book has the concept of the penguin missing his new friend, which is really his own image reflected in the water.  I tried bringing out a small mirror, setting it on the ground, and having him see himself in that. I think I would have to use a bigger mirror, maybe set on the whiteboard, so that everyone in the audience could see the puppet recognizing himself in the mirror.  As it was, these little guys didn't get the concept, and you can just skip it entirely, because him going off with his two new friends is nice enough.
Penguin Problems by Jory John.  I love this funny book, but the concept of a dissatisfied penguin and a sagacious walrus when waaaaay over the kids' heads. Save for 3 - 4 year olds.
Little Penguin's Tale by Audrey Wood.  Don't forget your Grand Nanny Penguin walking stick.  This book BEGINS with Grand Nanny shushing her audience,  which makes this a perfect storytime book!Love the chorus of "Now everyone knows a little penguin can get..." (in trouble in some way.)  The eyes of the three year olds were firmly glued to me, and then relieved when I turned the page.  Lots of action what with gooney birds and all. 
Fun Read: The Pirate and the Penguin by Patricia Storms. A pirate AND a penguin in the same book? They switch places to change it up a bit. Who wouldn't? I was sloppy with my penguin vs. pirate accent.  

Didn't get to this year: 

Good Read: Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers. "Once there was a boy" --'like you, Carson, or Milo, or Alex," I begin, rounding up their wandering attention with eye contact, "who found a penguin at his door."  Oliver Jeffers' tale of the journey of this kind hearted boy and the penguin he is trying to help was so engrossing that there was actual silence in the room while everyone listened.
Personal Favorite: Penguin's Big Adventure by Yoon. Simple text, simple story. 
If You Were a Penguin by Wendell and Florence Minor.  A bright and cheerful little penguin reminds kids what they would be up to if they were penguins.
Busy Penguins by John Schindel.  OK, not a lot of science, but this was a mostly twos crowd.

Flight School by Lita Judge.  Should a penguin enroll in flight school? Good question.
Grumpy Pants Clare Messer

Songs

I asked all my little penguins to stand up and go over their penguin anatomy before we chanted this.

Head & flippers, tails & feet, tails & feet.

Head & flippers, tails & feet, tails & feet.

Eyes & ears & mouth & beak.

Head & flippers, tails & feet, tails & feet.

Row, Row, Row, Your Boat 
Gently down the stream
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily
Life is but a dream

Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the stream,
If you see a crocodile,
Don’t forget to scream.

Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the Nile,
If you see a camel,
Don’t forget to smile.

Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the river,
If you see a penguin,
Don’t forget to shiver.

Row, row, row your boat,
Gently to the shore,
If you see a lion there,
Don’t forget to roar!

Row, row, row your boat,
Gently down the creek,
If you see a little mouse,
Don’t forget to squeak.

Craft

I don't usually do TP roll crafts, but penguins just LOOK like TP rolls, don't they? Vocab:  cylinder. Directions  Everyone was AOK with this craft.

The coolest yet. We painted with bubblewrap-paper towel roll paintbrushes. Over crayon resist. The results were fantastico.

Penguin joke:  Two penguins were standing on an iceberg. One of them said to the other, "You look like you're wearing a tuxedo." The other one answered, "What makes you think I'm not?"