School Storytime, Friday, August 5 @ 10:30

Note to self: Check to see the week before how many pre-k graduates are in y our group. I asked at the beginning of storytime and there was only one!  So I quickly changed over to dinosaurs because doing a storytime about school would have been just plain silly.

Books:

• Pete the Cat, Rockin' in my School Shoes.  Esp. good because Pete the Cat explains where he is as he finds himself in his strange new surroundings -- the playground, the cafeteria, the school library.
• How Do Dinosaurs Go to School.  Always a favorite series.
• Llama Llama Misses Mama by Anna Dewdney.  Try to head off those scared and sad feelings at the pass by -- talking about them ahead of time.  Llama Llama misses her mama, but mama comes back.
• I'm Your Bus by Marilyn Singer
• Monsters Love School by Mike austin.  These lovable monsters ask the perennial question: Why do we have to go to school? We already can count and we know our ABCs.  And the answer is given! We go to sing! To learn history! To make friends! I might cut a few pages next year, but this was a big hit -- MONSTER SCHOOL had a good ring to it, and Milo thought the monster's mistakes -- ABG -- were hilarious.
• Maybe next year:
• Planet Kindergarten by Sue Ganz-Schmitt. He's not going to kindergarten -- he's launching into outer space.
• Dinosaur vs. School.  Dinosaur is definitely not enrolling in college.  He's happy once he gets to school though, and finds it's all glue and googly eyes, just his speed.
• Rosie Goes to Preschool. Katz.  Rosie's no Pete the Cat, but she covers all the basics.

Songs:

ABC song
Wheels on the Bus
This is the way we wash our face (have to get ready for school!)

Games:

• Teach about "criss cross applesauce" and eyes and ears here, please!
• Try teaching this: When they're being very noisy, clap once, and they are to clap back. Then I clap twice, and the kids clap twice.  That should get everyone quiet; if not, clap three times. Positive discipline blog 
• Try teaching this:  To gather attention before beginning a new story, say to your group, "If you like chocolate, put your hand on your head. If you like pizza, rub your tummy! If you like mashed potatoes, wiggle your arms. 
• After storytime, have them practice getting in a line.  Then have them count - 1, 2, 3, and divide them up into "centers". Have them each go to a different "center" for an activity: building, art, games or snack. This year we did a Duplo building corner w/cars, and a tablecloth city; an art table with shaving cream and food colors swirled together with coffee stirrers, a big hit; and a game with grapes, roll the dice and you can have that number of grapes, not such a big hit. I even had a red die and a green die for the red and green grapes.