Merry (almost) Christmas! It was a special children’s program this week: Christmas Storytime, complete with craft. The Fabulous Library Assistant came up with the craft for her Thursday Christmas Storytime and I pilfered the idea and supplies and did the same one on Friday at mine. We both hauled out the jingle bells too, but otherwise, we each put our own spin on the festive program. Here’s mine:
Book — We Wish You a Merry Christmas
Action Song with puppet book — We Wish You a Merry Christmas/Let’s All Do a Little Clapping
We wish you a Merry Christmas
We wish you a Merry Christmas
And a Happy New Year.
Repeat with:
Now let’s all do a little clapping…and spread Christmas cheer
Now let’s all do a little jumping …
Now let’s all do a little twirling…
Now let’s all do a little sitting …
Flannel/Felt/Guessing Game — Little Mouse, Little Mouse
Based on Storytime Moxie with a festive gingerbread house too! Forgot to snap the cute little mouse in the photo. Sorry!
Action/Transition — If You’d Like to Read a Book Clap Your Hands
Santa & His Reindeer
Book #1 — Three Bears’ Xmas by Kathy Duval
Christmas Song — Up on the Rooftop
Up on the rooftop reindeer pause
Out jumps good old Santa Claus
Down through the chimney with lots of toys (bend down touch ground)
All for the little ones, Christmas joys
Ho, ho, ho! (make belly with hands)
Who wouldn’t go? (shrug shoulders)
Ho, ho, ho! Who wouldn’t go?
Up on the housetop, (point up)
click, click, click (snap fingers and tap foot)
Down thru the chimney with good Saint Nick (bend down touch ground)
Flannel/Felt/Colours –Rudolph, Rudolph (from Loons & Quines
Fingerplay — Here is the Chimney (x2)
Here is the chimney (make a fist)
Here is the top (put other hand on top of fist)
Open the lid (take hand off)
Out Santa will pop! (pop up thumb)
From Storytime Katie
One little boy just loved this one so I did it three or four times, much to his delight.
Book #2 — Snowmen at Night Pop-up by Caralyn Buehner
Movement Song — There’s a Snowflake on My Shoulder
[Tune: Did You Ever See a Lassie]
There’s a snowflake on my shoulder, my shoulder, my shoulder.
There’s a snowflake on my shoulder and it’s melting away!
Continue with:
There’s a snowflake on my elbow…
There’s a snowflake on my tummy…
There’s a snowflake on my knee…
There’s a snowflake on my head…
From Colorado Libraries Storyblocks
Christmas Song –Frosty the Snowman
Counting Rhyme/Flannel– Five Little Snowflakes
From our branch flannel treasure trove; photo forthcoming.
Jingle Bells
Bell Warm up –Ring you bell so slowly slowly as can be
Christmas Song — We Will Ring Those Xmas Bells So Loud and Clear
[to the tune of “She’ll Be Coming Around the Mountain”]
We will ring those Christmas bells so loud and clear.
We will ring those Christmas bells so loud and clear.
We will hear the dingle, dingle
When they jingle, jingle, jingle.
Yes, we’ll ring those Christmas bells so loud and clear.
We will ring those Christmas bells so quietly.
We will ring those Christmas bells so quietly.
We will hear the dingle, dingle
When they jingle, jingle, jingle.
Yes, we’ll ring those Christmas bells so quietly.
We will ring those Christmas bells so fast and loud.
We will ring those Christmas bells so fast and loud.
We will hear the dingle, dingle
When they jingle, jingle, jingle.
Yes, we’ll ring those Christmas bells so fast and loud.
Christmas Song — Jingle Bells
Counting Rhyme — Five Little Jingle Bells (x2)
Five little jingle bells hanging in a row [count on fingers]
The first one said “ring me slow”
The second one said “ring me fast”
The third one said “ring me last”
The fourth one said “I love to chime”
The fifth one said “It’s Christmas time!”
Craft
Kids decorated a cardstock stocking with tons of glue, glitter, wrapping paper snippets, and more!
How it Went
I was pretty excited to use the Little Mouse and Rudolph flannels that I’d made for this program. They turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself! The pink nose was hard for some of the kids to identify and even I felt ho-hum about the books so I couldn’t expect them to be over the top about them. Other than that, I saw lots of smiling faces and happy kids and parents. It was like an early Christmas present. Happy Holidays, everyone!
Time for Storytime 