I remember being inspired to do a construction theme due to roadwork that was to start near our library at the time.  It would even affect our hours if I remember correctly so I thought it would be timely and something that the parents/guardians could talk with their kids about too.  Check out the full storytime plan for this "Throwback Thursday."


Theme: Construction
Date: August 10, 2016
Attendance: (Not recorded in notes)
Subject Headings:

• Construction -- juvenile fiction
• Construction equipment -- juvenile fiction*
• Construction projects -- juvenile fiction
• Construction workers -- juvenile fiction
• Building -- juvenile fiction

*I had the best results with this heading.

PLAN:

1. Opening Song (it was probably a variation of "Hands Go Up")
 
2. Book: Dig In! - April Jones Prince (2013) 
--Only if babies/little ones present

3. Book: Stanley the Builder - William Bee (2014)

4. Felt Board: Red Crane, Red Crane
-- I got this idea from Storytime Katie who was inspired by the art from Tip Tip Dig Dig by Emma Garcia.  I didn't have access to that picture book title, but I found the design simple enough for me to sketch out. However, you could always photocopy the illustrations from the book itself. I used crochet thread to attach the felt hook to the crane and added puff paint details to all of the pieces. 
Storytime Katie used the format of the classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin Jr. which I also followed when using this felt board.  I usually have the pieces in a bag and pull it out randomly and have the kids help me identify the color and type of construction vehicle depicted.  If there are six or less kids, you can even have them pull and add a piece to the board!
5. Book: Dig, Dogs, Dig: A Construction Tail - James Horvath (2013)

6. Book: Go! Go! Go! Stop! - Charise Mericle Harper (2014)

7. Song: "Construction Worker Song"
--I found the song lyrics via Storytime Katie on this website. It is sung to the tune of "Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush" and you can have everyone pretend to do the actions in each verse:

This is the way we pound our nails, pound our nails, pound our nails

This is the way we pound our nails, so early in the morning

• Saw the wood
• Turn the screwdriver
• Drill a hole
• Stack the bricks
• Stir the paint
• Paint the walls

8. Book: Bulldozer's Big Day - Candace Fleming & Eric Rohmann (2015)

9. Closing Song

10. Craft: Paper Shape Bulldozer
--I loved this craft idea from No Time For Flash Cards. I pre-cut the paper pieces, but the kids were still able to talk about the shapes and such with their grown ups.  Basically they glued the shapes together to make a bulldozer and then they could draw a construction scene with crayons. Here are some samples of what the little ones came up with below!

How It Went:
--I ended up altering my original plan by nixing the baby-aimed book and the kids must have been settled enough for me to read two books in a row before pulling out the felt board. As I mentioned in the introduction, I had initially been inspired about construction happening in our vicinity so I'm sure I must have opened with a short mention or discussion about that also: 

1. Opening Song (it was probably a variation of "Hands Go Up")
2. Book: Stanley the Builder - William Bee (2014) 
3. Book: Dig, Dogs, Dig: A Construction Tail - James Horvath (2013)
4. Felt Board: Red Crane, Red Crane
5. Book: Go! Go! Go! Stop! - Charise Mericle Harper (2014)
6. Song: "Construction Worker Song" ("This is the Way We" Adaptation)
7. Book: Bulldozer's Big Day - Canace Fleming & Eric Rohmann (2015)
8. Closing Song
9. Craft: Paper Shape Bulldozer

 I didn't find much notes from this storytime plan, but I did have a list of other construction themed books I had considered:

• Build, Dogs, Build: A Tall Tail – James Horvath, 2014
• Mighty Dads – Joan Holub, 2014
• Bang! Boom! Roar! – Nate Evans & Stephanie Gwyn Brown, 2012
• Demolition – Sally Sutton, 2012 
• The Construction Crew – Lynn Meltzer, 2011
• Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site – Sherri Duskey Rinker, 2011
• Building with Dad – Carol Nevius, 2006
• Hard Hat Area – Susan Roth, 2004
• Monster Trucks! – Mark Todd, 2003
• Get to Work Trucks! – Don Carter, 2002
• Minerva Louise and the Red Truck – Janet Morgan Stoeke, 2002
• The Lot at the End of My Block – Kevin Lewis, 2001
• Machines at Work – Byron Barton, 1987

Space Exploration Day or Moon Day is celebrated on July 20th in honor of the first moon landing of Apollo 11 in 1969.  Read on for fun storytime ideas with an easy craft, books suggestions, and cute felt board!

Theme: Moon (Space Exploration Day / Moon Day)
Date: July 20, 2016
Attendance: (Not recorded in notes)

PLAN:

1. Opening Song (it was probably a variation of "Hands Go Up")
 
2. Book: Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me - Eric Carle (1986)

3. Book: Bringing Down the Moon - Jonathan Emmitt (2001)

4. Book: The Moon Might Be Milk - Lisa Shulman (2007)

5. Felt Board: Hey Diddle Diddle
--I actually made this felt board for a cow themed storytime when I did a short term children's librarian project as an LIS student in fall 2015. I had came across an adorable design for this felt board from momanddotsfeltshop on Etsy and drew out my own version based on the photos.  I photocopied the original pencil drawings below for a pattern to use on the felt.  It was really fun to make but I felt like it was a lot of work for a very short nursery rhyme.  Fortunately, I've been able to reuse the pieces (e.g. the cow, cat, dog, etc.) for other songs, stories, and rhymes since.

Felties in progress with sketches

6. Book: I Took the Moon for a Walk - Carolyn Curtis (2004)

7. Closing Song 

8. Craft: Aluminum Foil Moon -- I got this idea from Mommy's Bundle blog where it's called a "sensory craft" due to having the children explore textures by crushing and smoothing out the aluminum foil.  I pretty much used the instructions as described.
Pro Tip: I used a small dessert plate or lid to trace a circle onto the foil with a pencil or something to just indent the foil and cut alone that line (no pen marks)!
We used glue sticks and since we had some leftover self-adhesive glow in the dark stars from a past Summer Reading Program prize, I left the kids use a few on their paper like stickers.  I also had crayons out for them to draw an outer space scene around their moon.  Overall a very easy and fun craft that allowed for creativity and minimal prep work for staff!

How It Went:
--I couldn't find any notes for this storytime, but I did find a list of other "moon" books I looked at:

• Imani’s Moon – JaNay Brown-Wood, 2014

• How to Bicycle to the Moon to Plant Sunflowers – Mordicai Gerstein, 2013

• Cindy Moo – Lori Mortensen, 2012

• Willoughby & the Moon – Greg Foley, 2010

• Thanking the Moon – Grace Lin, 2010

• Moon Dreams [Where on Earth is the Moon?] – Ruth Martin, 2010

• Catching the Moon – Myla Goldberg, 2007

• Moon Plane – Peter McCarty, 2006

• Kitten’s First Full Moon – Kevin Henkes, 2004

• I Took the Moon for a Walk – Carolyn Curtis, 2004. 

• The Moon Came Down on Milk Street – Jean Gralley, 2004

• Hello, Harvest Moon – Ralph Fletcher, 2003

• Man on the Moon: A Day in the Life of Bob – Simon Bartram, 2002

• When Moon Fell Down – Linda Smith, 2001

• What is the Full Moon Full Of? – Shulamith Levey Oppenheim, 1997

• The Princess and the Moon – Daisaku Ikeda, 1992. Random House 

• Moongame – Frank Asch, 1984

• Mooncake – Frank Asch, 1983

As a children's librarian, storytime is often an essential part of our services.  In this new series, I'll be recording the storytime plans and themes I've done.  I decided to start from nearly the beginning, though I don't have quite as much notes, but hopefully I'll be able to catch up to my current position quickly!

Theme: Summer
Date: July 13, 2016
Attendance: (Not recorded in notes)

PLAN:

1. Opening Song (it was probably a variation of "Hands Go Up")
 
2. Book: Mouse's First Summer - Lauren Thompson (2004)

3. Book: Summer Days and Nights - Wong Herbert Yee (2012)


4. Felt Board: Summer Shapes
--This activity was inspired by Storytime Katie and Mel's Desk, though I used a different design for the popsicle (I may redo it later), it was easy enough to draw out the patterns freehand.

For the kite, I made the tail out of little hourglass/bow shapes and tied the crochet thread around the center of each bow to secure it, I glued the string to the back of the diamond and used a matching scrap of felt to cover up the knot.  

It's a very fun and simple shape and color identification activity!  If I remember correctly, I used a similar guided conversation/hints for some of the items as described in the original posts.  It went over well and I've used it several times since then.

5. Book: Summer Wonders - Bob Raczka (2009)

6. Closing Song 

7. Craft: Sun Hanger
--I was inspired by the colorful designs for a sun spinner here, but I simplified it for my preschool crowd by using a thin paper plate (I don't remember if it was a full size or snack/dessert sized plate, but either would work) and punched a hole at the top and used yarn as a hanger, so it was like a big ornament or door hanger. 

How It Went:
--I couldn't find any notes for this storytime.