Baby Storytime! – Scarves

So I also do Baby Storytime at my library and thought I should post about it.  I’ve recently (within the past few weeks) decided to revamp  what I do.  I’ve been getting bored with it and wanted to make it a little more interactive.  My baby storytime isn’t very structured and I always save about 10 minutes at the end for playtime.

I give all the caregivers a print-out with the rhymes for the day on it.  So everyone can join in.

Opening Rhyme:

(to the tune of Mary Had a Little Lamb)

“Everybody wave hello, wave hello, wave hello.
Everybody wave hello, let’s have some fun.
Everybody wave hello, wave hello, wave hello.
Everybody wave hello, now our song is done.”

(I learned from Children’s Librarian Robin B. that you should do each rhyme twice and cheer and clap after each rhyme.  It makes it more fun and the babies like to clap for themselves.)

Lapsit Rhymes:

I do about about five lapsit rhymes where the caregiver holds the baby in their lap (I hold a teddy bear in mine!).  From week to week I do a lot of the same rhymes (repetition is good for babies) but I will throw in a new one once in awhile.  Here are the rhymes I did this week:

1.    Old Mother Goose (tap your legs along to the beat)
When she wanted to wander
Would fly through the air (lift the baby up into the air)
On her very fine gander

2.  Goosey, goosey gander, where do you wander?  (tap your legs along to the beat)
Upstairs, and downstairs  (lift the baby up and then down)
And in my lady’s chamber.  (tap along to the beat)

3.  Two little dickey birds sitting on a cloud  (hold up your pointer finger on each hand)
One named “Soft,”  (wiggle pointer finger on right hand and speak quietly)
The other named “Loud.”  (wiggle pointer finger on left hand and speak loudly)
Fly away Soft!  (move your right finger around your back and speak softly)
Fly away Loud!  (move your left finger around your back and speak loudly)
Come back Soft!  (bring your right finger back and speak softly)
Come back Loud!  (bring your left finger back and speak loudly)

4.  Here we go up, up, up.  (Lift baby up in the air)
Here we go down, down, down.  (Lift baby down to lap)
Here we go backwards and forward.  (Hold baby in lap, lean back and then forward)
Here we go round and round.  (Hold baby close and move in a circular motion)

5.   Itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout
Down came the rain and washed the spider out
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain
And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again

Board Book:  Go Baby Go! by Marilyn Janovitz

Lapsit Rhymes

After the book we do a few more lapsit rhymes:

6.  Handy Spandy, sugar and candy, we all jump in
(bounce baby on your knee and lift to one side on “in”)
Handy Spandy, sugar and candy, we all jump out
(bounce baby on your knee and lift to other side on “out”)
Handy Spandy, sugar and candy, we all jump up
(bounce baby on knee and lift into air on “up”)
Handy Spandy, sugar and candy, we all sit down
(bounce baby on knee and place on lap on “up”)

7. Fingers like to wiggle waggle, wiggle waggle, wiggle waggle.
Fingers like to wiggle waggle, WAY UP HIGH!
Fingers like to wiggle waggle, wiggle waggle, wiggle waggle.
Fingers like to wiggle waggle, WAY DOWN LOW!
Fingers like to wiggle waggle, wiggle waggle, wiggle waggle.
Fingers like to wiggle waggle,  ON MY KNEES!

8.  Bend your body
Touch your toes.
Straighten up and
Touch your nose.
Wave your arms,
Now touch each knee.
Stamp your feet
And count to three
One – Two – Three!

Flannel Board:  Baa Baa Black Sheep

Lately I’ve been trying to do a simple flannel board at each baby storytime (something I haven’t done in the past).  I like making nursery rhymes into flannel boards for the babies because they are so sing-songy that it really holds the babies’ attention.  Plus the caregivers already know the words so they can join in.  I usually do the flannel board/nursery rhyme twice.

Activity:  Scarves

I always do a simple activity towards the end of each baby storytime.  The activity always involves some type of manipulative (scarves, wrist bells, drumming, egg shakers, ribbon sticks).  I really want to find more manipulatives that work well in this setting so if you have suggestions please comment!

I give each caregiver a scarf and we do the following rhymes together (I use the teddy bear to demonstrate for the caregivers):

1. Wind, oh wind, oh wind I say.
What are you blowing away today?
Scarves, oh scarves, oh scarves, I say.
I am blowing the scarves away.
(fly scarves from side to side in front of child while saying the rhyme)

2. Peek-a-boo, I see you.
I see you hiding there.
Peek-a-boo, I see you.
I see you hiding there.
(play peek-a-boo by putting the scarf over the child’s head/face)

3.  This is the way we wash our face,
Wash our face, wash our face.
This is the way we wash our face so early in the morning.
(crumple the scarf up and use it to “wash” the baby’s face – repeat with other body parts; knees, tummies, toes…)

4. Have caregivers crumple the scarves into their hands.  Ask them to count to three with you.  On three, throw the scarves into the air and watch the rainbow of colors fall to the ground.

Now it’s play time!  I have a giant tote bag filled with toys that I bring out and spread out on the floor (the older babies usually help me with this part!).  We just sit and play and the caregivers have a chance to socialize too.

Goodbye Song:

Our hands say thank you with A clap, clap, clap;
Our feet say thank you with a
Tap, tap, tap.
Clap, clap, clap!
Tap, tap, tap!
We roll our hands around, and say,
“Good-bye.”

 

Advertisement