Jump, Jump - Frogs!

My library system has four locations, and this week I moved from a small branch to the main library! Very exciting for me! Now instead of conducting one family storytime, I have toddler and preschool storytimes. It is a bit different, a little rowdier, but I love the excitement shown when we sing Itsy Bitsy Spider, even though I know they have probably heard it a hundred times. This week the theme was "frogs" and I used several books that the previous librarian had already pulled, since our switch was so sudden and she had already planned that part of the storytime. Here is what we read:

I used a "Five Green and Speckled Frogs" flannel board that was pre-made by another librarian many moons ago. I made a flannel board that spelled out GREEN, and used this rhyme from Preschool Education:

Green added 9-16-99 Original Author Unknown
Sung to: "B-I-N-G-O"
There is a color we all know
Can you guess what it is?
G-R-E-E-N
G-R-E-E-N
G-R-E-E-N
Green is what that spells.
The grass and leaves outside
Are green as green as they can be.
G-R-E-E-N
G-R-E-E-N
G-R-E-E-N
Green is what that spells.

I made a song cube very similar to this and they loved it! It is a great early literacy tool and the fun was getting to throw it into the corner of the room. I don't think I'll ever lack volunteers for that task! 

At the end we made a frog in a pond craft, inspired by this image: http://nikarella.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/photo6.jpg 
I made numbered lily pads using this pattern and lined them up near the exit so kids could jump on the lily pads on their way out of the storytime room. It was a fun morning!