Preschool Storytime: Fall

We are continuing our fall theme this week in preschool storytime.  My storytime friends really enjoyed singing and playing the ETM song "Hop Old Squirrel".  In fact, one of my little friends came up to me after storytime, drew in their arms, stuck out their teeth, looked up at me, and stated "Miss Nicole, I am a squirrel."  It was adorable.

The Plan

Welcome

Hello Song: We Clap and Sing Hello
To the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell"
Credit: Storytime Katie

We clap and sing hello,
We clap and sing hello,
With our friends at storytime,
We clap and sing hello!

Big Movement Song (ETM): Clap Your Hands

Action Rhyme:  Pumpkin, Pumpkin
Credit: Storytime Katie

Pumpkin, pumpkin, big and round, (Make big circle with hands)
Sitting on the cold, hard ground. (Touch the ground)
Soon I’ll pick you off the vine, (Pretend to pick a pumpkin)
Give you a name, and make you mine (Hug pumpkin tightly)
Carve a face for all to see, (Point to face)
Add a candle for Halloween glee! (Clap your hands)

Letter of the Week: F
Introduce the Letter of the Week with the magic bag.  Wondering what it is - read about it here
Magic Bag items: fries (plastic play food kind), flower (silk/faux), fish puppet, and letter F

"Magic Bag Song"
To the tune of "Do You Know the Muffin Man?"
Credit: N. Lawton

Let's all look in the magic bag,
The magic bag, the magic bag.
Let's all look in the magic bag
to find out what's inside.

Caregiver Handout:

Action Rhyme: Way Up High in the Apple Tree
Credit: Storytime Katie

Way up high in the apple tree (stretch arms up high)
Two red apples smiled at me (hold up two fingers)
I shook that tree as hard as I could (make a shaking motion)
Down came the apples… (make a downward motion)
And mmm, they were good! (smile and rub stomach)

Book: Bella's Fall Coat by Lynn Plourde

Big Movement Song (ETM): High Stepping Horses

Action Rhyme:  Hoot Hoot Went the Little Brown Owl
Credit: Jbrary

Hoot, hoot went the little brown owl one day
Hoot, hoot went the little brown owl
Hoot, hoot went the little brown owl one day
And they all went hoot, hoot, hoot
But...
We know owl goes (clap) la de la de la
La de la de la, la de la de la,
We know owl goes (clap) la de la de la
They don't go hoot, hoot, hoot.

Jump, jump went the little red squirrel one day
Jump, jump went the little red squirrel.
Jump, jump went the little red squirrel one day
And they all went jump, jump, jump.
But...
We know squirrels go rub a dub a dub
Rub a dub a dub, rub a dub a dub
We know squirrels go rub a dub a dub
They don't go jump, jump, jump.
​

Flannel Board Story:  This is Not a Pumpkin
Credit: Snark & Storytmimes
*Note: I adapted it so we didn't talk about jack o'lanterns.  As much as I personally adore and love Halloween, not everyone that comes into the library does.  So this is my way of respecting that.  My pumpkin flannel piece had a kawaii style smiley face.

This is NOT a pumpkin, 
It's round
It's big, 
It has a steam
But this is NOT a pumpkin

You can turn it sideways
You can even turn it upside down.

You can put it in a corner
or throw it high in the air
And wonder if it will come back down

But no matter HOW you look at it this is NOT a pumpkin!

Why because EVERYONE knows that pumpkins
(Turn you pumpkin around)

Don't SMILE!
NO! NO! NO!

Pumpkins don't smile or frown.

Big Movement Song (ETM):  Hop Old Squirrel

Action Rhyme: Apple Roll
Credit: Storytime Katie

Five little apples in the bowl
One fell out and started to roll
It bumped the table and hit my feet
How many apples left to eat?
 (keep counting down until you reach 0 apples)

Book:  Squirrels Leap, Squirrels Sleep by April Pulley Sayre

Music Activity:  Drums

We Tap Our Drums Together
To the tune of "Jolly Good Fellow"

We tap our drums together
We tap our drums together
We tap our drums together
Because it's fun to do

Tap your drums fast

Tap your drums slow

We tap our drums together
We tap our drums together
We tap our drums together
Because it's fun to do

Acka Backa Soda Cracker
​Credit: Jbrary

Acka backa soda cracker
Acka backa boo.
Acka backa soda cracker up goes you. 
​(lift hands up in the air)

Acka backa soda cracker
Acka backa boo
Acka backa soda cracker
I love you!

We Drum and Drum and Stop
To the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell"
Credit: Jbrary
Adapted by N. Lawton for drums

​We drum and drum and stop
We drum and drum and stop
We drum and drum
and drum and drum
and drum and drum and stop

Goodbye Song:  We Wave Goodbye Like This
To the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell"
Credit: Storytime Katie

We wave goodbye like this.
We wave goodbye like this.
We clap our hands for all our friends.
We wave goodbye like this.