I grew up in Iowa and as a result, I am quite familiar with farm animals. Cows are probably one of the most recognizable farm animal to my storytime group (second to only pigs) so this was a great theme for storytime this week.
First we readThe Cow Who Clucked by Denise Fleming.
This is a nice story about a cow who loses his moo and must look all over the farm to locate it. It was a great opportunity for everyone to practice their animal noises.
Next we read Cows Going Past by Bruce Balan.
While on a car trip, a family sees all sorts of cows going past. This is a cute story with great illustrations. The highlight for me though was one of my regulars read the title aloud when I held up the book. It’s so exciting when a child starts to read and this little boy was so proud of himself. It was fantastic!
Finally, we closed with Cock-a Doodle Quack! Quack! by Ivor Baddiel, Sophie Jubb and Allie Busby.
In this story, a little rooster must learn how to crow in the morning to wake up all of the other animals on the farm. This book was similar to the first one I read in that it provided lots of opportunities for the kids to practice those animal noises.
For craft this week, we made cow masks. The children were given little pieces of pink paper to glue on for the ears and then went wild with the crayons. As usual, the example is much more boring than what the kids came up with.
Awesome Story Time 
Wow am I glad I stumbled upon you site! I do story time for two libraries in Minnesota and you’ve got exactly what I want for my kids. Your comments/thought process fits perfect. We feel that a simple craft really excites the kids and parents and encourages return visits. I am trying to add flannel board and songs/finger plays to make them more balanced. Keep up the great ideas and thanks for sharing.
Thank you! I am so glad you find it helpful!
The kids are always way more creative than we are. I made one of my teens do my storytime craft last week, haha!
Do you have a pattern of this or did you free hand it?