We got a couple new books in that made me really want to do a language centered storytime. The community I work with is largely bilingual so the majority of the children who come to storytime communicate in two languages. I have noticed that they always have a fun time when I stumble through Spanish pronunciations and they can correct and teach me the correct way.
We began with Chicka Chicka Boom Boom written by Bill Martin Jr. & John Archambault and illustrated by Lois Ehlert.
This book was a crowd pleaser when I was a kid (I think my sister and I went through 3 copies) and continues to get children today excited about the alphabet. I always have so much fun reading it aloud and usually a few children are familiar with it so they help me out with the chicka chicka boom booms.
Next we read Everybody Bonjours by Leslie Kimmelman, illustrated by Sarah Mcmenemy.
This is a really beautiful book about a young girl who visits Paris where “Everybody Bonjours!” The children enjoyed it and we had a good time practicing our French saying bonjour and au revoir. We also practiced our Spanish. However, I think the highlight of the program for me was when I asked if anyone spoke any other languages and one little boy said “I speak them all! Especially dinosaur!” He taught us all the correct pronunciation of ROAR!!!
Next we read Alpha Opps!: The Day Z Went First by Alethea Kontis, Bob Kolar.
I was a bit worried about how this would go over, but I decided to do it anyway. Much like The Scrambled States of America by Laurie Keller, in this book we learn what happened when the Z got tired of being stuck at the end of the alphabet and of course, hilarity ensues. Overall, the kids liked this book. I think the older ones found it more enjoyable than the younger ones which wasn’t too much of a surprise.
After that, we read Everywhere the Cow Says Moo! written by Ellen Weinstein.
As with When Z Went First, I wasn’t too sure of how this would go over. It was great! In this book animals all over the world make different sounds but every where the cow says MOO!! We had a great time moooing with the cows.
I had a hard time coming up with the craft this week and decided on alphabet caterpillars and every one spelled out their names. I felt a little bad for the kids who have longer names.
This was a very fun craft however, the cutting of each letter section was a bit labor intensive. Thank goodness for teen volunteers!
The template for the craft was found here:
http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/insects/mcaterpillar-letters.htm
Awesome Story Time 