Dinosaurs (and Dragons) Spanish and Bilingual StoryTime: November 22nd and November 24th, 2012

For Spanish story time, I combined dinosaurs with dragons because I don't have enough dinosaur stories in the Spanish storytelling collection. It worked pretty well doing that, but I had such a hard time getting the kids to roar during both Spanish and bilingual story times. Some weeks are just like that.

One cool thing about this program was that I gave out these small packs of dinosaurs jigsaw puzzles that the kids could color (4 crayons came in each pack) and then take apart and put together again. They were a donation, and while they weren't exactly the kind I'd pick to give to preschoolers, it was still fun for them to scribble on the puzzles.

Hora de Cuentos Plan:
Theme: Dinosaurs (and Dragons)
Literacy Skill: Arts

Walk-in song: If I Knew You Were Coming I'd Have Baked a Cake/Sharon, Lois, and Bram (Elephant Party)

Welcoming comments

Literacy tip: Asegúrase de hablar acerca las ilustraciones de los libros. Esto ayuda  su hijo desarrollar la apreciación por las artes.

Activity song:  El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: ¿Cómo Dan las Buenas Noches los Dinosaurios?/Jane Yolen

Activity song: Cabeza y Hombres/Sarah Barchas (¡Todos, Listos, Canten!)

Fingerplay: Juego de Aplaudir

2nd story: ¿Quién Quiere al Dragón? /James Mayhew

Standing fingerplay: Roly Poly

3-D story: ¡Oh, Oh, Dinosaurios! (Oh My Oh My Oh Dinosaurs!)/Sandra Boynton

4th story: Si Yo Tuviera un Dragón/Tom Ellery

Instrument song: Di Dinosaurio/Charlotte Diamond (Soy Una Pizza) *with maracas

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: Los Dinosaurios/José-Luis Orozco (Canto y Cuento)

Bilingual Story Time Plan:
Theme: Dinosaurs
Literacy Skill: Arts

Walk-in song: If I Knew You Were Coming I'd Have Baked a Cake/Sharon, Lois, and Bram (Elephant Party)

Welcoming comments

Literacy tip: Asegúrase de hablar acerca las ilustraciones de los libros. Esto ayuda  su hijo desarrollar la apreciación por las artes. Make sure to talk about the illustrations in books. This helps develop appreciation for the arts.

Activity song: El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: ¿Cómo Dan las Buenas Noches los Dinosaurios?/Jane Yolen

Activity song: My Energy/Laurie Berkner (Under a Shady Tree)

Fingerplay: Clap 2, 3, 4

2nd story: Dinosaur vs. the Library/Bob Shea

Standing fingerplay: Roly Poly

3-D story: ¡Oh, Oh, Dinosaurios! (Oh My Oh My Oh Dinosaurs!)/Sandra Boynton

 4th story: Dinosaur Stomp!/Paul Strickland

Instrument song: Di Dinosaurio/Charlotte Diamond (Soy Una Pizza) *with maracas

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: If I Had a Dinosaur/Raffi (More Singable Songs for the Very Young)

Dental Care Spanish and Bilingual StoryTime: November 15th and November 17th, 2012

I don't have a literacy skill tip listed like I usually do, but in my introduction I mentioned we were going to read make-believe (and nonfiction stories for the Spanish program) stories about teeth and the dentist to show us how we can take care of our teeth and why it is important to take care of them (scientific knowledge).

Hora de Cuentos Plan:
Theme: Dental Care
Literacy Skill: Scientific Knowledge

Walk-in song: Yo Quiero/Rubén Rada (Putumayo: Latin Playground)

Welcoming comments

Activity song:  El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: Cocodrilo va al Dentista/Taro Gomi

Activity song: Cabeza y Hombros/Sarah Barchas (¡Todos, Listos, Canten!)

Fingerplay: Una Boquita

2nd story: El Dentista/Jacqueline Laks Gorman & Tatiana Acosta

Standing fingerplay: Juego de Aplaudir

3-D story: El Dolor de Diente del Oso (The Bear's Toothache)/David McPhail *flannelboard


4th story: ¡A Lavarse los Dientes!

Instrument song: Move and Freeze (instrumental)/Music All Around Home *with bells

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: ¡Cepíllalos!/¡Somos Felices!

Bilingual Story Time Plan:
Theme: Dental Care
Literacy Skill: Scientific Knowledge

Walk-in song: If I Knew You Were Coming I'd Have Baked a Cake/Sharon, Lois, and Bram (Elephant Party)

Welcoming comments

Activity song:  El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: Cocodrilo va al Dentista/Taro Gomi
Activity song: Shakable You/Imagination Movers (Eight Feet)

Fingerplay: Roly Poly

2nd story: Molly at the Dentist/Angie Sage

Standing fingerplay: Juego de Aplaudir

3-D story: El Dolor de Diente del Oso (The Bear's Toothache)/David McPhail *flannelboard

4th story: The Tooth Book/Theo LeSteig (Dr. Seuss)

Instrument song: Move and Freeze (instrumental)/Music All Around Home *with bells

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: Brush Your Teeth/Daddy-a-Go-Go (Cool Songs for Cool Kids)

Read! Build! Play!

A few months ago, I found out about a LEGO DUPLO contest in which 200 of the most-voted libraries could win early literacy toolkits that include the beloved blocks. I nominated the Modesto Library and advertised a little on my personal Facebook page, but then I emailed the gal who does publicity for the Stanislaus County Library about it, and she emailed her supervisor about it. They decided to go for it, even though we only had several weeks and there were libraries with a crazy amount of votes already. The library made in-house flyers for our regular Wiggle Worms (story time for babies through age 2) and StoryTime (story time for kids ages 3-6) customers and also advertised through Facebook.

Well, I am pleased to announce that the Modesto Library was the 85th most nominated library with 718 votes! We haven't received our toolkits yet, but I'm excited to incorporate LEGO DUPLO blocks into Spanish and bilingual story time.

Check out the winners and information about the importance of play in learning here: http://readbuildplay.com/

Kiki la Mona

Twice now I have tried to use this video, which features children's author Matthew Gollub and a monkey puppet named Kiki, when presenting early literacy and library services information to Spanish-speaking parents, but technology always seems to fail me. It's short, funny, and the best part is that it shows a father reading to his child and emphasizes that the language in which one reads to his or her child is not important. The more words children know, in any language, helps them when learning to read. Case in point: I once had a job as a kindergarten aide in which I was asked to translate a question the teacher was asking: "What is the name of this shape?" It was a circle, and the little girl didn't know what it was called in English or in Spanish.

http://www.matthewgollub.com/video/Kiki.html

It's important to read to your children! 

CD Baby

Let me say, the most restricting part of my job as the Spanish/bilingual story teller is that I don't have a huge collection of music at my disposal. It's not so much a problem for the song I play when the kids and families walk in, or even the song in which we use instruments, but action songs--in Spanish--are a thorn in my side. Yes, I have access to go-to artists like José-Luis Orozco and Charlotte Diamond, but I can only handle so much "Juanito" and "Un Pulpito." I have been known to buy a song or two through Itunes, but after a tip from a colleague, I have discovered http://www.cdbaby.com/.

If you're looking for more than The Wiggles and Raffi, I recommend CD Baby. One of my favorite independent children's artists, which I use a lot for bilingual story time, is Jim Gill. Check him out on CD Baby! You'll notice when you go to the website that you have the option to search "by sounds like." Try searches for Sharon, Lois, and Bram and Laurie Berkner to find sound-alikes. (Shameless promoting. SL&B and Laurie are also some of my other favorite children's artists!)

Drawing Spanish and Bilingual StoryTime and Craft: November 8th and November 10th, 2012

For this story time program, the stories and craft revolved around drawing. The craft was illustrating a book of blank pages with markers. The books were pre-made; we had a library volunteer make a ton of blank books for Día de los Niños/Día de los Libros. While hers were fancier, the box of books also had a few remnants of books someone else had made using computer paper, construction paper, a stapler, and colored masking tape. Check out my directions for making the books below the story time program plans. (I will add photos soon.)

Hora de Cuentos Plan:
Theme: Drawing
Literacy Skill: Arts/Self-Esteem

Walk-in song: Yo Quiero/Rubén Rada (Putumayo: Latin Playground)

Welcoming comments

Literacy tip: Dando su hijo papel y colores, marcadores, o lápizes, aunque sólo pueden hacer garabatos, es el principio de la escritura temprana. Toma mucha coordinación para aprender a escribir. Garabateando y dibujando son los primeros pasos para escribir. Poniendo el trabajo de su hijo en el refrigerador o en otro lugar de la casa demuestra lo orgulloso que estas de su hijo.

Activity song:  El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: Pinta Ratones/Ellen Stoll Walsh

Activity song: Hola Amigo/Dr. Jean en Español (Ole! Ole! Ole!)

Fingerplay: Al Subir Una Montaña

2nd story: Elmer/David McKee

Standing fingerplay: Dibuja un círculo grande. Dibuja un círculo mediano. Dibuja un círculo pequeño. Ahora, cuéntalos: uno, dos, tres.

3-D story: Gatita: Un cuento de contar y dibujar
*Here is the link to the story I used: http://www.makinglearningfun.com/themepages/PetKittyDrawandTell.htm

4th story: El Artista Que Pintó un Caballo Azul/Eric Carle

Instrument song: De Colores/José-Luis Orozco (De Colores) *with bells

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: Castillo Azul/Francisco Gabilondo Soler (100 Años de Cri-Cri)

Bilingual Story Time Plan:
Theme: Drawing
Literacy Skill: Arts/Self-Esteem

Walk-in song: If I Knew You Were Coming I'd Have Baked a Cake/Sharon, Lois, and Bram (Elephant Party)

Welcoming comments

Literacy tip: Dando a su hijo papel y colores, marcadores, o lápizes, aunque sólo pueden hacer garabatos, es el principio de la escritura temprana. Toma mucha coordinación para aprender a escribir. Garabateando y dibujando son los primeros pasos para escribir. Poniendo el trabajo de su hijo en el refrigerador o en otro lugar de la casa demuestra lo orgulloso que estas de su hijo. Giving your child paper and crayons, markers, or pencils, even if they can only scribble, is the beginning of early writing. It takes a lot of coordination to learn to write. Scribbling and drawing are the first steps for learning to write. Putting your child's work on the refrigerator or in another place in the house shows how proud you are of your child.

Activity song:  El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: El Artista Que Pintó un Caballo Azul/Eric Carle

Activity song: The Way We Do It/Greg and Steve (Kids in Action)

Fingerplay: Houses

2nd story: Elmer/David McKee

Standing fingerplay: Dibuja un círculo grande. Dibuja un círculo mediano. Dibuja un círculo pequeño. Ahora, cuéntalos: uno, dos, tres.

3-D story: Gatita: Un cuento de contar y dibujar
 *Here is the link to the story I used: http://www.makinglearningfun.com/themepages/PetKittyDrawandTell.htm

4th story: Mouse Paint/Ellen Stoll Walsh

Instrument song: De Colores/José-Luis Orozco (De Colores) *with bells

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: Mary Wore Her Red Dress/Raffi (Everything Grows)

The Craft: Illustrating a Book
You'll need:
-Computer paper
-Construction paper
-Staplers
-Masking tape (any color)

What to do:
1). The Cover
-Fold a piece of construction paper longways (hot dog style).
-Cut at the crease.
-Now you have two book covers.

2). The Pages
-Fold about 5-7 piece of computer paper longways (hot dog style)
-Cut at the crease.
-Now you have pages for two sets of books

3). Placing the Pages Inside the Cover
-Place one set of the pages on top of a book cover.
-Now fold  the pages and cover in half hamburger style.
-Now the pages should be inside the book cover.

4). Binding the Pages Inside the Cover
-With the book closed, staple the left edge with two or three staples to "bind" the book.
-Place a piece of masking tape over the staples to protect little fingers and prevent scratches on furniture, etc.

(I don't have pictures showing the steps above, but below are pictures of the finished product.)

Instructions for the kids:

Draw and then tell your parents/caregiver(s) what you've drawn. (This is a good way to develop narrative skills.)

Monsters Spanish and Bilingual StoryTime: November 1st and November 3rd, 2012

If I do this program again (or a version of it), I would love to have an after story-time craft. I ran out of time when planning for this story time program.

Hora de Cuentos Plan:
Theme: Monsters
Literacy Skill: Social/Emotional Development

Walk-in song: Yo Quiero/Rubén Rada (Putumayo: Latin Playground)

Welcoming comments

Literacy tip: Porque los niños les gusta imitar a sus padres, es muy importante que los padres sean involucrados en todo lo que hacemos hoy durante la hora de cuentos. Canta y bailan a los cantos, hagan las rimas, y juegan con los instrumentos. Viendo usted participar inspirará a su hijo a participar. Participando en un grupo desde una edad pequeña le ayudará a su hijo sentir comodo en la escuela.

Activity song:  El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: ¡A la Cama, Cucuy!/Claudia Galindo

Activity song: Tu Ti Ta/Dr. Jean en Español (Ole! Ole! Ole!)

Fingerplay: Cinco Calabacitas

2nd story: Donde Viven los Monstruos/Maurice Sendak

Standing fingerplay: Frío

3-D story: ¡Fuera de Aquí, Grande Monstruo Verde! (Go Away, Big Green Monster!)/Ed Emberley

4th story: Los Cazadores de Monstruos/Alejandra Vallego-Nágera

Instrument song: El Brujo Médico/Tatiana (¡Vamos a Jugar!) *with maracas

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: El Caldo de las Brujas/Hap Palmer (Aprendiendo en Dos Idiomas)

Bilingual Story Time Plan:
Theme: Monsters
Literacy Skill: Social/Emotional Development

Walk-in song: If I Knew You Were Coming I'd Have Baked a Cake/Sharon, Lois, and Bram (Elephant Party)

Welcoming comments

Literacy tip: Porque los niños les gusta imitar a sus padres, es muy importante que los padres sean involucrados en todo lo que hacemos hoy durante la hora de cuentos. Canta y bailan a los cantos, hagan las rimas, y juegan con los instrumentos. Viendo usted participar inspirará a su hijo a participar. Participando en un grupo desde una edad pequeña le ayudará a su hijo sentir comodo en la escuela. Because children like to imitate their parents, it is very important for parents to be totally engaged in all the activities we do during story time today. Sing and dance to the songs, do the fingerplays, and play the instruments. Seeing you participate will inspire your child to participate. Participating in a group from a young age will help your child to feel comfortable in school.

Activity song:  El Baile de las Manos/Jorge Anaya (¡A Bailar! Let's Dance!) 

Fingerplay: La Familia

1st story: Donde Viven los Monstruos/Maurice Sendak

Activity song: Spooky Loo/Wee Sing for Halloween

Fingerplay: Popcorn

2nd story: Hieronymus Betts and His Unusual Pets/M.P. Robertson

Standing fingerplay: Cinco Calabacitas

3-D story: ¡Fuera de Aquí, Grande Monstruo Verde! (Go Away, Big Green Monster!)/Ed Emberley

4th story: It's Bedtime, Cucuy!/Claudia Galindo

Instrument song: El Brujo Médico/Tatiana (¡Vamos a Jugar!) *with maracas

Stamp hands and bubbles

Hand stamp song: Witches' Brew/Hap Palmer (Aprendiendo en Dos Idiomas)