Making Grape Jelly!

 

This summer our theme is Color Your World. We are focusing on a different color each week at Storytime so I made a new rhyme and felt set to use for the color Purple!  I used several Google images and some free hand additions for my patterns. Here's a link for the rhyme, Making Grape Jelly. This set could be used for Fruit, Food, or the color Purple.   I have a Sizzix circle diecut to make the grapes and I layered the grey 'lid' onto a purple piece for my jar and the  PB&J.  The peanut butter part of the sandwich is a different shade of brown felt, as well as the crusts.  I generally make a background piece and layer all the other pieces on it to make a more 3 dimensional look. Of course I added some glitter glue to jazz the pieces up some!  This set turned out even better than I had hoped for! That's always a win!  

Purple grapes are a delicious way to have Fun with Friends at Storytime!

Our Tree in Four Seasons

 

We did a tree themed storytime at my library last week and I needed another felt set/ story for my program.  I already had these two Here and Here but I needed a story or something to round out my theme.  We used Tap the Magic Tree and The Busy Tree for our books.  I saw this idea on Etsy in several shops so I adapted it and made my own set. I used some glitter glue on the snowflakes but otherwise nothing shiny! Can you believe it?! I don't have a set script for this we just talked about the seasons as they follow each other and then ... start over again! Easy Peasy.  Trees are very important and Fun with Friends at Storytime!

Beach Riddle Game

Here's a fun guessing game for Storytime!  I originally posted about this riddle game HERE.  I used it again this week and it was a big hit! 

What I Saw at the Beach Riddle Game

July 2014

I like to go to the beach to swim and play all day.

I dig in the sand and take a walk. I like to stay and stay.

There's so many things to see there. I'll play a game with you.

You guess the thing I saw at the beach when I give you a clue!

1. This shines in the sky at the beach (sun)

2. You wear these on your eyes because it's so sunny at the beach (sunglasses)

3. This is fun to throw and bounce and play with at the beach (beach ball) 

4. You pick these up from the sand at the beach (seashells)

5.This sea creature has flippers and crawls across the sand to go swim in the ocean (sea turtle)

6.This is a round sea creature and has a star shape on the outside (sand dollar)

7. You can make this with sand a a pail and shovel (sand castle)

8. This sea creature has 5 arms and swims in the ocean at the beach. (starfish)

9. This little sea creature has claws and lives in a seashell (hermit crab)

10. You wear these on your feet to walk on the hot sand at the beach. (flip flops)

Riddle games are so much Fun with Friends at Storytime!

Fireworks!!

Fireworks are fun anytime, not just for the Fourth of July!! Here's a rhyme that you can use for any celebration theme. Fireworks!

It's a little hard to tell but the bottom left 'firework' is the pink one.  Fireworks are super Fun with Friends at Storytime!! Check out the other ideas in today's Flannel Friday Roundup!

Catching Fireflies

Fireflies are so magical! I've done this theme for years! Several years ago I made up a rhyme that I used with a pellon set of a jar and 5 pellon fireflies. Then I made a smaller set of 10 fireflies and a smaller pellon jar. Then, recently I was inspired to remake my set in flannel when I saw this post @catch the possibilities. Check out the Flannel Friday 'bugs' Pinterest board for other posts about fireflies. I decided to add my set and rhyme to the mix!  Here's a printable link for my rhyme,  'Catching Fireflies'


Here's the progression of my fireflies...

I also offered a craft with this theme. I cut out a jar shape from black construction paper. I put out pans of glue with glitter stirred in it and the kiddos stamped with little porcupine rings to make fireflies in their jar. Easy Peasy!  We recently got in this new firefly book. It's beautiful!! I want to use it next time I do this firefly theme! Fireflies are so much Fun with Friends at Storytime. There are more great ideas on the Flannel Friday Roundup. Check out the wonderful resources on the Flannel Friday Pinterest Boards. Here's the link for the official Flannel Friday blog for more info! 

Trees!!

The trees around my house have got new baby leaves all over and the promise of shade for hot days in summer! We did a tree story time last year and it was a big hit! I have a small apple die cut that I used to add some apples in the book Tap the Magic Tree. I had to hold the book tightly until we got to the page when the apples all fall out of the tree. There were oohhs and aahhs when we got to that page! So much fun!! We also used a finger play about trees that Miss Margaret added some verses to called , The Rainbow Tree. Yummy fun! She started with the rhyme Two Big Lemons at Everything Preschool.com and added verses about other fruit! I made a tree for the fruit pieces but I might add velcro to the fruit pieces and use my Apple Tree hand puppet.  I shared my Apple Tree puppet in my post HERE.

I have a post about fruit HERE. I have a song and flannel set about a tree on the post HERE. Trees are a lot of Fun with Friends at Storytime! There are more great ideas on the Flannel Friday Roundup. Check out the wonderful resources on the Flannel Friday Pinterest Boards. Here's the link for the official Flannel Friday blog for more info!

Something is Fishy!!

  

We just did a great week of fish stories and felts and songs. It was a lot of fun! We sang, 'Slippery Fish' and Laurie Berkner's, 'Goldfish' and I made a new felt set to use with a rhyme we found from Abby the Librarian's blog. It's called Color Fish. Her coworker made theirs as a prop box. I made my set out of felt. The light blue background is white polar fleece that I dyed with some food coloring and vinegar. The tank is about 16" x 12".  I found a cute fish clipart to use as my pattern. You could use the Ellison fish diecut if you have access to it.  I wish I did *sigh*. Anyway,  I added glitter to my fish and shiny 'bubbles' in the tank and that made me HAPPY!  I placed the google eyes in the middle of the fish face so that I could turn them either way.

Fish are a lot of Fun with Friends at Storytime!  

Mollie @ What Happens In Storytime has the rest of this week's roundup. Have questions about Flannel Friday? Check out the Flannel Friday official blog.  Be sure to  join us on the Flannel Friday Facebook page and enjoy the great Flannel Friday Pinterest boards too!

Summer Sailboats

We've been playing in the water sprinkler a lot now that it's warm! Hooray! The water and the warm sun reminded me of the beach and seeing beautiful sailboats on the water. I have a set of sailboats with a rhyme I made up a few years ago for a summer beach theme series.  This rhyme lends itself to being a guessing game too.  I would first do the rhyme and then play, "Which one is missing?" with the sailboats.  We all name the colors together and then I have the children close their eyes and I remove a sailboat. They open their eyes and guess which color is missing. They never get tired of this game. Thanks goodness! Here are some books that would be good with this theme: 

Sailboats

By Kathryn Roach

Sailboats are quietly floating by,

Beautiful sails are flying high!

Red and yellow,

Green and blue

Can you see the colors too?

Floating on the waterway,

See more colorful sails today.

Orange and pink,

Purple and brown

Beautiful sailboats don’t make a sound.

Sailing on the water under the sun,

Riding on a sailboat is so much fun!

Summer sailboats are so much Fun with Friends at Storytime. 

Check with Linda @ Notes from the Story Room for the rest of this week's Roundup!  Have questions about Flannel Friday? Check out the Flannel Friday official blog.  Be sure to  join us on the Flannel Friday Facebook page and enjoy the great Flannel Friday Pinterest boards too!

Down by the Pond

We have a pond near our house that we visit when the grandkids come over. They never get tired of walking to the pond to look for tadpoles or frogs or dragonflies or other bugs or geese or turtles or fish or just to throw in a few rocks to watch the ripples and hear the 'splooosh".  I am doing a special set of storytimes at the end of the year celebration at my favorite preschool and I decided to do a 'Down by the Pond' theme. I have a flannelboard version of Mr. Gumpy's Outing by John Burningham that is always a big hit! I will sing/read the Jo MacDonald book.  I have several felt sets of assorted pond life I could use but I especially wanted to do turtles and I really wanted something new. So, I made up a new rhyme about 5 turtles by the pond that I call 'Turtle Fun'.  Here are my 5 little turtles. The middle pic of the turtle's tummy is closest to the true colors of felt. The flash made the shell look yellow and it's really an olive green. The turtles are about 6 to 8 inches long.  I like my pieces to be big! LOL! Turtles at the Pond are so much Fun with Friends at Storytime!

 

Check with Dana and Lindsey @ Jbrary for the rest of this week's Roundup!  Have questions about Flannel Friday? Check out the Flannel Friday official blog.  Be sure to  join us on the Flannel Friday Facebook page and enjoy the great Flannel Friday Pinterest boards too!

Picnic time!

One of the first Flannel Friday inspired sets that I made I called 'Picnic Basket'.  I had only begun to follow Flannel Friday posts and came across this one by Ms. Anna @ Future Librarian Superhero. Her's was a Fill the Shopping Cart post. I thought,"This would work as a picnic basket activity!". So, I wrote a rhyme and laminated some Google images and found a basket and we had a great time! I handed out the pics and as I said the rhyme the children would 'help me pack the basket'. I made 4 of each item. This activity also generated a lot of discussion about foods we like!    I just love Flannel Fridays!

Picnic Basket
by Kathryn Roach

Picnic basket, open it wide.
what are some things you see inside?

Chips and pickles, sandwiches, too.
A picnic lunch for me and you.







Apples and strawberries, a hot dog too.
A picnic lunch for me and you.

Watermelon slices, an ice cream cone too,
A picnic lunch for me and you.










Cold lemonade and juicy grapes too,
a picnic lunch for me and you.

A hamburger with ketchup and a soda too,
A picnic lunch for me and you.







* You can continue as long as you can think of things or have flannelboard pieces.





We're Going On a Picnic by Pat Hutchins, The Bunnies' Picnic by Lezlie Evans and Mouse's First Summer by Lauren Thompson are great with this theme.  Picnics are a lot of Fun with Friends at Storytime.

Watermelon!

It's picnic weather here and time to eat yummy summer picnic food! One of my favorite summer treats is watermelon! Check out this link for National Watermelon Day on August 3.   I made a rhyme to use a few years ago when I taught preschool and we tasted watermelon. I used the watermelon prop at the art table too. Summer food is fun ... and delicious!

Sharing Watermelon
by Kathryn Roach

I have a big red watermelon
A juicy summer treat.
I want to share it with my friends
They'd like a slice to eat!

I'll share one,...
Now another,...
One more slice makes three.
Here's one more for my friend,
And that leaves one for me!


I usually line up the felt watermelon slices and take them off as we 'subtract' until the last one, that I pretend to gobble up! 

Some good watermelon books are...Watermelon Day by Kathi Appelt; One Watermelon Seed by Celia Lottridge; The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli; and a nonfiction book, Watermelon for Everyone by Pat Griffeth. You could sing Raffi's book/song, Down By The Bay (Raffi Songs to Read). Then there's one of my favorites, Lunch by Denise Fleming. There are several wonderful Flannel Friday posts based on Fleming's book. Check out the food Flannel Friday pinterest board! Here are some great previous Flannel Friday posts about watermelons; Miss Mary Liberry has Watermelon contest.  Anne @ So Tomorrow has a link to a cute rhyme Yummy Watermelons.  Wow! Watermelons are so much Fun with Friends at Storytime!

'Berry' Good Berries!

It's strawberry pickin' time around here! Yummers!  The blueberries will soon be ready too, so I'm thinking it's time for a berry theme.  I have a strawberry rhyme I made up a few years ago that I used when I read, The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don and Audrey Wood.  I also did a couple of blueberry rhymes and read, Jamberry by Bruce Degen.  I had a craft for the kiddos too. I used the shape of the strawberry and let them paint with strawberry kool-aid paint.  Nobody spilled or drank the paint! LOL!  The whole library (we're a one room branch) smelled wonderful too.  It was a lot of fun.

                               Strawberry Pickin'

by Kathryn Roach

Out in the berry patch in the bright sun,

picking juicy strawberries is so much fun.

Here's a big red berry, I know it will be sweet.

Here's another and one more to make a pie to eat.

I'm looking under the green leaves to find a berry treat.

I'll pick one more, so now there's 5. 

Hooray! Strawberries can't be beat!

The berries are red and green felt and I painted the 'seeds' with shiny yellow fabric paint. They look good enough to eat. I'm so glad it's almost summertime.  Or I should say, "I'm berry glad it's almost summertime!"  Here's some more strawberry ideas from Storytime Katie and I found some really cute ideas at this site too.   Enjoy those juicy berry treats! 

We All Scream for Ice Cream!

I'm getting ready for summer programs by going through my summer theme tub. I found this flannel set and realized I hadn't used it in years. I made this set when I had done a summer time theme. I found the ice cream shaped bottles of bubbles too, that was just added fun!  Makes me want some ice cream!
Here you go:

I found these bubble blower, ice cream props!

Ice Cream Colors

We have ice cream, the best in town,

Let us begin with chocolate brown.

Here is ice cream minty and green

It is the creamiest that we’ve ever seen.

Yellow ice cream is lemony and tart,

We like its taste from the very start.

Orange sherbet is next, oh so sweet,

Everyone thinks that it’s a great treat!

Scoops of blueberry make this a lucky day,

We just want to cheer, hip, hip hurray!

Red ice cream is a cherry delight.

This ice cream cone is a heavenly sight.

Vanilla white is a popular flavor,

It tastes very good to an ice-cream craver.

Purple ice cream really gives us a kick.

Good and yummy till the very last lick.

Now, let us scoop some bubble-gum pink,

It is sweet and yummy, the best, we think.

Ice cream, ice cream, what a cool sensation,

We love ice cream in any combination!

The sprinkles on top of the ice cream cones are bugle beads and seed beads.  

I found a few other ice cream rhymes here; and this adorable rhyme posted by Mollie at What Happens In Storytime from the 5 whats-its board on Flannel Friday Pinterest Boards.
You can't go wrong with ice cream!