Monday was our first story time at Whitford park. It went great! Story time is one of my favorite parts of summer ministry because we get to be OUT in the community. I love seeing someone I met at story time at a parade or at the grocery store and you can kind of see the light click…”Oh, these church people are just like me.” I love that we can serve local families this way. Here’s what we did this week!
Books:
- 10 Apples Up On Top
- One Moose, Twenty Mice
Ten Apples on Top is over 50 pages, but there are only 1-2 sentences on each page, so it moves pretty quick. The kids didn’t seem to mind the length at all and there were some pretty young kids there (2 years old). As for One Moose, Twenty Mice, the kids LOVED this one. On each page, the author asked “But where is the cat?” and the kids were only to happy to help the story reader find the little orange kitty hidden among the other animals on each page. Kids would race up, point to the cat, and race back to their seats, only to do it all over again as soon as the page turned. It was very entertaining!
Songs
We decided to use songs this year to engage the kids a little more and to give a buffer for late-comers. Last year, we would get a little gathering at 10:30, so we would get started and by the time the stragglers came in at 10:40, the story was over. A website I found suggested doing songs at the beginning so the early arrivers have something to do, and the late-comers don’t miss out. Turned out to be a great idea! Here’s what we sang:
Open Shut Them (beginning of this video)
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=M55R32lQvLg
If You’re Happy and You Know It
(The boys were a little hesitant about the songs until we got to the “Stomp your Feet” part of this song)
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrsM9WggCdo
Please Sit Down (It’s Story Time)
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZyGJhXxjgo
10 Little Apples
This is the simply the song “10 Little Indians”, but I changed “Indians” to “Apples” to go with our story and made the last phrase, “10 Little Apples, up on top!”
We’re hoping to do the first three songs each week, and then throw in a 1-2 “Themed” songs as well in between stories. The kids seem to respond to the songs pretty quickly and it does help them settle in and get focused. Last night, when we were driving back home from my husband’s softball game, I heard my two-year old in the back singing “Shh! Be Quiet, please sit down. It’s time for our story!” so I guess the songs stick!
Craft
For the craft, we went with the “10 Apples” theme. We used washable tempera paint, cut apples, and this counting page and let the kids go at it. We put our church’s name at the bottom of the page with a note that says “Thanks for Coming!” Here we are, at home, testing out the craft to make sure it will work.
Sample Craft
All Set Up!
Should I paint with the apples or my fingers? Tough choice!
Apples for me!
Here’s Some More of our Story Time Selections!