Buffalo's Tail

Several weeks ago, I did a buffalo theme and finally used this flannel board by Teresa Chiv which is from the 2008 Texas Summer Reading Manual.  It also includes patterns and begins:

 

A buffalo’s tail is hard to find.

His tail is little, but not so his behind.

I have five tails; one might be his.

Will you help me decide which it is?

 

 

 

 

You start with the buffalo and then put up the tail mentioned (notice the pig tail on him in the first picture) then the correct animal comes on and gets his tail.  Check out the website for the complete story.    I printed the patterns onto color card stock then cut out and laminated.  (For the skunk I made a copy on regular white paper and trimmed out what was white and glued to the black).  It was a quick and easy flannel board that the kids loved.  If you're into the correct "verbiage", you can explain like I did, that although we call them "buffalo" they're really "bison".  This was important to me because COWGIRL ROSIE AND HER FIVE BABY BISON by Stephen Gulbis was one of our stories.

 

 

Cate at Storytiming is our Flannel Friday hostess this week so check out her site for inspiration (I always find something I can use).  For more information about Flannel Friday, visit the homepage where you'll find information on what's coming up, how to post, and the archives.  Happy Storytelling!



Snowmen

For our holiday extravaganza, I thought I'd share an old favorite:  "FIVE LITTLE SNOWMEN" and some different ways in which it can be done.  The first is for the flannel board and these pieces are almost 15" tall and 12" wide at the arms.  I made these many years ago out of card stock then laminated them and they're beginning to show wear and tear.

 

FIVE LITTLE SNOWMEN

 

Five little Snowmen standing in a line,

1, 2, 3, 4, 5 so fine.

Melting in the sunshine with a sigh,

"We'll see you next year. Bye bye!"

 

Four little Snowmen standing in a line,

1, 2, 3, 4, 'sh' so fine.

Melting in the sunshine with a sigh,

"We'll see you next year. Bye bye!"

 

Three little Snowmen standing in a line,

1, 2, 3, 'sh', 'sh' so fine.

Melting in the sunshine with a sigh,

"We'll see you next year. Bye bye!"

 

Two little Snowmen standing in a line,

1, 2, 'sh', 'sh', 'sh' so fine.

Melting in the sunshine with a sigh,

"We'll see you next year. Bye bye!"

 

One little Snowman standing in a line,

1, 'sh', 'sh', 'sh', 'sh' so fine.

Melting in the sunshine with a sigh,

"We'll see you next year. Bye bye!"

 

 

This has proved so popular with a toddler group that Miss Sue does it every week in the winter and then switches to ice cream cones for the summer.  If you're someone like me who likes to put the pieces on the board with one rhyme then off with another later, here is another one that you can use:

 

 

BUILDING SNOWMEN

 

Playing outside under the winter sun,

I built a snowman and that made one.

 

One frosty snowman under a sky so blue,

I built another one and that made two.

 

Two frosty snowmen underneath a tree,

I built another one and then there were three.

 

Three frosty snowmen standing near my door,

I built another one and then there were four.

 

Four frosty snowmen looking quite alive,

I built another one and then there were five.

 

 

These really big pieces are great for our big groups and if you have a large flannel board.  But what about smaller groups or taking something with you for a presentation?  Here are some quick, easy & inexpensive ideas.  For a glove puppet, you can use gift tags (I got mine at Dollar Tree)

 

 

 



 

What is nice about these is that by using the hook velcro on the back of the gift tag, you can also use them on a small flannel board.  Another alternative is shaped playing cards--these are also good for small stick puppets.  I shared this idea at a conference and another librarian said that she had playing card collectors in her city who took out the face cards they collected and gave her the rest of the deck.  She thought this would be a great way to use some of those.  (These are still wrapped so the picture is a bit fuzzy)  I found these in dollar bins but Oriental Trading Company also carries shaped cards.  These are stiff and would also work as a clothesline story.

 

Linda at Notes from the Story Room is hosting this week.  Check out her blog to see lots of other ideas you can incorporate into your storytime.  You can also check out Flannel Friday on Pinterest.  Happy Storytiming!

 

Sandwiches plus

What to do with those Thanksgiving leftover?  Make a sandwich. 

Originally (many years ago), I cut sandwich pieces out of felt but I was never really happy with them.  Luckily for me, (also many years ago) Nebraska Educational Television was a co-producer of Reading Rainbow and they gave my library system a stackable, wooden sandwich.  This is sturdy enough that I can hand out pieces to the kids and have them help assemble the sandwich.  I will generally hold onto the olive & put it in place to avoid any choking hazard.

Miss Tara used the felt sandwich from Melissa & Doug which is also an excellent choice, but recently I found some $1 (yep, just a buck) alternatives.  They were both packaged as coasters.

Dollar Tree

 



Target





These are both cardboard, but the Target hamburger set is heavier & glossier.  I think I'm going to put a small piece of the loop velcro on the front of each piece & then the hook on the back so we can build the sandwich on the board.  The rhyme I have used in the past is very adaptable and is done as a song to give the kids a chance to get up and get their piece in place.

LET'S MAKE A SANDWICH

(tune:  The More We Get Together)

 

Let's all make a sandwich,

A sandwich, a sandwich,

Let's all make a sandwich

For our lunch.

 

First we need some bread

Some bread, some bread,

First we need some bread

For our sandwich.

 

Add a slice of swiss cheese,

Swiss cheese, swiss cheese,

Add a slice of swiss cheese'

To our sandwich.

 

Next we'll add some ham....

 

Now let's have some more cheese...

 

Next a slice of tomato...

 

Now we need some lettuce...

 

Then a slice of bread,

Bread, bread,

Then a slice of bread

To top our sandwich.

 

Finish with an olive,

An olive, an olive,

Finish with an olive

Now it's done!

 

Let's all eat our sandwich,

Our sandwich, our sandwich,

Let's all eat our sandwich

For our lunch.

 

 

You can shorten or lengthen for your group and what pieces you have.  I will also change "lunch" to  "picnic" for use during the summer.

 

 

And now for my plus:  Target also had coasters that were donuts (also for $1)!  There's several counting rhymes out there for baked goods so I'm just going to show them to you.

 



 



This week's Flannel Friday can be found at Loons and Quine  Check it out for lots of great ideas.  If you haven't participated and would like to, you can find out more at the Flannel Friday site.  Happy storytime!

Treasure Boxes

I decided to have a storytime on Treasures with pirate treasure only a very small part of it.  I found some small, colored boxes at Hobby Lobby and used small items around my office to create a rhyme.

 

TREASURE BOXES

 

What is in the (yellow) box?

What can it be?

Is it a treasure?

Let's look and see!

 

(repeat with each different color box)

 

A frog is a treasure for a boy named Ben;

An apple is a treasure for a hungry wren.

A bee is a treasure when you want honey for your tea;

And candy is a treasure when you're hungry like me.

A cat is a treasure when you're looking for a friend--

So now we've found our treasures and this is the end.

 

 

I used the following books:

• THE TREASURE CHEST by Dominique Falda
• RUSSELL AND THE LOST TREASURE by Rob Scotton
• TREASURE by Suzanne Bloom
• WHAT A TREASURE! by Jane Hillenbrand

This can easily be adapted to the flannelboard, which would make it easier to store.  These would also work well with a color theme and colors could easily be switched out.

 

Tracey at 1234 More Storytimes is hosting Flannel Friday this week, so check out all the other fun ideas there!

 

    

 



Clothesline Story-Five Fat Turkeys

I like doing clothesline stories as an alternative to flannel boards every so often.  In planning for my November storytimes, I thought I'd do "Five Fat Turkeys" on the clothesline.  I found this song at www.perpetualpreschool.com/thanks_songs.htm which was sent in by Kristen Kroll.

 

 

FIVE FAT TURKEYS

 

This old road is hard and bumpy

Five fat turkeys wild and jumpy

 

Driver, driver, not so jerky

Or you'll make us lose a turkey.

 

 

(spoken)

 

Driver!  Driver!  Stop I say!

One fat turkey got away!

 

 

 

repeat each verse until just one turkey is left and say:

 

Driver!Driver! Stop I say!

Let's save this turkey for Thanksgiving Day!

 

 

 

I'm planning to leave off the last segment & let all my turkeys escape.  One nice thing about the clothesline is that it can be shaken for the "hard and bumpy" & "jerky" parts.

 

I made my turkeys with an XL Ellison die & sandwiched two together with a small piece of red paper between so the turkeys can face either direction.

 

 

 

Since I'm using a clothesline, this song could also be done with 5 small plush turkeys.  I didn't have any on hand, but took this photo to give you an idea of what I mean.

 

 

 

You need a sturdy line (clotheslines are available  at most dollar stories) and some clothespins.  If you don't have anyplace to attach it, draft two parents to be your holders.  When I do "Old MacDonald", I'll hand out beanie babies & let the children come up and pin them on which they love doing.

 

 

I work with our local community college and two students took this idea into their preschool.  It was so popular, they set up a clothesline in the play area and preschoolers could use it for sequencing, sorting or just playing.

 

 

This week's host is Amanda at Trails & Tales where you'll find a special Thanksgiving edition of Flannel Friday.  



 

 

 

 

Moose and Muffins for Flannel Friday

When I did a moose storytime last year, one of the books I had to use was IF YOU GIVE A MOOSE A MUFFIN by Laura Numeroff.  Luckily, I found the perfect flannelboard idea to go with it at

 

 

 

www.makinglearningfun.com under their theme for the book.  They gave the rhyme (but said little muffins) and a pattern for a moose headband.  With my group, I used a moose puppet and made BIG muffins from photos I found by googling muffins.

 

TEN BIG MUFFINS

 

 

Ten big muffins on the window sill.

Moose came along and ate his fill.

Now how many muffins are on the window sill?

 

____ big muffins on the window sill.

Moose came along and ate his fill.

Now how many muffins are on the window sill?

 

(Continue)

 

____ big muffin(s) on the window sill.

Moose came along and ate his fill.

Now no more muffins are on the window sill.

 

 

I asked a child each time how many muffins he thought moose would eat so this verse can go very slowly or very fast.  This would also be fun to do with props if you had them & could also be changed--for example to Cat & Cupcakes as a companion for IF YOU GIVE A CAT A CUPCAKE.  Don't you just love something that can be adapted quickly to fit your needs?

 

 

Sharon is our host this week for Flannel Friday at RAIN MAKES APPLESAUCE.  If you'd like to get involved, visit Flannel Friday's home at Flannel Friday.

Monster Mania

I love to do monsters in the fall since we don't do a specific Halloween theme.  Last year, I found blank balsa wood masks at one of the fabric stores for $1 each & just had to have them.

 

As you can see, I also had fun coloring them all in.  I used them in a family storytime and had five parents come up to be my monsters and follow as I read the following rhyme:

 

FIVE BIG MONSTERS ON A DARK, DARK NIGHT

 

Five big monsters on a dark, dark night

 

Made a very, very spooky sight.

 

The first one danced on his tippy toes

 

The second one tumbled and bumped his nose.

 

The third one jumped high up in the air.

 

The fourth one walked like a fuzzy, fuzzy bear.

 

The fifth one sang a Monster song.

 

Five big monsters--played the whole night long.

 

 

What was really fun was when some of the parents took their role very seriously--falling down & singing a made up monster song.  The kids enjoyed seeing their adults acting silly and helping out the storyteller.

 

 

I also had some holographic monsters that I found at the dollar store; I just had to trim "Happy Halloween" off the bottom.  These I can use on the flannel board when the masks don't work as well with my group. 

 

 

 

Hallmark put out a picture book with sound effects of "Monster Mash" last year.  I found a CD with the song and put the two together as part of our Monster Mania.

 

The book is out of stock on line at Hallmark, but you might be able to find a copy through another outlet.  (I found a 2nd copy on clearance at Walgreens this fall).  This was fun to use and then at the end, I played it again and encourage them to dance.

 

 



 

 

 

 





Five Green (or Red) Peppers--Flannel Friday

     I found these green peppers (as well as red ones) at my local Dollar Tree store.  My preschoolers love actual objects and (when we have a small group) enjoy participating by putting something in or taking it out of a basket.  I made of the following rhyme which can be done with either (or both) sets of peppers for a gardening theme, a color theme, or a vegetable theme.  I also use these peppers as part of my collection of vegetables we use when we tell the story of stone soup.
    For larger groups, I like to make really large cutouts (usually using clip art) that I can put on the flannel board so the kids who like to sit in the back can easily see them.

FIVE GREEN PEPPERS

Five green peppers in a basket by my door,

Ann took one for her pizza and now I have four.

Four green peppers in the basket as you can see,

Joe took one for grilling and now I have three.

Three green peppers in the basket, bright and new,

Sue took one for her relish and now I have two.

Two green peppers in the basket, safe from the sun,

Jack took one to make stew and now I have one.

One green pepper in the basket, now I'm almost done,

I used it in my tossed salad and now there are none.

If I have enough peppers for my group, I'll give one to each child and sing the following song as I move through them with a basket.  I just repeat the song until the peppers are gone.  Of course, you can do this with any item & could make it generic by changing pepper to veggie.

PICK A PEPPER

("Paw Paw Patch" was my inspiration)

Pick a pepper, put it in my basket,

Pick a pepper, put it in my basket,

Pick a pepper, put it in my basket,

Until my basket's full.

Mollie at What Happens in Storytime... is our hostess this week.  Check out her site to see what other fantastic ideas are there.  I know I always find something I want to try out.

Fruits & Vegetables--Flannel Friday

Several years ago my library purchased a flannel board set of fruits, vegetables, and nuts.  There were no rhymes or stories to go with it.  I took some of the most familiar pieces and wrote a piggyback song to use with them.

While the song can get a big long if you use all the pieces what has worked well is when I choose the ones that work for a specific theme:  just the fruits, just items from the garden, sweet treats, etc.

The title came about because I first used it with a theme of "Big Eaters" with books like THE GLERP by David McPhail.

The Big Eater's Song

(Tune:  "Mulberry Bush")

Chorus:

These are the things we like to eat,                                       

Like to eat, like to eat.                                                        

These are the things we like to eat,                                     

'cause we are big eaters.                                                      

                                                                                            

                                                                                            

Strawberries so ripe and red,

Ripe and red, ripe and red.                                                  

Strawberries so ripe and red,                                               

Will satisfy our tummies.                                                    

Chorus                                                                                

                                                                                            

Watermelon so sweet and wet,

Sweet and wet, sweet and wet.                                           

Watermelon so sweet and wet,

Will satisfy our sweet tooth.

Chorus

Pears that are plump and ripe,

Plump and ripe, plump and ripe.

Pears that are plump and ripe,

Picked from the tree.

Chorus

Oranges so big and juicy,

Big and juicy, big and juicy.

Oranges so big and juicy,

Make us wipe our chins.

Chorus

Pineapples from far away,

Far away, far away.

Pineapples from far away,

Are always such a treat.

Chorus

Peas that are green and round,

Green and round, green and round.

Peas that are green and round

Make us use a spoon.

Chorus

Pumpkins that are big and fat,

Big and fat, big and fat.

Pumpkins that are big and fat

Go in a pumpkin pie.

Chorus

Carrots that are long and orange,

Long and orange, long and orange.

Carrots that are long and orange,

That we love to crunch.

Chorus

Green beans so long and thin,

Long and thin, long and thin.

Green beans so long and thin,

From our veggie garden.

Chorus

Nuts with shells we like to crack,

Like to crack, like to crack.

Nuts with shells we like to crack,

For the nuts inside.

Chorus

If I was writing this today, I would probably change the last line of the chorus to " 'Cause they're good for us." or something along that line.  As I said, I adapt this to my theme & I encourage you to do the same.  Our set also had an eggplant, onion, peach, beets, and a few others in it and verses could be added for those or other fruits, berries, or nuts you might have.  This would also work with props such as plastic fruits and vegetables. 

Erin at Falling Flannelboards is our hostess this week.  If you'd like more information on Flannel Friday, visit their website and learn how you can get involved.





Flannel Friday--Fairies

One thing I enjoy as I choose rhymes for storytime is finding something different to use in presenting the rhymes.  In earlier posts I have included a number of 3 dimension things but today I'm including something I found in Michaels' scrapbooking aisle on clearance.

t

These chipboard embellishments are stiff and colorful.  The fairies are about 5"-6" in height.  All I did to prepare them for a flannel board was put a velcro dot on the back.

The other nice thing is that they can easily be converted to stick puppets by putting the loop velcro dot onto a large craft stick and then the fairies can be switched from one use to another.  They can also be used on a glove as finger puppets.

I've also found that Disney has a collection of princesses in Chipboard Embellishments as well & I'm planning to use them in the same way.


Now that I have the fairies, what could I use them with?  The book STORYTIME MAGIC by Kathy MacMillan and Christine Kirker from ALA has the rhyme "Five Tiny Fairies Flannelboard".  It uses the colors red, blue, green, yellow, and purple for their clothes (sorry--my flash reflected off the center fairy, but take my word she's wearing purple).  VOILA!  I was in business!  If you can't find this set, patterns for the flannel board pieces are given on line at the link where you can purchase the book if you don't already have it.

I'll pair this up with the book, LITTLE BUNNY FOO FOO; TOLD AND SUNG BY THE GOOD FAIRY by Paul Brett Johnson.
Check out this week's other postings at Liz's blog:  Putting Smiles on Faces :)

Flannel Friday--Sunflowers

     After attending an Every Child Ready to Read 2 workshop, my library ordered a copy of Frances Barry's BIG YELLOW SUNFLOWER.  It opens up into a sunflower, petal by petal, and I wanted to build a storytime around it.  I was surprised with how many sunflower books we had so it was just a matter of finding flannelboard ideas to go with it.   I found what I wanted at Making Learning Fun  where they had "I'm a little Sunflower" rhyme and pattern.  (They also have other related activities)  I enlarged the pattern and cut it out of felt.  As they suggested, I didn't glue the seeds on but I did make a lot of them.  I made five sunflowers.                                     

For my group, I had differing numbers of seeds on each flower from 3 to 8.  We sang the verse with each flower, counting at the end of it.  I had a very large group, so we did this as a group activity rather than having one child come up to count.

The flowers stayed up on the board while we read another story and did an action verse.  When the time came for the next flannel board rhyme, I did a variation of a common five flowers rhyme.

FIVE BIG SUNFLOWERS

Five big sunflowers growing by the door,

I picked on for mother; that left four.

Four big sunflowers so beautiful to see,

I went and picked another one; that left three.

Three big sunflowers looking fresh and new,

Sue Ann picked one; that left two.

Two big sunflowers growing by the dog run,

John Paul picked one; that left one.

One big sunflower lifting toward the sun,

Until I went and picked it; that left none.

The other titles I used were:  THE SUNFLOWER SWORD by Mark Sperring, SCARY MARY by Paula Bowles, and TEN SEEDS by Ruth Brown.

I purchased a sunflower bush and cut the sunflowers off (leaving a long stem).  We then used them to do "Five Sunlowers"  Eventually, I'd like to have enough flowers to hand out so each child could have on and we would just take the number out of the rhyme and do it as a group.

FIVE SUNFLOWERS

Five sunflowers standing in the sun

See their heads nodding, bowing one by one.

Down, down, down comes the gentle rain

And the five sunflowers lift up their heads again.

I found the site, Storytimes Online, very useful for finding fingerplay, song, and book ideas.

This week's Flannel Friday is being hosted by Miss Mary Liberry, check out all the wonderful ideas there!

Six Colorful Fish

 I found these fish squirters in the dollar section at Target & thought they'd be a nice alternative to a flat flannel board story (of which I have several ocean related ones).  I used "Five Little Fishes" from Storytime Katie as the basis for what I did.  I have a small cart I take into storytime and they sat on top of it very nicely.  The kids seem to enjoy having 3-D objects periodically (& as you can see from my previous posts--I do too!)

SIX LITTLE FISHES

Six little puffer fish going out for a dive;

the (color) one got caught then there were five.

Five little puffer fish swimming by the shore;

the (color) one got caught then there were four
Four little puffer fish swimming in the sea;

the (color) one got caught then there were three
Three little puffer fish swimming in the blue;

the (color) one got caught then there were two
Two little puffer fish swimming in the sun;

the (color) one got caught then there was one
One (color) puffer fish swimming straight for home

decided he would never roam

I also borrowed the idea of the color spinner from Miss Mary Liberry, but I used a spinner I found at Dollar Tree & adapted it to my purpose by adding the color names over what had been on it before.

As you can tell, I've been using Flannel Friday posts as inspiration and you can too.  This week's Flannel Friday is being hosted by Shawn at Read, Rhyme & Sing.  To find out more about Flannel Friday and how you can participate, visit the Flannel Friday homepage.

Moose

I love doing moose as a storytime theme and wanted a simple counting flannel board.  I made up a rhyme back in January and then found this cute moose at this site:  http://www.clipartandcrafts.com/clipart/themes/kidstuff/thumbs/mooseth.gif

I enlarged him and printed him on cardstock.  He worked just perfectly.

Ten Mighty Moose

Ten Mighty Moose sitting in a line,

One toppled over and then there were nine.

Nine Mighty Moose sitting on the grate,

One toppled over and then there were eight.

Eight Mighty Moose were sent from Devon,

One toppled over and then there were seven.

Seven Mighty Moose would like salt licks,

One toppled over and then there were six.

Six Mighty Moose sat listening to Clive,

One toppled over and then there were five.

Five Mighty Moose sat quietly on the floor,

One toppled over and then there were four.

Four Mighty Moose, two and two you see,

One toppled over and then there were three.

Three Mightly Moose, wanted something new,

One toppled over and then there were two.

Two Mighty Moose wished for some fun,

One toppled over and then there was one.

One Mighty Moose felt like he weighed a ton,

He toppled over and then there were none.

Lisa at Libraryland is our Flannel Friday hostess this week.  Visit her site at http://lisaslibraryland.blogspot.com/2012/05/flannel-friday-round-up-for-june-2.html to share in this week's wealth.  To learn more about Flannel Friday, visit the Flannel Friday home page http://flannelfridaystorytime.blogspot.com/ for more information on what it is and how you can participate.

 





Let's Build!

I've been working on a construction/big machines storytime for a while.  I found these five cement mixers in the dollar bin of a local grocery store and couldn't wait to use them.  I looked for a rhyme and found the song "Five Big Dump Trucks" by Pam Beall & Susan Nipp on the internet.  You can hear it at http://www.angles365.com/classroom/songsci04/fitxers/song17.swf  I changed the Dump Truck to Cement Mixer & it worked just fine.  (Linn Brown also has his own "Five Big Dump Trucks" which is a little different.)

FIVE BIG CEMENT MIXERS

Five big cement mixers rolling down the road,

Five big cement mixers rolling down the road,

One pulls off to unload.

Four big cement mixers rolling down the road,

Four big cement mixers rolling down the road,

Four big cement mixers rolling down the road,

One pulls off to unload.

Three big cement mixers rolling down the road,

Three big cement mixers rolling down the road,

Three big cement mixers rolling down the road,

One pulls off to unload

Two big cement mixers rolling down the road,

Two big cement mixers rolling down the road,

Two big cement mixers rolling down the road,

One pulls off to unload

One big cement mixer rolling down the road,

One big cement mixer rolling down the road,

One big cement mixer rolling down the road,

It pulls off to unload.

No more cement mixers rolling down the road.

I also stumbled across Addison Public Library's Rhymes & Resources on construction & building at www.addisonlibrary.org/assets/1/childrens_pdf/Construction.pdf   That's where I found Five Little Houses by Joan Hilyer Phelps from her book FINGER TALES.



It fit perfectly & was so easy to do--I just used our PrintShop to find five houses, printed them on cardstock, did minimal trimming & laminated for an instant flannelboard!

I would save this last one but by adding it you might still be able to get the same jeeps I did.  I found these at Hobby Lobby in their summer crafts.  They are made from fun foam & meant to be frames but work well as flannel board pieces (I just put a little velcro on the back)

I left two of these without the window punched out so you can see your options.  If I can find the right picture of fruits/vegetables, I may put those into the frame later.  Here is the rhyme I wrote to go with them.

TEN RED JEEPS

Ten red jeeps racing in two lines,

One got a flat & then there were nine.

Nine red jeeps didn't want to be late,

One got lost & then there were eight.

Eight red jeeps with their engines rev-in',

One dropped an axle & then there were seven

Seven red jeeps racing over bricks,

One took a detour & then there were six.

Six red jeeps out for a drive,

One dodged a dog & then there were five.

Five red jeeps zooming past the shore,

One got stuck & then there were four.

Four red jeeps, tires screeching like a banshee,

One slid into a ditch & then there were three.

Three red jeeps, down the road they flew,

One lost its engine & then there were two.

Two red jeeps, each one weighing a ton,

One spun out & then there was one.

One red jeep feeling like a hero,

Completed the journey & then there were zero.

Mel is hosting Flannel Friday this week.  I'm so glad she had this wonderful idea & that so many people have joined in.  I've gotten so much from the rest of you that it is what inspires me to post on this blog.

Visit Mel at http://melissa.depperfamily.net/blog to check out all of this week's ideas.

Kites

Sue Block, who does our toddler time, created these simple kites using patterned & glitter felt as well as ribbon with designs on it.  She used the book, KITE DAY: A BEAR AND MOLE STORY by Will Hellenbrand as the base for her toddler time.

Both of the rhymes Sue used came from http://stepbystepcc.com/kites.html.  The first rhyme she used with the felt pieces was:

FIVE KITES

One little kite in the sky so blue

Along came another, then there were two.

Two little kites flying high above me

Along came another, then there were three.

Three little kites, just watch how they soar

Along came another, then there were four.

Four little kites, so high and so alive

Along came another, then there were five.

Five little kites dancing 'cross the sky

What a sight to see, way up so high!

Once she had the kites up on the board, she left them there until it was time for her second rhyme.  For this one, she went to our die machine and cut out various things that can be seen in the sky.  This second rhyme can be as short or as long as you would like since you can add more "Say hi to the..." to fit whatever you'd like.

FIVE LITTLE KITES

Five little kites, way up in the sky

Say hi to the clouds, as they pass by

Say hi to the birds

Say hi to the sun

Say hi to the airplane, oh what fun.

Then swish went the wind

And they all took a dive:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

To see these in relation to the size of the kites:

You can see that Sue made some extra kties and I think she also added a star to her sky shapes later on.

Check out the other Flannel Friday posts at Linda's blog:  http://meusenotes.blogspot.com/2012/05/flannel-friday-round-up-for-may-18.html