Christmas Story Time: December 18-19, 2017

Books:
Christmas Parade by Sandra Boynton
Dinosaur vs. Santa by Bob Shea *
The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore
The Three Bears' Christmas by Kathy Duval *
What Could Be Keeping Santa? by Marilyn Janovitz *

Craft: Triangle Santa
This week's craft is based on the picture at left.  The children were given a large triangle to color as Santa's hat / body.  They were also given half a small paper plate to color as Santa's face.  They could cut slits into the edge of the plate for Santa's beard if they liked.  The paper plate was glued to the triangle for Santa's head and cotton ball glued to the tip of the triangle of his hat.

Literacy Extensions:
- Do a Christmas countdown with your child.  Each day, count the days on a calendar until Christmas.
- The Three Bears' Christmas is a holiday version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears only with Santa as the visitor.  Have your child try to "retell" other folk/fairy tales with a Christmas twist.

Naughty or Nice? Bedtime: December 11-12, 2017

Books:
Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed by Eileen Christelow *
Froggy Goes to Bed by Jonathan London
How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? by Jane Yolen
Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Going to Sleep? by Bill Martin Jr.
Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney *
No Sleep for the Sheep! by Karen Beaumont *

Craft: Standing Sheep
This week's craft was based on the picture at left with a few changes.  The kids were given a sheep's head and cotton balls to glue to a recycled CD.  Two clothespins were then attached to the bottom to make the sheep stand.

Literacy Extensions:
- A lot of these books go through bedtime rituals before the characters go to sleep.  Talk with your child about the rituals they go through before bed.  Have them try to list all the rituals in order they do them each night.
- Bedtime is a great time to read stories together.  Make sure to pick books that will calm your child rather than get them excited.


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Naughty or Nice?: Bath Story Time: December 4-5, 2017

Books:
Bath Time by Eileen Spinelli
Bears in the Bath by Shirley Parenteau *
Bubble Bath Pirates! by Jarrett Krosoczka *
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub by Audrey Wood *

Craft: Kid in Bathtub
The children were given a half sheet with a tub on it to color and a die cut person.  After both were colored, the person was slipped into the slit cut along top rim of bathtub.

Literacy Extensions:
- Use the book Bath Time to practice counting.  Have your child count how many toys were put into the tub in the book.
- Have some bubble fun after reading this books.  Either purchase bubble solution or make your own with dish soap and water.


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Naughty or Nice? Pets Story Time: November 27-28, 2017

Books:
Backhoe Joe by Lori Alexander *
The Best Pet of All by David LaRochelle
Children Make Terrible Pets by Peter Brown
Henny, Penny, Lenny, Denny, and Mike by Cynthia Rylant *
My Rhinoceros by  Jon Agee
You DON'T Want a Unicorn by Ame Dyckman

Craft: CD Snail
This week's craft was based on the picture at left.  The children colored a cardstock body cutout.  They then glued tissue paper onto a recycled CD before gluing the body on also.

Literacy Extensions:
- Take a field trip to a pet store.  Discuss why or why not the various animals would make good pets for your family.
- Many pets names make great sight words to learn (i.e. cat, dog, fish, etc.).  Have your child point out those sight words when you are reading a book together.


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Naughty or Nice? Play Story Time: November 20-21, 2017

Books:
Come Along, Daisy! by Jane Simmons *
Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree by Eileen Christelow *
Follow the Leader! by Emma Chichester Clark
Hooray for Today! by Brian Won *
One Busy Day by Lola M. Schaefer


Craft: Five Little Monkeys Picture
Children colored a coloring sheet with a tree and crocodile on it.  They then colored five monkey cutouts and glued them onto the picture.

Literacy Extensions:
- Use the book Come Along, Daisy to talk about safety while in public.  It is a great book for discussing why we need to stay close to our adults.
- Play a game of Follow the Leader. 


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Naughty or Nice? School Story Time: November 13-14, 2017

Books:
Dinosaur vs. School by Bob Shea *
How Do Dinosaurs Go to School? by Jane Yolen
If You Take a Mouse to School by Laura Numeroff
Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Going to School? by Bill Martin Jr. *
Ninja Boy Goes to School by N.D. Wilson *
Take Me Out to the Ballgame by Maryann Kovalski

Craft: School Bus
The children colored a bus cutout and three children cutouts.  The children cutouts could be slid into slots cut at the bottom of the bus windows.

Literacy Extensions:
- If your child has not yet started school, see about taking a tour of their possible future school to familiarize them with the setting.
- If you child does attend school, see if they can tell you the daily schedule of events.


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Naughty or Nice? Meals Story Time: November 6-7, 2017

Books:
Badger's Fancy Meal by Keiko Kasza
Froggy Eats Out by Jonathan London
How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food? by Jane Yolen *
I Will Not Eat You by Adam Lehrhaupt
Sylvie by Jennifer Sattler *
Ten Hungry Pigs by Derek Anderson *

Craft: Triceratops Puppet
Children colored a triceratops head and two feet before gluing onto a paper bag to turn into a puppet.

Literacy Extensions:
- All of this week's books feature animals eating.  Research what these animals really eat by checking out some nonfiction animal books at the library.
- Some restaurants will give tours of their kitchens to groups of children.  Check with your favorite local restaurants and see if they are willing to do this for your child and their friends.

Notes:
This is the first in a series of story times on being Naughty or Nice.  As you read the stories with your child, have them point out the naughty behaviors and the nice behaviors.


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Halloween: A Trick or Treat Story Time: October 30-31, 2017

Books:
Click, Clack, Boo! by Doreen Cronin *
Jungle Halloween by Maryann Cocca-Leffler *
Six Creepy Sheep by Judith Enderle Ross
Ten Orange Pumpkins by Stephen Savage *

Craft: Mummy Bag
The kids glued two eyeball cutouts and strips of white paper to the front of a bag to turn into a mummy trick or treat bag.


Literacy Extensions:
- Halloween is a great time to talk about stranger danger with your children.  Make sure to discuss safety issues before going trick or treating.
- Learn more about the history and symbols of Halloween.  The library has a couple books on the topics for children.


Notes:
The children went trick or treating through the library after story time this week.

Leaves Story Time: October 23-24. 2017

Books:
Fall Is Not Easy by Marty Kelley *
Fall Leaves Fall! by Zoe Hall
Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert *
Leaves by David Ezra Stein
Little Tree by Loren Long
The Little Yellow Leaf by Carin Berger

Craft: Leaf Necklace
The children colored a leaf and two acorns before stringing them onto curling ribbon with pony beads to make into a necklace.

Literacy Extensions:
- Go on a nature walk or drive to look at the different color leaves.
- Encourage creativity by having your child create pictures out of leaves.


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Tip: Use curling ribbon when making necklaces with smaller children.  The ribbon is stiffer making it easier for children to hold it when putting on the beads.  It is also thick enough that the beads will not fall off the ribbon.

Apple Story Time: October 16-17, 2017

Books:
Apple Pie ABC by Alison Murray
Chicka Chicka 123 by Bill Martin Jr.
From Apple Trees to Cider, Please! by Felicia Sanzari Chernesky *
Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson *
Ten Apples Up on Top! by Theo LeSieg*
The Terrible Plop by Ursula Durbosarsky

Craft: Apple
This weeks' craft was based on the picture above.  The children colored pre-cut apple tops and bottoms, leaf and stem.  They then glued them to ends three jumbo craft sticks making up the apple core.  Seeds could be colored on to the craft sticks.

Literacy Extensions:
- Go on a field trip to pick apples.
- Try different types of apples and see which kinds are your family's favorites.


Notes:
We found that the craft was easier to make if we taped the craft sticks together so they didn't move around while working with them.  We used masking tape at the top and bottom to tape them together.

Sasquatch Story Time: October 10, 2017

Books:
Are We There, Yeti? by Ashlyn Anstee
The Boy Who Cried Bigfoot! by Scott Magoon
Don't Squish the Sasquatch! by Kent Redeker *
Socksquatch by Frank W. Dormer *
Yeti, Turn Out the Light! by Greg Long *

Craft: Sasquatch
This week's craft was based on the picture at left.  The kids colored the sasquatch head before gluing on eyes and teeth.  It could be made into a bigfoot, sasquatch, yeti, etc. depending on how it was colored.

Literacy Extensions:
- The Boy Who Cried Bigfoot would be a great introduction for a conversation on telling the truth, lies, and exaggeration.
- After reading Yeti, Turn Out the Light make some shadow drawings.  Place various objects in front of a bright light and have your child try to trace the shadows.

Notes:
Story Time was not held on Monday, October 9, 2017 as the library was closed for a staff development day.


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Fall Story Time: October 2-3. 2017

Books:
Every Autumn Comes the Bear by Jim Arnosky
Fall Ball by Peter McCarty
I Know It's Autumn by Eileen Spinelli
Moon Glowing by Elizabeth Partridge *
Red Are the Apples by Marc Harshman *
When Autumn Falls by Kelli Nidey *

Craft: Bat Clip
The children colored a bat body and bat wings before gluing them together.  The bat was then glued to a clothespin to clip onto the child's clothes.

Literacy Extensions:
- Moon Glowing gives information on four different animals' preparations for winter.  Choose some additional animals to learn about and check out books about them from the library.
- Go on a fall nature walk.  Try to find different colored leaves, acorns, animal prints, etc.


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Building Block Award Nominees Story Time - Week 4: September 25-26, 2017

Books:
Old MacDonald Had a Truck by Steve Goetz *
Still a Gorilla by Kim Norman *
Wolfie the Bunny by Ame Dyckman *

Craft: Gorilla
This week's craft was based on the picture at left.  The children colored a rectangle head with mouth and eyes, two ears, and a craft stick before gluing all the pieces together.

Literacy Extensions:
- Learn more about wolves and bunnies by checking out some books at the library.  See if your child can come up with ways they are similar and ways they are different.
- Extend the book Still a Gorilla by having your child act out the story.

Notes:
The children voted this week for their favorite book for the Building Block Award.  You can vote online through the link on the Missouri Library Association's Building Block Award webpage.  Voting goes through December 31, 2017.


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Building Block Award Nominees Story Time - Week 3: September 18-19, 2017

Books:
10 Little Ninjas by Miranda Paul *
Marta! Big and Small by Jen Arena *
There's a Bear on My Chair by Ross Collins *
There's a Giraffe in My Soup by Ross Burach *

Craft: Bear Headband
The children were given a bear head to color before gluing strips to it to make into a headband.

Literacy Extensions:
- Marta! Big and Small is a great way to introduce the Spanish language to children.  Check out a Spanish/English picture dictionary and see if your child can guess the meaning of the Spanish words.
- Ask your child to stretch their imagination by coming up with new verses to 10 Little Ninjas.

Notes:
There's a Giraffe in My Soup was only read on Monday as the Tuesday story time group heard the book earlier this month.


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Building Block Award Nominees Story Time - Week 2: September 11-12, 2017

Books:
Dragon Was Terrible by Kelly DiPucchio *
Frog on a Log? by Kes Gray *
Lion Lessons by Jon Agee (Monday only) *

Craft: Frog on a Log
The children colored a cutout cardstock frog with a tab at the bottom.  They then colored a quarter cardstock sheet with a slit cut longways in the middle.  The sheet was rolled and glued into the shape of a frog.  The frog was inserted into the slit to make it sit up.

Literacy Extensions:
- Extend the book Frog on a Log by naming additional animals and having your child come up with something that rhymes for the animals to sit on.
- Ask your child to "tell" you the story the boy tells in Dragon Is Terrible.

Notes:
Due to the Labor Day holiday, the Monday and Tuesday story times are slightly off this month to allow for the children to hear all ten Building Block nominee books.


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Building Block Award Nominees Story Time: September 5, 2017

Books:
Lion Lessons by Jon Agee
There's a Giraffe in My Soup by Ross Burach

Craft: Lion
The children colored a lion's head before gluing on orange paper strips for the lion's mane.

Literacy Extensions:
- Extend the book Lion Lessons be seeing if your child can do the various lessons needed to become a lion.
- The Building Block Award asks children to read ten nominee books and then vote for their favorite.  Talk about favorite things with your child.  Have them pick out various things that are their favorites (i.e. - color, food, television show, book).  Make sure they pick only one thing for each category.

Art: Shapes & Colors Story Time: August 28-29, 2017

Books:
Bear Sees Colors by Karma Wilson
I Dream of an Elephant by Ami Rubinger *
Mix It Up! by Herve Tullet *
Mouse Shapes by Ellen Stoll Walsh
Shape by Shape by Suse MacDonald *
White Rabbit's Color Book by Alan Baker

Craft: Color by Shapes
The children were given a coloring page of ladybugs with different shaped spots on their backs.  The page was colored by matching the shape colors to the key.

Literacy Extensions:
- Play I Spy using colors with your child.  This will help with color recognition.
- Have your child make a shapes collage.  Give them several cut out shapes and have them make a picture out of the shapes.


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Science: Outer Space Story Time: August 21-22, 2017

Books:
Astro Bunnies by Christine Loomis
The Astronaut Handbook by Meghan McCarthy *
Mousetronaut by Mark Kelly
Oh No, Astro! by Matt Roseser *
There's No Place Like Space! by Tish Rabe *
Zoom, Rocket, Zoom! by Margaret Mayo

Craft: Solar Eclipse Magnet
This week's craft is pictured at left.  The children glued yellow tissue paper squares to cover a cd-rom.  They then glued on yellow paper strips for sun rays.  They then glued on a black circle "moon" to make a total solar eclipse.  A sticker magnet was attached to the back.  They could write on the "moon" with a white crayon if they liked.

Literacy Extensions:
- Learn more about the solar system by checking out some of the great books on the topic at the library.
- Visit the Science Center and Planetarium to learn more about space.

Math & Numbers Story Time: August 14-15, 2017

Books:
Count the Monkeys by Mac Barnett *
Is That Wise, Pig? by Jan Thomas
My Little Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman
Night Light by Nicholas Blechman *
Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin *

Craft: Numbers Snake
The children glued together a paper chain snake.  The paper chain was made from strips of paper numbered 1-12.  The children were asked to make the paper chain putting the numbers in order. A snake's head was glued to one end of the paper chain when done.

Literacy Extensions:
- Practicing counting can be done anywhere.  Simply start counting objects near you.  You can also practice other things while counting such as colors, shapes, etc.
- Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons is a great example of how to include simple subtraction into a counting book.  Try to incorporated simple addition and subtraction whenever you read a counting book with your child.

Reading: ABC Story Time - August 7-8, 2017

Books:
ABC School's for Me by Susan B. Katz
Alphabet Trucks by Samantha Vamos
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. *
Jeepers Creepers: A Monstrous ABC by Laura Leuck *
Sign Language ABC by Lori Heller *
The Sleepy Little Alphabet by Judy Sierra

Craft: Alphabet Tree Match
The children were given a tree coloring sheet with the lower case letters mixed up on it.  The children glued upper case letters to the matching lower case letter.

Literacy Extensions:
- After reading Sign Language ABC have your child try to spell out some simple words in sign language.
- Practice letter recognition by asking your child to find all of a particular letter on each page of a book you are reading.


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Eric Litwin Story Time: July 31-August 1, 2017

Books:
Groovy Joe: Ice Cream and Dinosaurs by Eric Litwin *
The Nuts: Bedtime at the Nut House by Eric Litwin *
The Nuts: Sing and Dance in Your Polka Dot Pants by Eric Litwin
Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin *

Craft: Pete the Cat & His Shoe
This week's craft was based on the picture above.  The children colored a Pete the Cat head and a converse shoe before gluing it together.  If they wanted, they could then practice their lacing and tying skills with a piece of white yarn for a shoelace.

Literacy Extensions:
- Groovy Joe is a great introduction to the topic of sharing.  Use the book to start a discussion about sharing.
- Extend the book Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by coming up with more things for Pete to step in and the colors his shoes would change.


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Jon Agee Story Time: July 24-25, 2017

Books:
It's Only Stanley by Jon Agee
Life on Mars by Jon Agee *
Mr. Putney's Quacking Dog by Jon Agee *
My Rhinoceros by Jon Agee *
The Retired Kid by Jon Agee *

Craft: Sock-topus
The kids were given an octopus template which was colored and then glued into a cylinder.  The legs were spread apart before gluing on a multi-colored paper sock to each leg.

Literacy Extensions:
- Mr. Putney's Quacking Dog introduces kids to simple riddles and wordplay.  If your child likes the book, try out some simple knock knock jokes that also include wordplay.
- Life on Mars tells two different stories -- one in text, one in pictures.  Before reading the book to your child, show them the pictures and see what story they come up with to go along with them.


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Cut on the lines to make legs.  The shaded section is cut off and thrown away.

Mo Willems Story Time: July 17-18, 2017

Books:
Edwina, The Dinosaur Who Didn't Know She Was Extinct by Mo Willems
Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs by Mo Willems
Leonardo, The Terrible Monster by Mo Willems *
The Pigeon Wants a Puppy! by Mo Willems *
We Are in a Book! by Mo Willems *

Craft: Walrus Puppet
The children colored the pieces of a walrus's face (eyes, tusk, cheeks) before gluing them to a paper bag to make into a puppet.

Literacy Extensions:
- Mo Willems is a great way to introduce children to comic strips as his Cat the Cat, Elephant and Piggie, and Pigeon books are all very simple forms of comics.  Point out the speech bubbles and how they are linked to specific characters to tell who is talking.
- After reading Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs, have your child "retell" another fairy tale replacing some of the characters with dinosaurs.


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Michael Ian Black Story Time: July 10-11, 2017

Books:
Chicken Cheeks by Michael Ian Black *
I'm Bored by Michael Ian Black *
Naked! by Michael Ian Black *
A Pig Parade Is a Terrible Idea by Michael Ian Black
The Purple Kangaroo by Michael Ian Black

Craft: Paper Plate Flamingo
This week's craft was based on the picture at left.  We made a few alterations to the craft.  We used small paper plates and cut out the body and neck as one piece.  The kids colored the body and the head before gluing them together.  They then added the legs by placing a black pipe cleaner through a hole punched at the bottom of the plate.

Literacy Extensions:
- After reading A Pig Parade Is a Terrible Idea, extend the story by coming up with reasons why a panda bear parade would or would not be a good idea.
- Chicken Cheeks gives several alternate words for "derriere".  See if your child can come up with alternate words for other body parts.


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Mem Fox Story Time: July 1, 2017

Books:
Let's Count Goats! by Mem Fox *
The Magic Hat by Mem Fox *
Nellie Belle by Mem Fox
Possum Magic by Mem Fox
Where Is the Green Sheep? by Mem Fox *
Yoo-Hoo, Ladybug! by Mem Fox

Craft: Goat Headband
The children colored the head, horns, ears, and beard of the goat before gluing them all together and then onto strips of paper turned into a headband.

Literacy Extensions:
- Continue the counting fun by having your children count items throughout the house (i.e. chairs in a room, magnets on the refrigerator, etc.).
- The author Mem Fox is from Australia and her books The Magic Hat and Possum Magic reflect that country in the animals and food from that country.  Learn more about Australia by checking out some books at the library.

Eric Carle Story Time: June 26-27, 2017

Books:
From Head to Toe by Eric Carle *
Little Cloud by Eric Carle
The Mixed-Up Chameleon by Eric Carle *
"Slowly, Slowly, Slowly," Said the Sloth by Eric Carle
The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle *

Craft: Butterfly
The children colored eight teardrop shapes before gluing them to a jumbo craft stick to make a butterfly.

Literacy Extensions:
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar tells the story of a caterpillar that eventually turns into a butterfly.  Use the book as a starting point to learning more about caterpillars and their transformation to butterflies.  There are several great books at the library for young children on this process.
- After reading The Little Cloud, spend some time outdoors looking at the clouds.  Encourage your child's imagination by having them find shapes and objects in the clouds.

Karma Wilson Story Time: June 19-20, 2017

Books:
Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson *
The Cow Loves Cookies by Karma Wilson *
Duddle Puck: The Puddle Duck by Karma Wilson
A Frog in the Bog by Karma Wilson *
If I Were a Mouse by Karma Wilson


Craft: Frog
The children colored a large circle before folding it to become the frog's body and mouth.  They then colored and glued on eyes, a tongue, and feet.

Literacy Extensions:
- Use the book The Cow Loves Cookies to talk about what various animals eat.
- If I Were a Mouse invites children to consider how they would act as various animals.  Suggest different animals and have your child come up with how they would act differently.


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David LaRochelle Story Time: June 12-13, 2017

Books:
1 + 1 = 5 and Other Unlikely Additions by David LaRochelle
The Best Pet of All by David LaRochelle *
The End by David LaRochelle
How Martha Saved Her Parents from Green Beans by David LaRochelle
It's a Tiger! by David LaRochelle *
Moo! by David LaRochelle *

Craft: Tiger Puppet
The Kids colored a cardstock tiger's head before gluing on black paper strips for the stripes.  The head was then glued to a jumbo craft stick to turn into a puppet.

Literacy Extensions:
- The End tells a story from the end to the beginning.  See if your child can "re-tell" the story backwards after reading him a book.
- Use Moo! to talk about punctuation and how different punctuation changes the way you read a line.


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Jan Thomas Story Time: June 5-6, 2017

Books:
Can You Make a Scary Face? by Jan Thomas *
Is Everyone Ready for Fun? by Jan Thomas *
Let's Sing a Lullaby with the Brave  Cowboy by Jan Thomas
Rhyming Dust Bunnies by Jan Thomas *
What Will Fat Cat Sit On? by Jan Thomas *

Craft: Clip-On Ladybug
Children colored a bug body and two ladybug wings before gluing them together.  They then glued the completed bug to a clothespin so it can clipped to the child's clothes.

Literacy Extensions:
- Extend Rhyming Dust Bunnies by having your child come up with more rhyming words.
- Jan Thomas books are great for sight words.  Have your child try to find various sight words throughout the book as you are reading them.


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