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.

Christmas Story Time: December 21-22, 2015

Books:
Bear Stays Up for Christmas by Karma Wilson
Christmas in the Barn by Margaret Wise Brown
Dinosaur vs. Santa by Bob Shea
Merry Christmas, Big Hungry Bear! by Don & Audrey Wood *
Samurai Santa: A Very Ninja Christmas by Rubin Pingk *
The Three Bears' Christmas by Kathy Duval *
What Could Be Keeping Santa? by Marilyn Janovitz

Craft: Lace-Up Candy Cane
Children colored a cardstock candy cane cutout that was hole punched all down the center.  They then laced white yarn through the holes to make stripes.  A cardstock bow was then colored and glued onto the candy cane.  (Template below)

Literacy Extensions:
- Practice "writing skills" with your child by having them "write" thank you cards for their Christmas presents.  This can be as simple as drawing a picture of what they got and then writing their names.
- Learn about how different people celebrate Christmas.  There are several books available at the library about how Christmas is celebrated around the world.


Notes:
The candy canes could be laced in many different ways.  Each kid did it differently.  Some sewed it straight up the center.  Some alternated stripes from the different sides.  Any way they did it, it was great hand-eye coordination practice.

Templates --