Luz Earley's Preschool Storytime Program Page

 

 

Word cloud created at Wordle.net

Written by Suzanne Bloom   (Boyds Mills Press, 2009)

Written by Suzanne Bloom Translated by Aida E. Marcuse (Highlights, 2007)

Created at Tagxedo.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Program: We Are Friends / Somos amigos

 

ALSC Competencies:

I. Knowledge of Client Group

1. Understands theories of infant, child, and adolescent learning and development and their implications for library service.

 

III. Communication Skills 

2. Listens and interacts actively when speaking individually with children, families, other patrons, and staff, paying genuine attention to what is being communicated, and confirming understanding.

 

VI. Programming Skills

1. Designs, promotes, presents, and evaluates a variety of programs for children of all ages, based on their developmental needs and interests and the goals of the library.

 

Age Group of Audience : Children ages 3 to 6 years old 

 

Opening Song: Sing “Decimos hola / We Say Hello” (a song written by Luz Earley for bilingual English-Spanish storytimes at Fort Worth Library Department).

 

Decimos hola,

Decimos hola,

Decimos hola.

Now…in English!

We say hello,

We say hello,

We say hello.

¡HOLA! HELLO!

(Children and adults do a “high-five”, or just smile and say hello / hola to each other.)

 

  

Books 

 

Bloom, Suzanne. 2009.  A Splendid Friend Indeed. Honesdale: Boyds Mills Press.

 

This is a selection from Suzanne Bloom’s Goose and Bear series. It tells of Bear and Goose, where bear wants to read, and write. Goose talks all the time and wants bear to know that he also loves to read and write. The two adorable characters become the best of friends. Illustrations by Suzanne Bloom are brightly colored, with excellent attention to detail. Emotions are clearly expressed by facial expression. This CLEL (2006) Award winning book is notable for its connection to early literacy, as this award indicates.

 

McBratney, Sam. 2011. Illus. Anita Jeram. Guess How Much I Love You. New York: Random House.

 

This adorable picturebook has Little Nutbrown Hare and Big Nutbrown Hare as father and son sharing how much they love each other. Written by Sam McBratney, and illustrated by Anita Jeram, it tells of a loving conversation between the two hares. Children and adults will enjoy the soft, realistic illustration by Jeram, and the kind words of friendship and love shared by the hares. They are father and son, but what they share is truly love and friendship. The rhyming pattern of the tale lends itself to learning vocabulary and repetition of sounds.

 

Reiser, Lynn W. 2013. Margaret and Margarita. New York: Harper Collins.

 

Margaret and Margarita tells the story of two girls who spend the day at the park with their mothers. To their wonderful surprise, they become friends. This happens even though one speaks only English, and the other only Spanish. By mixing English and Spanish vocabulary, the two girls are able to communicate. Illustrations are simple, yet appealing. Young children will connect with the desire to make friends and feel accepted by others. This is an excellent sample of cross-cultural communication. Because most of the text is in English, and the terms in Spanish are basic, it can be used in both bilingual English - Spanish storytimes, as well as English only storytimes.

 

 

Hands-on Activity: Flannel Board

Use flannel letters, emphasizing the letter “F” for friendship (theme). Also use flannel goose to demonstrate what happened with goose as he loved to talk, read and write.

 

 

Book Two Reading:

Reiser, Lynn W. 2013. Margaret and Margarita. New York: Harper Collins.

 

           

Aside for Parents / Caregivers: This story is an example of how to introduce new vocabulary that is fun and exciting. It is not necessary to pronounce the Spanish words perfectly, it is about enjoying the idea of introducing a different language and culture into the idea of friendship.

 

Transition Activity:

“The More We Get Together”

1. The more we get together,
   Together, together,
   The more we get together,
   The happier we'll be.
   
   ‘Cause your friends are my friends,
   And my friends are your friends.
   The more we get together,
   The happier we'll be.
   Oh, the more we get together,
   Together, together,
   The more we get together,
   The happier we'll be.
   The more we get together,
   The happier we'll be.
   
   The more we get together,
   Together, together,
   The more we get together,
   The happier we'll be.
   
   ‘Cause your friends are my friends,
   And my friends are your friends.
   The more we get together,
   The happier we'll be.
   
   

As you sing the song, encourage children to hold hands if they choose to do so. They may sway back and forth as they sing.

 

 

Commentary Aside /Information for Parents / Caregivers: Early Literacy Skills and Activities: Singing and talking are supportive of early literacy activities in this storytime. For early literacy skill, the presenter reads, pointing out words for print awareness. Sounds are emphasized for phonological awareness. Vocabulary is simple, and the letter of the day is “F.” This highlights the theme of friendship.

This segment should last approximately 10 minutes.

 

Book Three Reading:

McBratney, Sam. 2011. Illus. Anita Jeram. Guess How Much I Love You. New York: Random House.

 

 

Closing Song: “Decimos adios / We Say Goodbye” (a song written by Luz Earley for bilingual English-Spanish storytimes at Fort Worth Library Department). 

Decimos adios,

Decimos adios,

Decimos adios.

Now…in English!

We say goodbye,

We say goodbye,

We say goodbye.

¡ADIOS! GOODBYE!

 

Hands-on Learning Component:

 

Craft Activity: The craft is approximately 15 minutes in duration. Some children and adults will finish more quickly.

Materials:

•  white paper (goose body can be pre-cut if desired)
• crayons (orange for Goose’s beak)
•  popsicle sticks
• child-safe glue (I recommend glue sticks, as they are not as messy as liquid glue)

provide each child with a goose body made with white paper (cutouts). This is to emphasize the Goose character in the story A Splendid Friend Indeed (Book One).

Have children draw Goose’s eye and smile. Remember, it is not necessary that this image be perfect. Many young children will make a distorted image, but this is part of how they develop writing / drawing skill. It is their open-ended, creative expression of the drawing that is desired.

 

 

 

Completed Goose Sample:

 

 

 Encourage parents and caregivers to attend the next storytime. Share your handouts at the close of the program, but allow adults and children to remain and ask questions. Also, show them the books on display about friendship and share any titles that you can connect with the friendship theme. Encourage both adults and children to use their imagination. Early literacy is important, but it is also a way to engage with young children and support their social emotional skills in an entertaining atmosphere.

 

Caregiver Involvement and/or ECRR2 Family Education:

 

Explain Key Elements: Listening, talking, reading, writing and playing are early literacy activities. These can easily be incorporated into everyday activity at home.

 

Encourage Involvement: As children are able to tell a story, they develop narrative skills. Recommend that adults play a “guess how much I love you” question and answer game with their children. This encourages talking and listening early literacy activities. Adults are encouraging reading and print awareness as they read and share the book with their children. (PLA / ALSC, 2011).

 

References

 

Association for Library Service to Children. 2009. "Competencies for Librarians Serving Children in Public Libraries." 

http://www.ala.org/alsc/edcareeers/alsccorecomps

 

Bloom, Suzanne. 2009.  A Splendid Friend Indeed. Honesdale: Boyds Mills Press.

 

Fort Worth Library. Last Updated Aug.29, 2014. “Storytimes.” Accessed September 01, 2014.

 

McBratney, Sam. 2011. Illus. Anita Jeram. Guess How Much I Love You. New York: Random House.

 

Reiser, Lynn W. 2013. Margaret and Margarita. New York: Harper Collins.

 

Public Library Association / Association for Library Service to Children.2011. Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library® 2nd Edition. Huron: American Library Association.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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