Welcome Song: Clap and Sing Hello (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
We clap and sing hello,
We clap and sing hello,
With our friends at story time,
We clap and sing hello!
We tap and sing hello // We stretch and sing hello // We wave and sing hello
Source: Storytime Katie
Song: The Wheels on the Bus
Book: Leaf Trouble by Jonathan Emmett; illustrated by Caroline Jayne Church
Pip Squirrel and his sister Blossom notice their tree has changed color and is losing leaves so they try and fix it. Cute story with a little autumn tree lesson mixed in.
Song: Row Row Row Your Boat
I do three verses of this classic:
Row row row your boat (the traditional way) //
Rock rock rock your boat, sway from side to side
Merrily merrily merrily merrily what a bumpy ride (bump hands on lap) //
Row row row your boat, gently down the stream
If you see a crocodile (crocodile snap with arms)
Don’t forget to scream (*AH*)
Song: Itsy Bitsy Spider
Itsy Bitsy Spider (sung normally)
Teeny Weeny Spider (sung in falsetto)
Great Big Hairy Spider (sung deeply)
Song: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
Sung three times, getting faster each time.
Wiggle Rhyme: Watch Out for the Bugs(to the tune of Jingle Bells)
Clap your hands, stomp your feet
Wiggle all around
Throw your hands up in the air and now let’s touch the ground
Touch your head, touch your hips, give yourself a hug
Now sit down upon the floor
But watch out for the bugs!! (stamp out the bugs)
Book: A New House for Mouse by Petr Horacek
Mouse finds an apple but it won’t fit into her home so she sets out to find a bigger den. I’ve already read this to my preschool group this season so I had to get another read in for my outreach kids. One of my fall favorites!
Flannel: Five Little Leaves
Five little leaves on the tree next door,
One fell off and now there are four.
Four little leaves all over the tree,
One flew away and now there are three.
Three little leaves where the wind blew,
One fell off and now there are two.
Two little leaves sitting in the sun,
One flew away and now there is one.
One little leaf in the tree all alone,
The wind blew and blew and now there are none!
Source: Storytime Katie
Action Rhyme/Puppet: Five Little Monkeys Swinging from the Tree
Book: Ten Apples Up on Top by Dr. Seuss; illustrated by Roy McKie
A classic that the kids love. They read it last month at school and then tried to balance bean bags on their heads. 🙂 Those teachers are so clever …
Song: Falling Leaves (to the tune of The Wheels on the Bus)
The leaves on the trees go swish, swish, swish, (wave hands back and forth)
Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish,
The leaves on the trees go swish, swish, swish,
All through the fall.
The leaves on the tree come tumbling down (flutter hands down) //
The leaves on the ground go crunch, crunch, crunch (tap knees)
Source: Librarian Lisa
Egg Shakers: Shake It by Sally’s Music Circle
Book: Little Elliot: Fall Friends by Mike Curato
Elliot and Mouse escape the city and have fall fun in the country. The kids loved Elliot and Mouse outlined in stars at the end.
When we were done with our story time, the kids go into the library and pick two books to take back to school. They love it. 🙂
The Short Stack Librarian 