I run Storytime at the Penguin Bookshop and thought it would be fun to share my Storytime plans. While my Storytime is open to all ages, I do gear toward the younger crowd because a lot of 1 and 2 year olds attend. A few of these ideas are my own, but the majority I borrow from my favorite Storytime websites, which include Storytime Katie, Sunflower Storytime, Dog Earned Storytime, and Library Village.

Welcome Song:

(to the tune of “The Farmer in the Dell”)

We clap and sing hello,

With our friends at Storytime,

We clap and sing hello!

(wave, stomp, march, wiggle, blink, waddle)

Alphabet Song: Use shakers while singing!

Introduce Letter:

Show kids a flashcard of the letter C.
Sing “The C says ccc, the C says ccc, every letter makes a sound, the C says ccc.”

Book 1: They All Saw a Cat

Activity: Sort Objects

I brought in a bunch of small toys from home and instructed the kids to sort them into piles of objects that started with c and objects ones that didn’t start with c.

Book 2: The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Activity: Feed the Caterpillar

I made a caterpillar out of an old oatmeal container and put a slit in the lid for its mouth. Then I color-copied the food items from The Very Hungry Caterpillar, laminated them, and had the kids “feed” the caterpillar as I read the story a second time.