Burnham Bunch: Goodbye for now

Vacation

 

Read: The Summer Noisy Book by Margaret Wise Brown 

 

Craft: Flower-face Picture Frame

• Need: Small paper plate, flower shaped frame, lots and lots of stickers, glue gun, glue sticks, camera and photo-paper.
• Prior to storytime, hot glue the flower-shaped frame to the small paper plate.
• As children enter for storytime, take their picture.
• As they stickerize their frame, print and cut-out photos ( I used 3x5)
• Have children glue their photo to the center of the flower.
• THE END!

Today was our last storytime until our summer reading program begins. I am typically taped-out of ideas (and energy) by this point. So, this craft was devised about 3 minutes prior to storytime! Thank goodness for my trusty co-worker....

Burnham Bunch: Feet

Four Fur Feet

Read: Dancing Feet by Lindsey Craig and Four Fur Feet by Margaret Wise Brown

Craft: Mysterious Animal
Before I began reading Four Fur Feet, I summarized that a mysterious animal with four fur feet decided to take a walk around the world. I asked them to try to imagine what the mysterious animal looked like.

• Need: Various pictures of animal heads and tails, glue sticks, crayons, scissors and construction paper.
• I asked each child to pick out a head and a tail.
• My kiddos are 2 1/2 - 5 years old. So, some can and have used scissors. I precut some "body" shapes for the wee ones. The older children cut their own bodies.

And this is what they all came up with!

This is what we began with: Four Fur Feet

Burnham Bunch: Bugs

Bugs

Read: I Love Bugs by Philemon Sturges and The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

Flannelboard: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Using clip-art and Microsoft Publisher, I printed and laminated story elements: apples, pears, cake etc.  Because it is hard to turn the pages itty-bitty pages when The Hungry Caterpillar starts eating, I placed all the food on the flannel board. I prompted the children while "reading" : On Monday he ate through one apple. But he was still hungry.

Craft: A Caterpillar, of course

• Need: Paper, green and red paint, circle sponge stampers, black crayons and paper plates.
• Explain that we are going to create a caterpillar. Show them the technique of stamping. Show them that the circles should touch one and other.
• On the craft table, I placed paper plates with green paint. Have the kiddos stamp circles to create a long or short or fat caterpillar.
• Then place a small amount of red paint on the plate and have them stamp a head.
• Hand out black crayons and instruct them to draw legs and antennea. Ask them to write what food they would LOVE to eat if they were a very very hungry caterpillar. (if they need help, have mom/caregiver write it for them - but most of my kiddos want to practice their letters. Remember it is the process not the product.)

A nice FAT caterpillar






This reads "apples"



Burnham Bunch: Night

Night is Nice

Read: Night is Nice by Barbara and Ed Embereley and One Dark Night by Lisa Wheeler

Craft: Night Surprise

• Need white construction paper (I used white butcher paper and it worked the best), a white crayon, black water color paint, and foam paint brushes.
• Prior to storytime, use the white crayon to draw stars, moon, planets on multiple sheets of paper.
• Lay out craft table with one sheet of prepared paper per child, black paint and brush.
• Explain that there is a nice night surprise that will show on the paper when they paint over the paper with the black paint.
• Pretty simple, but pretty cool!