Burnham Bunch: Move it!

Move it!

Read: Stretch and Wiggle by Doreen  Cronin

Song: Shake your Sillies Out, Dinosaur (walking down the street), 

Burnham Bunch: Bees

Bees Knees

Read: Buzz said the Bee by Lewinson and the Very Greedy Bee by Smallman

Flannel board: Buzz said the Bee

Craft: Bees

Burnham Bunch: Colors

Let's Talk Colors!

Read: Purple Little Bird by Greg Foley and Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin

Flannel board: Purple Little Bird and Brown Bear, Brown Bear

Craft: Invisible Drawings

Need heavy white construction paper, white crayon, and water color paints.

• Prior to storytime, we wrote each child's name on the construction with white crayon. 
• As the children arrived, we asked them to choose their favorite color crayon. This allowed my assistant to ready the water color paint for each child.
• We equipped each craft seat with their favorite color paint and brush. 
• As they painted their paper, their name was revealed!

Burnham Bunch: Frogs

Ribbit

Read: Frog in a Bog by Karma Wilson and Jump! by Fischer

Flannel:  Frog in a Bog

Song: Five Speckled Frogs

Craft: Frogs found here Isla Books

Need: Paper plates, red and green crayons, cotton balls, sticker eyes, glue sticks, scissors and a party blower forgot to buy the blowers ... so we used red construction paper strips for the tongue

• Each craft seat was equipped with one plate, a green and red crayon, 2 cotton balls, 2 sticker eyes, and one glue stick.
• We asked each kiddo to color the inside of the plate (the side you would use to set your food on) red. THEN flip it over and color the other side green.
• Then they glued the tongue onto to the red side of the plate
• Then they glued to cotton balls onto the green side of the plate -- we showed them the approximate location on our own frog ... and then sticker their eyes onto the cotton balls.
• When they were finished, we folded each plate in half and stapled the corners. ( I had to staple the tongues too ... the crayon was too waxy and the tongues keep falling off)
• We then made a small hole/slit and slide in the party blower.

Burnham Bunch: Butterflies

Butterflies

Read: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle and Butterfly, Butterfly by Petr Horacek

Flannel board: Feed the Caterpillar found via Pinterest ....

I found images of the various foods using Google images, printed and laminated them. I passed out the pieces and asked the kiddos to feed our caterpillar as the story progress ....

Craft: Butterflies

Need: Sticky-back paper (aka clear contact paper), craft paper -- whatever color you choose, tissue paper.

• Prior to storytime, we cut out a butterfly shape from the craft paper ... one per each child. We have tons of tissue paper scraps. But, if you need to, rip or cut small pieces of various colors of tissue paper. 
• At craft time, we equipped each craft seat with a piece of sticky-back paper on the table (sticky side up), with the craft paper butterfly shape on top.
• Kiddos went to town sticking on the tissue paper/craft paper.
• DONE!

Burnham Bunch: Bunnies

Easter time

Read: Ten Hungry Rabbits Anita Lobel and Little White Rabbit by Kevin Henkes

Flannel board: Ten Hungry Rabbits

Craft: Blow Egg Art found via Pinterest from Discovery Kidzone Montessori Adventures

Need: Pastel colored craft paper (pink, blue, yellow), poster paint, straws.

• Prior to storytime, Susan cut the craft paper into large eggs. 
• At storytime, we equipped each craft seat with an egg, with dollops of paint, a paint tray and straw.
• We showed the kids how to blow into the straw to make a design .... BUT, if they rather, then can use their straws as a painting tool. I folded mine in half and smushed it. So many beautiful color combinations.
• Beautiful eggs!

Burnham Bunch: Chicks

Here a chick. There a chick ...

Read: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick by Patricia Colandro and This Little Chick by John Lawrence

Flannel board: There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick

Craft: Chick in a nest

Need: Yellow and orange craft paper, sticker eyes, paper plate, brown paper (I used brown packing paper from an order I just received). Glue sticks.

• Prior to storytime, Susan cut out circles from the yellow paper (this is our chick) and orange triangles (beaks and feet). She also cut/shredded the brown packing paper (this will be our nest).
• At storytime, each craft seat was equipped with a paper plate, yellow circle, orange triangles, sticker eyes and glue stick.
• First I asked them to glue down their circle, then add their beak and feet, and lastly the eyes.
• We then got to making our "nest" by adding glue all around the edge of the paper plate and pressing in the paper shreds ( I laid these out last, when it was time to create the nest)
• And that is that. Easy breezy.

Burnham Bunch: Mud

Mud's the word

Read: Harry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion and I'm Dirty by Kate and Jim McMullan

Flannel boards:

Harry the Dirty Dog:
Laminate a photo of Harry. As I was reading the book, I colored him "dirty." I made sure to leave some white spots ... As he takes a bath, use a paper towel to wipe off the crayon to make him clean again.

I'm Dirty:
I found images via Google and placed them in a Microsoft Publisher and numbered the images 10-1. As our Backhoe loader cleans the yard ... I had the kiddos place their story pieces on the board.


Craft: Mud painting

Image of Backhoe Loader -- found via Google, traced and copied. Brown paint, Matchbox or any other small car/truck, plates for paint.

• I placed brown paint on a plate -- one for each kiddo. Gave them each a car, and let them go for it. 
• The kiddos LOVED using the car for painting.