Old MacDonald Storytime

I may have only had three toddlers in attendance, but my Old MacDonald Storytime (for ages 18-35 months) a few weeks ago was still a super fun program! And one that I plan on doing again, perhaps in a more popular time slot. It was a simple toddler storytime. First, I read two stories, then we had a big singalong with puppets, and last, there was a mommy & me type craft. This is going to be a very short blog post because it was such a simple program, but I really had a lot of fun so I'd like to share! Here's what went on:

First, books:

Where is the Green Sheep by Mem Fox -- This was perfect for the older end of the 18-35 month age range but kind of worked even with the 18-month-old of the group!

Spot Goes to the Farm by Eric Hill --  This one SUPER worked for me because I had such a small group and the kids were able to participate in the lifting the flaps! This book wouldn't have worked with a group of more than, say, 5 kids. But with 3? It was absolutely perfect!

Next, Sing-a-long: 

No surprise here, we sang Old MacDonald! I had 9 puppets, all hiding under a blanket, who I took out one-by-one as we sang. It worked really well! Our farm was really big. It had a cow, pig, chicken, duck, cat, dog, lamb, frog, and turkey. After we sang the verse for each animal, I left that puppet out so the kids could see it or pet it. I'm not sure if this would have been pure chaos or not with a bigger group, but with my little trio, it was totally fun. The kids really loved to be up and down, playing with the puppets as they appeared from under the blanket. Again, thanks to the group size, this singalong was really manageable. I probably would have handled it differently with a bigger group.

Last, Craft:

I had the kids make farm scenes. I put out white construction paper, pre-cut barns in two pieces (made with the Cricut), glue sticks, markers, and animal foam stickers (these from Discount School Supply)

What worked least: The time. This program was a ton of fun and, if I do say so myself, perfectly age-appropriate, but I just didn't have the crowd I'd planned for or wanted.

What worked best: I think the sing-a-long was a huge hit. Leaving all the farm animals out for the kids to play with was perfect, although, again, I'm not sure if it would have worked or not if I'd had a bigger group.

Final thought: I will be doing this program again over the summer in a different time slot!