Tag Archives: arctic

Penguins and Polar Bears: A Chilly Storytime

22 Jul

It’s been a hot one here in Colorado this summer, so I thought I’d cool things off with a storytime featuring penguins and polar bears. I have a great penguin puppet given to me by a coworker, and he introduces our storytime.

  • Brett, Jan. The Three Snow Bears. A three bears retelling, set among polar bears. 
  • Rodriguez, Edel. Sergio Makes a Splash.
  • Song: Penguins and Polar Bears (in which we learn that they do NOT live in the same place).
  • Ward, Jennifer. Way Up In the Arctic. A story to sing! If we have time, and the group is old enough, we go through the book a second time trying to find the number on each page. I ask the kids to use descriptive words to tell me where the number is, rather than saying “right there!”
  • Flannelboard/fingerplay: 5 Baby Penguins.
  • Munsinger, Lynn. Tacky The Penguin. I mean, come on. The gold standard of penguin books. I adore Tacky.  “WHATS HAPPENING!?”

Other books I love:

  • Barner, Bob. Penguins, Penguins Everywhere. A good option for the younger crowd.
  • Dodd, Emma. I Am Small. Another good one for the youngers, with a nice refrain, “And I am small,” for them to repeat.
  • Portis, Antoinette. A Penguin Story. A penguin goes in search of something that’s not black, white or blue – and finds an Antarctic Science Station!
  • Murphy, Yannick. .
  • Bloom, Suzanne. A Splendid Friend Indeed. Okay, so not a Polar Bear story exactly, but I LOVE his expressions. And Goose’s enthusiasm.

What are you doing to beat the summer heat?

Tags: , , , , , ,

Flannel Friday: 5 Baby Penguins

29 Jul

As the temperatures continue to hover in the triple-digits in most parts of the country, I thought it might be time to cool things off with a frosty storytime. So here’s my penguin contribution:

1 baby penguin makes a wish (hold up 1 finger and point up)

2 baby penguins catch a fish (hold up 2 fingers and clap hands)

3 baby penguins slip and slide (hold up 3 fingers and slide hands around)

4 baby penguins run and hide (hold up 4 fingers, then hide them)

5 baby penguins look around, calling “Mamma! Mamma! Mamma!” (hold up 5 fingers and shade eyes with hand)

Now they are found.

When Mamma penguin finds them, she’s added to the board (she’s bigger than the rest):

The penguin pattern comes from this clipart.

Close up of the iceberg:

Hope this cools you off a little!

Visit Miss Mollie later today for the full flannel friday roundup!

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

%d bloggers like this: