Storytime is ...an effective presentation of early literacy skills and activities, it should be entertaining and heart-warming, and it should promote interaction between adult and child. It also exposes the participants to quality literature, builds vocabulary, creativity, and knowledge.
Stories need to be those you love, have excellent vocabulary, show diversity and variety, are fun, invite audience participation, and introduce math and science concepts. Choose stories that promote action, ask questions, and try to be creative by using different voices with characters.
In-between each story, get the children moving. Get the wiggles out by dancing, jumping, wiggling, and twirling. A cute example the article gives is, "Hop, hop, stop! Hop, hop, drop!" Or, play a short song from a CD. Another option is to have an activity that promotes curiosity like a bag of unknown items. I once saw an idea online to wrap up books beforehand in attractive paper, then, during storytime, give clues to the children about what each are, have a different child unwrap each at the designated times, talk about it, and read. Another idea is to make the books correspond with letters or numbers and have children reach into a bag to pull one out for the next book or song. There are many lessons and activities for this! I will definitely investigate and file these ideas on a Pinterest board.
The physical space needs to be creative, but what about the seating arrangements? Do you have to move chairs around to accommodate or even to get to the designated area? There needs to be a lot of unblocked space. Chairs should be set to the side but still able to accommodate those who especially need them. Families should sit together, or simply, parents should sit with their children for optimum participation. Invite people to move forward when they initially enter to room. Eliminate as many distractions as possible.
Expectations should be clear at the beginning. Let them know what makes a successful storytime. Every parent needs to have the outline with the rhymes included to participate effectively and have an idea about how to promote early literacy at home.
The beginning and ending are critical and need to have a rhyme that corresponds and transitions seamlessly. A good opening I remember that have to do with the children's hands is:
Open shut them
Open shut them
Give a little clap, clap, clap
Open shut them
Open shut them
Put them in your lap, lap, lap.
One main component of the article, and one emphasized over and over again in my education classes, is to be PREPARED! The article states, The more you are prepared and have a well-structured schedule, the more comfortable and attentive your audience will be.
I am very excited about storytime. There are so many things associated with being a school librarian that I always remembered, but now, have overlooked, because of everything else corresponding with the job. I am very thankful for the journals I receive from being a member of the American Library Association.
McNeal, Heather. (2014). Jump Start Storytime! Using Tradition and Change Effectively. Children & Libraries, the journal of the Association for Library Service to Children. vol 12(1).