Flannel Friday: Rain, Clouds & Rainbows

I had so many ideas for this storytime that I actually FORGOT to do the one I was most excited about! Too many fun things (pretty sure it is the rainbow...it distracts me!)

Interactive Rhyme.  I did an interactive version of 10 Little Raindrops and 10 Little Umbrellas.  I had 10 kids be umbrellas (sitting on the floor) and 10 kids be raindrops (standing above them) and we went through our rhyme.  I also counted down, so that the raindrops went away - the sun came out and then we counted down our umbrellas and put them "away."

The raindrops were made with kebab skewers and fishing line.  The number of raindrops on the line reflected what number it was (#1 had one raindrop, #2 had two, etc., all the way up to 10.)  The raindrops were really fun to look at and shake - they had a great rain effect.  {Be warned: they are prone to twisting & tangling!}

Here's the scoop on this kind of activity.  Honestly, a bit of an overreach for my audience, which is a daycare.  They don't have the immediate parental support of a mom nudging them and saying "it's okay!"  And some of them are younger and not the best age for this activity - which is probaby best for older 3's and even better for 4's.  Super fun to do and they did like it, but I could see it was pushing them and possibly would be better in an audience with more parent support and fewer tiny ones.

Rainbow Stew is the adorable activity I forgot (and had been so excited about).  I first saw it here.  Just too cute! Put all those pieces in a pot & use this rhyme (also from Roving Fiddlehead Kitlit).

Take an apple
Put it in the pot
Stir it, stir it, stir it a lot.
Take it out. What will it be?
The prettiest red you ever did see.

Puppet Activity.   Today the kids helped Woolly find the most appropriate shoes to wear in the rain.  I used some flannel pockets and put the shoes in the pocket.  Selected children got to pull the shoe out and tell us if it was a good rain shoe or not.  In the end, Woolly was SUPER excited because the rain boots we found for him matched an umbrella he already has - way to coordinate, Woolly!

Craft

The craft was such a huge hit!  Oh my - I saw this in a catalog of all things a few years back (like, just a decoration in a staged children's bedroom.)  I used wrapping paper tissue for the rainbow streamers, but you could also use crepe paper / streamers.

Books we read are below - both really fun with great language and rhythm.  It was definitely a full storytime!