#97 - If You'll Be My Valentine by Cynthia Rylant

Summary: A little boy creates and presents valentines to his pets, family members, and even his teddy bear in this appealing picture book. There are also touches of humor: he tells his dog, "If you'll be my valentine/I'll give you extra treaties./I'll give you two/and maybe three/and let you lick my feeties." 

Suggested Activity: Hug Tag

 

One child is "it" and tries to tag another child. Once tagged, the child is "frozen" until another child gently hugs him or her to "unfreeze" him or her.

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up

#96 - Silly Tilly's Valentine by Lillian Hoban

Summary: Silly Tilly Mole can't remember why today is special. Is it because it's snowing and the wind is swirling colored snowflakes all around her? Or maybe it's the bright red something special in her mailbox that makes this a special day.

Suggested Activity: I Love You

Show the children how to say, "I love you," in sign language. The children can practice with each other. 

I        point to self
love   cross arms over chest
you    point outward 

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up

#95 - The Miracle of the Potato Latkes by Malka Penn

Summary: Tante Golda's potato latkes are the most delicious in all of Russia! She likes to prepare a big batch of them for all of her friends and neighbors on the first night of Hanukkah. When a drought leaves her with only one potato at holiday time, she's unable to have her traditional feast. Instead, she shares her only potato with a beggar.

Suggested Activity: Human Menorah

The children can make a human menorah by positioning themselves to resemble one. A menorah is a lamp with nine flames that is used to celebrate Hanukkah. Two children can be head-to-toe on the floor to form the base. Have nine children stand behind the base to form candles. The tallest child can stand in the middle and be the shammash. The shammash is the center candle that lights the other candles.

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up

#80 - Pete the Cat Saves Christmas by Eric Litwin

Summary: 'Twas the day before Christmas and Santa was ill. In the cold winter wind he had caught a bad chill. Will Christmas be canceled? Will it come to that? "Never!" cried Santa. "Let's call Pete the Cat!"

"I'll do it, said Pete, and although I am small, at Christmas we give, so I'll give it my all." The minibus flew just like in a movie. Pete the Cat cried, "This is totally groovy!"

Suggested Activity:  What Time is it Santa Claus?

One player is chosen to be Santa Claus. Santa Claus stands at the opposite end of the playing field from the other players, facing away from them. A call-and-response then takes place: all players except for Santa Claus chant in unison "What's the time, Santa Claus?", and Santa Claus will answer in one of the two ways: 1) Santa Claus may call a clock time (e.g., "3 o'clock"). The other players will then take that many steps out loud as they go ("One, two, three"). Then they ask the question again. 

2) Santa Claus may call "Christmas!" Then Santa Claus will turn and chase the other players back to their starting point. If Santa Claus successfully tags a player, that player becomes the new Santa Claus for the next round.
 
Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up

#79 - Pete the Cat - I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin

Summary:  Pete the Cat shimmies down the street singing, I love my white shoes... His shoes turn red when he steps into a large pile of strawberries. Did Pete cry? Goodness, no! He keeps walking along singing his song. I love my red shoes.... He then steps into a large pile of blueberries and then a mud puddle, each incident changing his sneakers to a new hue.  Pete takes it all in stride. After stepping into a  bucket of water, Pete notices that his sneakers are not only white again, but also wet. 

Suggested Activity:  Copycats

Have a child be the cat and clap a rhythm for the group. The other children listen and then act as copycats. They clap the same rhythm as the cat did. Another child then becomes the cat and creates a rhythm for the copycats to imitate.

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up   

#75 - How Many Teeth by Paul Showers

Summary: When you were a baby, you didn't have any teeth at all. Then as you grew, your teeth started to come in. First one, then two - and finally, twenty teeth in all!
But you won't keep these teeth forever. First one, then two, will wiggle loose. Maybe you've lost some of your first teeth already. When the little teeth come out and the big teeth come in, everyone can see - you're growing up.

Suggested Activity: Pass the Toothpaste

Play music and pass a tube of toothpaste around the circle. When the music stops, the person who is holding the toothpaste stands up and claps his or her hands three times (or some similar action.)
 Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up

#74 - Cats Sleep Anywhere by Eleanor Farjeon

Summary: Cats sleep anywhere, any table, any chair.
Top of piano, window-ledge, in the middle, on the edge.
Open drawer, empty shoe, anybody’s lap will do.
Fitted in a cardboard box, in the cupboard with your frocks. Anywhere! They don’t care! Cats sleep anywhere.

Suggested Activity:  Yarn Ball

Set up baskets at varying distances from a masking tape line on the floor. Toss yarn balls into the baskets.

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up

#67 - A Chair for my Mother by Vera B. Williams

Summary:  After a fire turned their home and possessions into charcoal and ash, Rosa, her mother, and grandmother save and save until they can afford to buy a wonderful, beautiful, fat, soft armchair. Into a glass jar, goes all Mama's change from tips and the money Grandma saves whenever she gets a bargain at the market. Then the jar is full; the coins are rolled in paper wrappers, and exchanged for bills; and "Mama and Grandma and I go shopping for the chair!"

Suggested Activity: Musical Friends

This is a terrific getting-to-know-you activity. Play a round of musical chairs that will help students learn one another’s names and interests. Place a photo of each child on the front of a chair back. (There’s no need to have one less chair in this noncompetitive version of the game.) Invite children to stand in a circle around the chair and start the music. When the music stops, children sit down on the nearest chair. Ask each child to identify whose photo is on his or her chair.  

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 3 and up   

#57 - The Little Yellow Leaf by Carin Berger

Summary: It is autumn and all the other leaves fall and swirl around the tree. But the lone little yellow
leaf holds fast to the branch of the great oak tree. "I'm not ready yet", he thinks. This is a grand story of facing the unknown and a celebration of the friends who help us let go and soar.

 

Suggested Activity:  Fall Like a Leaf

Invite students to dramatize falling leaves in different kinds of weather. Introduce the activity by looking at the weather outside. Is it a calm day? Windy? Pouring? Play appropriate music such as Vivaldi's violin concerto Autumn. Ask students to "fall" the way they think leaves would in the kind of weather.

   
Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 3 and up   

#40 - Ballerina Swan by Allegra Kent

Summary:  Sophie the swan sits in her city pond, gazing longingly through the windows of a dance studio. She dreams of becoming a ballerina. The hard work begins when the dance instructor Miss Willow invites her to join the class. Sophie’s gawky webbed feet won’t turn out. Her wings won’t align into graceful ports de bras. But Sophie practices, practices, practices, and soon she’s invited to audition for — what else? — Swan Lake!

Suggested Activity: Feather Dance

Give each child a colorful feather to dance with. While the music is playing, encourage children to keep the feather up in the air by blowing it. You can listen and dance to  Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake here.

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (shows balance while moving, demonstrates basic locomotor skills)

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up   

#35 - I'm Bored by Michael Ian Black

Summary: I'm Bored, stars a little girl and a potato. The girl tries to convince an unimpressed spud of all the amazing things kids can do. Kids can tame lions, turn cartwheels, and fly!

Suggested Activity: Pretend Potato Toss
 
Use a brown bean bag (or a pair of rolled up brown socks) as a pretend potato.  Have the children try to toss the bean bag into a laundry basket. 

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates throwing and catching skills)

Appropriate Age Group: 3 and up   

#28 - My Snake Blake by Randy Siegel

Summary: Blake the snake is a little boy’s perfect friend right out of the birthday-present box. He calms the boy’s alarmed mother by spelling out the word "relax" with his body. 

Blake answers all of the boys tough homework answers, eats his Brussels sprouts, and hisses at the school bully.  The boy knows that dogs, cats, and horses will always be the most popular pets but, he's lucky to have his spectacular snake Blake.

Suggested Activity: Snake Tag

Select one child to be the snake. In the fashion of tag, have the child tag another child. The second child then joins hands with the first. Together the snake now tries to tag a third child, who, in turn, joins the snake. The game continues until all the children are part of the snake. 

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 3 and up   

#23 - My Friend the Monster by Eleanor Taylor

Summary:  Louis the fox moves into a new house filled with big empty rooms to play in. On Louis’ first night, he finds a furry one-eyed monster cowering under his bed. The monster moans,"I'm cold and I'm scared, and I suppose that's why I'm under your bed." Louis kindly lets the monster crawl into bed with him and share his cozy blankets. The next day Louis takes the monster to the park where they both practice being brave, smiling, and talking to new kids. Making new friends isn't so hard after all!

Suggested Activity:  Dancing Monsters

  

REM singing Furry Happy Monsters? Pure genius. This song will help your child enhance their emotional vocabulary.  Children must learn to label their feelings so that they are better equipped to communicate them. Furry Happy Monsters explores the words cheerful, glad, sighing, crying, and tearful. Plus it's fun to dance to!

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (shows balance while moving, demonstrates basic locomotor skills)

Appropriate Age Group: 3 and up

#18 - Moon Rope by Lois Ehlert

Summary: Moon Rope is a Peruvian tale which explains why Mole avoids other creatures, preferring his solitary tunnel.  Fox persuades poor Mole to climb up to the moon with him. "There are big worms up there," said Fox. "Huge. How could Mole not listen to his growling stomach? He'd go. Mole and Fox braid a long rope out of grass. 

With the help of the birds, they hitch the rope to the tip of a crescent moon. Fox climbs up quickly, paw over paw. Mole nervously keeps glancing back to the earth. When his claws slip he falls with a resounding ploomph! The animals jeer and taunt him. Upset and embarrassed, Mole runs away and digs a deep tunnel. 

Suggested Activity:  Wiggle Worm Relay 

1. Form relay lines. 
2. Everyone in each line puts their left hand between their legs and the person behind grabs that hand with their right hand.
3. Then they run at a given signal to the other end of the playing area and back. 
4. The first team to return 'intact' wins!

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving) 

Appropriate Age Group: 4 and up

#3 - How To Babysit a Grandpa by Jean Reagan

Summary: This heart-warming picture book is written in a how-to style. The narrator gives helpful hints as to how one "babysits" a grandpa. These tips include what to eat for a snack (anything dipped in ketchup, ice cream topped with cookies, olives served on fingertips), what to do on a walk (find lizards, dandelion puffs and cool rocks), and how to play with a grandpa (build a pirate cave, march with your drum).

Suggested Activity:  Follow the tales numerous tips on what to do on a walk by planning a book-themed scavenger hunt. Look for lizards, cool rocks, dandelion puffs...... On the walk, encourage children to collect bits of nature that interest them. You may wish to make the rule that they can only take along objects that will fit in their collection bags, or that they must check with you to make sure that the objects they are taking along are safe. 

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving) 

Appropriate Age Group: 5 and up

#1 - Giraffes Can't Dance by Giles Andreae

Summary: "Every year in Africa they hold the Jungle Dance, where every single animal turns up to dance and prance." Clumsy Gerald desperately wants to waltz like the warthogs or cha-cha like the chimps. But he has two left hooves and is certain that giraffes can't dance... or can they? This sensitive tale has a nice message in amongst the rhyming narrative. Kids will love this one- it's filled with bold colorful illustrations and plenty of humor to boot.

Suggested Activity: Freeze dance is a fun and high-energy game that is also quite simple to facilitate. The goal of this game is to 'freeze' or become still when the music stops. This teaches kids to modulate their energy and control their body in a fun way. I suggest introducing children to African music as they dance like the story's hero Gerald.

Curriculum Area: Gross Motor Skills (demonstrates basic locomotor skills, shows balance while moving)

Appropriate Age Group: 3 and up