This year, I've added a new time to my class schedule, which I call 'Storytime'. Each week I pick a theme, not necessarily the same that we are focusing on the rest of the day, and read a different book about the theme each day. This is a time when kids are taking turns for the bathroom and usually just waiting in transition.
Before we begin reading the book I've selected, the kids jump once for each word in the title as we count how many words there are and we look clues on the cover about what the book might be about. As we read, the kids identify each character they meet, saying "Ahhhh! New character!" We talk about the problem as it arises and then make guesses about how the problem will be solved. I always ask, "How can we find out the solution?" They love to answer, "Turn the page!"
My favorite part of this time is after I close the book. My students use the materials provided to retell the story. One day they pretended to mail each other zoo animals in shoe boxes and told why each animals wasn't the right pet for them. (!Dear Zoo) Another day they made a multicolor train and a long track for it to go, go, gone on. (Freight Train)
This week's theme was autumn leaves. We read Let it Fall, The Leaves on the Trees, Going on a Leaf Hunt, and a nonfiction book about leaves. Afterwards they used log blocks, fabric and paper leaves, and rakes to retell the stories and share the facts they learned. They counted leaves, compared colors and shapes, and made piles to jump in.
It was so fun, we are going to stick with this theme next week!
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