Giant Dance Party by Betsy Bird

Lexy loves to dance, but she's given it up. The problem: stage fright. Lexy can't bring herself to dance on stage in front of other people. She decides to teach dance. The problem: the only interested students are giants.

What I thought: A great story about something a lot of people struggle with...public speaking was my nemesis in middle school and high school. I love how being a teacher helps Lexy solver her own dilemma. Dorman's illustrations are bright, colorful, and appealing. I like the mixture of page layouts. The cover is my favorite illustration, but all the ones featuring the giants are great. Giant Dance Party would pair well with Rock 'n' Roll Mole by Carolyn Crimi.

Storytime Themes: Fears, Giants, Dance 

(Illus. Brandon Dorman. Greenwillow, 2013)

Flannel Friday: Crocheted Food Props

This week I want to share my crocheted food props. I have a peanut, cheese wedge, egg, carrot, and donut. I had patterns for the carrot, donut, and egg. The peanut and cheese wedge I made up myself. These come in more handy than you'd think. I use these for variations on the game "Doggy, Doggy, Where's Your Bone?" The peanut is handy for elephants. The egg for chickens, ducks, dinosaurs...really anything that lays eggs. The carrot is good for rabbits of course. The donut I made especially for my Laura Numeroff Party celebrating the release of her book If You Give a Dog a Donut.

Linda has the roundup this week.

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Our Flannel Friday Fairy Godmother is Anna (@opinionsbyanna).  


Sleep Like a Tiger by Mary Logue

A little girl who's not sleepy discusses the sleeping habits of various animals as she gets ready for bed. Before she knows what's happened she's "fast asleep."

What I thought: I really liked this book. The illustrations are wonderful. This is the second time Pamela Zagarenski has received a Caldecott Honor. Will we be seeing a Medal from her soon, I wonder? My favorite illustration is the girl with the polar bear. Pair Sleep Like a Tiger with Time to Sleep by Steve Jenkins.

Storytime Themes: Bedtime, Animals


(Illus. Pamela Zagarenski. Houghton Mifflin, 2012)

About a Bear by Holly Surplice

Do you know bears? You do? Are you sure? Did you know they can be happy, sad, bored, and puzzled?

What I thought: Gorgeous illustrations and a nice story. About a Bear was a great addition to my Teddy Bear Picnic and other bear themed storytimes. I think it would pair well with My Heart is Like a Zoo by Michael Hall.

Storytime Themes: Animals, Bears, Forest, Emotions


(Tiger Tales, 2011)

Flannel Friday: Five Tiny Gnomes

This is another inspired by Flannel Friday post and perfect for spring. This time around my inspiration was Leah and Mollie from Sunflower Storytime. The best part about it is they shared free templates so you can create your own set.

My gnomes are currently faceless. I don't know if this will change.

Lisa has the roundup this week.

Important Links:
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Our Flannel Friday Fairy Godmother is Anna (@opinionsbyanna).

Flannel Friday: Find the Honey Pot

This is a little game I devised for my Teddy Bear Picnic back in the fall. It's similar to Little Mouse. The kids guess which bear is hiding the honey pot.

Lindsey & Dana have the roundup this week.

Important Links:
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Our Flannel Friday Fairy Godmother is Anna (@opinionsbyanna). 

Flannel Friday: Bees & Beehive

This is an inspired by Flannel Friday post. My inspiration was Katie. I used this set for my Teddy Bear Picnic back in the fall.

Kathryn has the roundup this week.

Important Links:
Flannel Friday Blog
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Our Flannel Friday Fairy Godmother is Anna (@opinionsbyanna).

Flannel Friday Roundup for May 2, 2014

Here's the roundup for this week. Only 5 contributions this week. I suspect everyone is busy preparing for summer reading. I know I am!

Hair today, gone tomorrow....Kathryn's young grandson and a visit to the barbershop inspired her to create an original rhyme and felt set.

A Librarian Less Ordinary shares a huge interactive pizza activity. I love that she went thrifting to find what she needed.

Getting buggy with it...two ladies are thinking about bugs this week. Christine gives us her version of Ladybug, Ladybug, Fly Away Home. Kristen adapts the book Lenny in the Garden by Ken Wilson-Max into a felt set.

This week, I'm finally sharing 1 of 3 felt sets I made for my Teddy Bear Picnic back in November. First up is A Bear, A Bee, and Some Bandages.

Kathryn has the roundup next week.

Important Links:
Flannel Friday Blog
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Follow Flannel Friday on Twitter with the hashtag #flannelstorytime.
Our Flannel Friday Fairy Godmother is Anna (@opinionsbyanna).

Flannel Friday: A Bear, A Bee, & Some Bandages

This is a little activity I used for my Teddy Bear Picnic event in the fall. I borrowed a bee from my beehive & bees set (coming soon), made a bear head and lots of felt bandaids. The idea for the bandaids came from Katie.

The way this works: The kids all take a bandaid. I tell the kids the bear is climbing a tree to get some honey, but before he can get to it, a bee stings him. Oh no! Our bear needs a [insert color] bandaid. He's gets stung until we run out of bandaids.

I'm hosting this week.

Important Links:
Flannel Friday Blog
Flannel Friday on Pinterest
Flannel Friday on Facebook
Follow Flannel Friday on Twitter with the hashtag #flannelstorytime.
Our Flannel Friday Fairy Godmother is Anna (@opinionsbyanna).