Things That Fly Storytime

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's mostly birds and bugs in this theme. I could have done an entirely bird-themed storytime, but there were so many cute bug titles that I decided to expand the theme.

Here are my picks for Things That Fly storytime:

• Old Black Fly by  Jim Aylesworth
• No Two Alike by Keith Baker
• Feathers for Lunch by Lois Ehlert 
• Birds by Kevin Henkes
• Flip, Flap, Fly! by Phyllis Root
• Bring on the Birds by Susan Stockdale
• Let’s Say Hi to Friends Who Fly by Mo Willems
• Buzz by Janet Wong
• Little Bird by Germano Zullo

Old Black Fly is so cool to look at! The illustrator is responsible for the artwork in the original Alvin Schwartz scary story collections. The colors are electric and the lines are messy. It's a perfect match for the text, and reading it energizes the room.

Feathers for Lunch is so fun to look at--Lois Ehlert is knows for her amazing artwork. I like looking at this, but the story didn't hold my audience's attention. Luckily it was a small group, and we took time to touch the pages and talk about texture. It provided a nice break from the other titles we read, which were much more plot-based.

Let's Say Hi to Friends that Fly is simple--like most of Willems' books. The illustrations are recognizable and the plots are familiar to many of our patrons. I like including this book in the list, because even if we're not introducing a totally new concept or character, we're greeting an old friend and visiting a format we already like.

I tend to avoid anything with licensed characters. Angry Birds, Rio, etc are fun--but they tend to lead to impromptu karaoke sessions or live game play.


SONGS/POEMS

Little Bird
Little bird, little bird,
Fly around,
Up to the sky,
Down to the ground.
Little bird, little bird,
Flap your wings.
Open your beak
And sweetly sing.
Little bird, little bird,
Fly to your nest.
Now it is time
To take a rest.

2 Little Blackbirds --This is one of my favorites--great for flannel boards!
Two little blackbirds sitting on a hill.
One named Jack and one named Jill.
Fly away Jack, flay away Jill.
Come back Jack, come back Jill.

Two little blackbirds flying in the sky.
One named Low and one named High...

Two little blackbirds sitting on a pole.
One named Fast and one named Slow...

Two little blackbirds sitting on a gate...
One named Early and one named Late...

(More Opposites)

Playing in the snow, 1 was fast and the other was SLOWWWW...
Sitting on the ice, 1 was mean, the other was nice...
Out on a date, 1 was wobbly and the other was straight...
Sitting on a lilly, 1 was serious, the other was silly...
Sitting on a mop, 1 named bottom, one named top...
Sitting on a car. . .Near/Far
Sitting on a cloud. . .Quiet/Loud
Sitting on a mast. . .Slow/Fast