Rainy Day Storytime

It has been pouring buckets here in North Carolina for the past week and a half or so, and every day there are dripping umbrellas and somber faces coming through the library doors. Children sulk in the stacks while their parents wait for the downpour to ease, hoping to keep their carpets at home free from muddy little footprints. This week seems perfect for a rain theme at Friday morning all-ages storytime, and I'm going to try putting a better spin on this whole wet situation. Rain doesn't have to be dreary and boring at all - it can be a lot of fun!

Opening: The Welcome Song
Welcome, welcome, all my friends,
all my friends, all my friends,
Welcome, welcome, all my friends,
to storytime today!

Movement: Getting the Wiggles Out
Let all get to our feet and get rid of aaaaall those wiggles you brought with you today!
Put a wiggle in your head,
Put a wiggle in your toes,
Put a wiggle in your arms,
Put a wiggle in your nose
Put a wiggle in your bottom
Put a wiggle in your knee
Put a wiggle in your whole body
Now sit quiet as can be

Introduction: (ad lib) Good morning, everyone! My name is Miss Megan - Miss Beth is really sorry she can't be here today, but I'm really excited to share some songs and stories with you today. It's been raining an awful lot this week, hasn't it. Do you all like the rain? Hopefully today's stories will make you feel a little better about all this wet and windy weather. Our first story is about clouds, because we couldn't have any rain without clouds!

Story 1: Little Cloud by Eric Carle (sub. Cloudette by Tom Lichtenheld if audience tends toward older)

Transition: We just heard about how the clouds get together to make it rain, but what do the animals do when the rain starts to fall from the sky? Let's find out in our next story.

Story 2: Rain by Manya Stojic (lots of opportunity for fun voices and sound effects)

Transition: So it got hot and dry again at the end... but what do you think will happen next? I bet it will rain again before too long. Let's make our own thunderstorm right here in the library! Everyone stand up.

Movement: Make a rainstorm
Make whooshing sounds and wave hands back and forth
Make slow, soft clapping sounds on legs, increasing in volume
Switch to clapping hands, as loud as possible
Switch to stomping feet like a downpour!
Reverse the rainy progression, ending with quiet whooshing sounds in a sitting position

Transition: That was a pretty cool storm we made! One of the best thing about rain is the puddles it leaves behind! The girl in our next story has all sorts of fun with her animal friends in the rain.

Story 3: The Puddle by David McPhail (oral telling, no book)

Song: The Itsy, Bitsy Spider (with easier hand motions for young ones, speeding up with each repetition)

Conclusion: Wow, you all sang really fast at the end there, good job! I hope you all had fun today, and that maybe next time it rains it won't seem so gloomy. Come make a single-file line at the front if you want a raindrop hand stamp, and thank you for coming! Have a great weekend.

Hand stamp: Raindrop or cloud