StoryCraft Ages 6-9

While storytelling is a great favorite of preschoolers, many elementary age children are more drawn to crafts and other activities. StoryCraft is an award-winning library program that combines storytelling with crafts in an exciting and engaging activity for children in first through third grades. Each one-hour program includes storytelling, a craft, movement, activities, music, and discussion. This collection of StoryCraft programs presents 50 fun and educational theme-based sessions. Each includes suggestions for promotion, music, crafts, activities, and stories. The sessions also include bibliographies to help direct young readers toward additional reading, as well as diagrams, detailed instructions, and supply lists for the crafts. The themes range from a Jungle Safari to Math Mayhem to a Western Roundup, all encouraging children to enjoy reading in a variety of ways. Each session has plenty of suggestions, so that the program can be customized. Helpful Hints for implementing the program can help any librarian, volunteer, or parent turn a ho-hum storytime into a dazzling StoryCraft time.
Storycraft: 50 theme-based programs combining storytelling, activities and crafts for children in grades 1-3, Ages 6, 7, 8, 9

By Martha Seif Simpson, Lynne Perrigo

Illustrated by Lynne Perrigo

Edition: illustrated

Published by McFarland & Co., 2001

Original from the University of Michigan

Digitized Oct 30, 2008

ISBN 078640891X, 9780786408917

283 pages

A collection of popular, child-tested ...

... programs. Themes include dragons, cowboys and cowgirls, kites, and magic, and are arranged alphabetically by title of program not content ("What's Cooking?" is last rather than under "food"). Each ... more » unit includes suggestions for a bulletin board, background music, an opener, stories, a group-participation activity, a craft, and numerous titles to booktalk. Step-by-step instructions for presenting the programs are offered, from promotion to cleanup, as well as "Helpful Hints." Craft instructions are divided into two parts-preparations to be done ahead of time and what the children do during the program. The authors warn that these programs are labor intensive and suggest two librarians in addition to utilizing volunteers. However, many ideas could be simplified, though the authors do not provide suggestions for doing so. A must for public librarians looking for programs to keep kids coming to the library after they've graduated from storytime.-Shauna Yusko, King County Library System, Bellevue, WA

Cahners Business Information (c) 2001