Welcome Fall! Storytime

Fall is here in East Tennessee! We are basic as can be, and I wanted to bring this cozy fall feeling to storytime.

Here are the resources I gathered, edited, and created to prepare for the story time.

Action Rhymes

"Scarecrow, Scarecrow"

(to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star")

Scarecrow, scarecrow, turn around.

Scarecrow, scarecrow, touch the ground.

Stand up tall and blink your eyes.

Raise your hands up to the sky.

Clap your hands, then tap your knees.

Turn around and stomp your feet.

Scarecrow, scarecrow, touch your toes.

Scarecrow, scarecrow, tap your nose.

Swing your arms so very slow,

Now really fast to scare the crows!

Touch your head, jump up and down.

Now sit down without a sound.

Books

Full of Fall by April Pulley Sayre

Hocus Pocus It’s Fall by Anne Sibley O’Brien and illustrated by Susan Gal

In the Middle of Fall by Kevin Henkes

Leaves: An Autumn Pop-Up Book by Janet Lawler and Yoogin Kim, illustrated by Lindsay Dale-Scott

That Pup! By Lindsay Barrett George

Fingerplays

“Autumn Leaves”

Sung to “Mary Had a Little Lamb”

Autumn leaves are falling down,

Falling down, falling down.

Autumn leaves are falling down,

All over town.

Autumn leaves are whirling ‘round…

Autumn leaves are crunching crunch!

Autumn leaves are jumping ‘round…

“Five Little Leaves”

Five little leaves on the tree next door

One fell off and then there were four

Four little leaves all over the tree

One fell off and then there were three

Three little leaves where the wind blew

One fell off and then there were two

Two little leaves sitting in the sun

One fell off and then there was one

One little leaf in the tree all alone

The wind blew and blew now there are none!

“Five Little Pumpkins”

Five little pumpkins, sitting on a gate.

The first one says, "Oh my it's getting late!"

The second one says, "There is frost in the air!"

The third one says, "We don't care!"

The fourth one says, "Let's run, run, run!"

The fifth one says, "Are you ready for some fun?"

Then whooooo went the wind and OUT went the lights,

And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight.

Flannels

“Along Came a Puppy” Sung to “Five Little Ducks Went Out To Play”

Down around the corner, just a skip and a hop Were five little acorns with caps on top Along came a puppy who wanted to play And she found a little acorn and she took it away.

How many do we have now? Let’s count.

Adapted from Mel's Desk

Fall is Not Easy

Flannel adaptation of the book by Marty Kelly

See below for full Flannel!

Playlist

“Fall” Music with Michal

“Five Little Acorns” by Ms. Julieanne

“Floating Through the Breeze” by Little Parade

“Let’s Go Outside” by Jessie Farrell

“We’re Going to Be Friends” by Jack Johnson

Scarf Song

“The Leaves are Falling Down”

Sung to “The Farmer in the Dell”

The leaves are falling down

The leaves are falling down

Red, yellow, orange, green

The leaves are falling down

The leaves are falling down

The leaves are falling down

If you have a red scarf

Let it fall to the ground.

If you have a yellow scarf...

If you have an orange scarf...

If you have a green scarf...

Everyone pick up their scarves and let’s do it one last time.

The leaves are falling down

The leaves are falling down

Red, yellow, orange, green

The leaves are falling down

Extension

Pumpkin Spice Playdough with fall-themed loose parts

How the Welcome Fall Storytime Went

What a lovely storytime! For both toddlers and preschoolers, the biggest hit was That Pup! by Lindsay Barrett George. The kiddos couldn't get enough of this cute puppy and his squirrel pal. We followed this book with the flannel rhyme “Along Came a Puppy."

I was super excited to use my newly created Fall is Not Easy flannel. I need more practice with the flannel transitions and text, but it was super fun. The kiddos thought the wacky leaves were hysterical, especially the cheeseburger.

Leaves: An Autumn Pop-Up Book was also well-loved by my story-goers. It’s a perfect book to grab attention, and I used it toward the end of storytime.

Another big hit in my toddler storytime was the addition of a parachute song. First, we sang “The Leaves are Falling Down” with our fall-colored scarves. After, we pulled out the parachute, dumped all the scarves onto the parachute, and played! We listened to “Floating Through the Breeze” by Little Parade. When the song was over, we restored our scarves and parachute to their correct homes.

Full Text for Fall is Not Easy

Winter is easy.

My branches are bare.

Then snow starts to melt

And spring’s in the air.

<Use Buds>

Springtime is easy.

Green leaves start to grow.

Then spring rains are followed

By the summer sun’s glow.

<Use Summer Leaves>

Summer is easy.

Just bask in the sun.

Then breezes blow cooler

And summer is done.

Fall is not easy.

It’s time for a change.

Green leaves turn colors,

But mine all look strange.

< Use wacky leaves>

That isn’t right.

And that’s just all wrong.

<Use wacky leaves>

My colors won’t go

Where I think they belong.

<Use wacky leaves>

My leaves should be fire,

All brilliant and bright.

<Use wacky leaves>

And I try and I try,

But they won’t come out right.

<Use wacky leaves>

And just when my patience

Begins to wear thin,

<Use fall leaves>

My leaves all fall off

And winter blows in!

<Use snowflakes>

Winter is easy.