Five Apples in a Basket

I'm not sure what the original source for this is, but it seems to appear all over the place on the Internet, and none of the sites I looked at credited it to anyone.  If I'm wrong and you know where credit goes, I'll gladly update. 

This is one of the first flannels I made, before I was even a librarian.  I did a few weeks of storytime subbing and I made this for a fall theme.  It is always appreciated.  I use Sharpies to add detail to my flannel stories, but I dab or tap the ink on rather than writing normally.  Writing normally pulls of up the fibers in the felt. 

Empty Basket

The first apple in the basket was a bright and shiny red.

The second apple in the basket said, "My, what a cozy bed."

The third apple in the basket said, "Now we two are a pair."

The fourth apple in the basket said, "Please move over there."

The fifth apple in the basket said, "Oh dear, oh me oh my. This basket looks like pastry--I think we're in a pie!"

Why I like it:

• Talk about feelings
• Sorting
• Talk about colors
• Opens up a conversation about real apples

posted from Bloggeroid

Blanket Guessing Game

Hi! It's me. I haven't abandoned Flannel Friday, or my blog for that matter. This summer is, well, I'll save that for another post.

Earlier this year I did a blanket-themed storytime and whipped up these little blankets using the tried and true paper-weaving technique, but with felt.  I had to glue the ends of the pieces so it didn't come apart, but all in all it didn't take more than 15 minutes to make these.  I have a bunch of little felt animals that I was given--and there are ten of each kind so they're really useful!

They are great for all manner of guessing games.  For the blanket themed storytime, first we 'discovered' who was hiding behind each blanket and named the colors of the blankets, the animals, and the colors of the animals.  Then I put the blankets back on with little clues sticking out, and asked different types of questions:




"What color blanket is the black and white animal hiding under?"
"What color is the animal hiding under the purple blanket?"
"What is the black and white animal called?"




I plan on making some more of the blankets in different colors to expand the game a bit more!

posted from Bloggeroid

Five Little Monkeys Swingin' in the Tree

One of my most used flannels this week, a super simple set for "5 Little Monkeys Swinging in the Tree."

Simple

Cheeky Monkeys!

"Five little monkeys swinging' in the tree" (hold up five fingers, swing hand)
"Teasin' Mr. Alligator, 'Can't catch me.'" (taunting/finger pointing) (some people repeat 'Can't catch me 2x)
"When along comes Mr. Alligator, quiet as can be..." (hushed, palms together 'swimming' back and forth like a 'gator').
"And he SNAPPED that monkey right OUT of the tree!" (clap)
Then I pull one monkey off and make a spitting out noise, "Blech! that monkey tastes like________"

Repeat until monkeys are gone.

"No little monkeys swinging in the tree, old Mr. Alligator is hungry as can be!"

I totally love Mr. Alligator!

So these are very simple basic cutouts, but what makes them lively is the 3D eyes.  The eyes are pom-poms, and the mouths and pupils are drawn on with sharpies. The monkeys snouts are a little larger than a nickel, if you're curious about scale.

Pretty easy, and it makes the song a little more appealing.