Friday, May 18, 2012

Not a Flannel Friday: Big Red Barn

Wow! It's Friday again! It comes up quicker and quicker each week ~ I think that's because Summer is headed our way with all the FUN (and WORK) of Summer Reading Programs. :-} Just thinking about all our Summer programs makes me tired! Lol

Ah, well...

HAPPY FLANNEL FRIDAY!


This month, I am doing my Family Storytime every Thursday evening and I am also doing our weekly daytime programs for our youngest patrons. 


When I am responsible for the weekly programs, I try to pick a topic that can be tweaked easily ~ that way I can change things up for the little ones ~ who tend to be younger for our daytime storytimes and a little older for our night one.

Besides our Mother's Day topic, which we did last week, I have chosen to do a Farm theme. It is such a versatile and fun topic for all ages! Plus I already have tons of flannel sets, magnetic board sets, songs, fingerplays, puppets, etc. ~ and the list of books to choose from is endless and awesome!

For Flannel Friday this week, I want to share one of my oldest ideas for a storytime prop. I made my first one years ago when my own boys were little and we were going to visit my Dad who was a veterinarian who cared for many types of farm animals in rural Oklahoma. It was a perfect way to connect our trip to our chosen library books for that week. My boys loved chosing library books by topic when they were little! They especially loved choosing animal books!


 I then used this storytime prop in my classroom for many years!


 It can be used with songs, fingerplays, or even a story. It is an item that I used each year during my teaching career so the original one weathered much use and many little hands! It is:

THE BIG RED BARN
A Spinning Wheel Prop!

Who's inside our Big Red Barn?

This Big Red Barn is about 1 ft by 1 ft. It is made from very sturdy posterboard and held together by a paper fastener. The yellow circle spins so, that each time you open the barn doors, you will see a different farm animal. 


The little ones LOVE the surprise of not knowing which animal they will see next!


In our Big Red Barn, we have a:
Cow
Pig
Sheep
Horse

As I mentioned earlier, this storytime prop can be used for lots of activities. I often use it with the song, Old McDonald Had a Farm


But I also often use it with this song:

The Animals on the Farm
(Sung to: "The Wheels on the Bus")

The cow on the farm says,
"Moo, moo, moo!
Moo, moo, moo!
Moo, moo, moo!"
The cow on the farm says,
"Moo, moo, moo!"
All day long.
Mooooooooooo!

Additional verses:
Pig ~ "Oink, oink, oink!"
Sheep ~ "Baa, baa, baa!"
Horse ~ "Neigh, neigh, neigh!

If you make your own Big Red Barn Storytime Prop, you can choose different animals for your "wheel". I actually have a second "wheel" with different animals on it that I can switch out very easily. If I have older storytime friends who want to sing about more animals, I have been known to switch the "wheels" right there in front of them. It is that easy!

Next week's craft for storytimes will be a smaller version of the Big Red Barn:


It is smaller and made from construction paper. I will be making a post about how-to make the smaller Big Red Barn. It is very fun to play and learn with! So check back here for the directions and hopefully a template. I will link the post up as soon as I can. :-)

Also, keep an eye out on the blog for another Blog Hop. It will be a Farm ABC'S Blog Hop! Coming your way soon!

This post has made me miss my home state of Oklahoma and all the years I worked with my Dad at his veterinary clinic. I love those memories! <3

I hope ya'll enjoyed our quick trip to the Farm. If you are looking for a delightful Farm book, try one of these:
Barnyard Banter
Written and illustrated by 
Denise Fleming

or 

Big Red Barn
Written by 
Margaret Wise Brown 
and 
Illustrated by
Felicia Bond
(one of my favorite children's book illustrators!


And I hope ya'll will have lots of fun with your child/ren if you get a chance to visit a Farm to see all of the animals in the Big Red Barn!

As always,

HAPPY READING TOGETHER!

This week, our Flannel Friday Round-Up is being hosted by Linda at Notes from the Story Room. Thank you, Linda, for doing the round-up!

Everyone is invited to linkup their posts about farms and farm animals here:
 
Photobucket

43 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thank you, Linda! It is definitely a popular prop with my storytime friends. :o)

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  2. This is very cute! The barn is so cheerful.

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    1. Thank you, Anne! It is really nice to hear from you!

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  3. This is soooo clever. I never thought of doing this. Wow...my head is spinning right now. Somany ideas!! Thanks!

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    1. Thanks, Jane! I would love to hear about your ideas. :o) I have some more "spinning wheel" ideas that I will be sharing on the blog soon. It will be interesting to compare ideas, I think. You are always so creative!

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  4. This is such a cute idea - LOVE it!

    I'm a new follower and think you may like knowonder as we are children based. Check out my blog at;
    http://knowonderblog.blogspot.com

    Sandie

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    1. Hi, Sandie! Thanks so much for stopping by, for leaving a comment, and for becoming a follower! I look forward to getting to know you. :o) If you ever have a suggestion for a post or for a Blog Hop, please feel free to mention it. :o)

      I visited your blog and I especially love your Friday posts. I am looking forward to visiting again and taking some time to explore your posts. I hope you will take a look at my Blog Hops and linkup any of your posts that you want to share on the Blog Hop's topic.

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  5. one of my boys would especially love this! following from the hop - thanks for visiting my blog! http://ablessedandblissfullife.blogspot.com

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    1. Hi, Meredith! So glad you stopped by. I really enjoyed my visit to your blog and plan to stop by again really soon. :o)

      If you are interested in making a Big Red Barn for your son, please stop back by next week. I will be posting the craft version and will have templates to share...

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  6. My 7 yr old would love to see this. I bet you are enjoying your job, children can be fun...and hard work too.
    Following on GFC and NetworkedBlogs from thr SWB hop.
    http://www.ugochi-jolomi.com/

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    1. Hi, Ugochi! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment and also for the follows.

      Yes, I do love my job and I am so thankful to be working with little ones. They can always bring a smile to my face no matter how my day is going. :o)

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  7. Hi thanks for stopping by my blog earlier,new follower by GFC :)

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    1. Thanks for stopping by for a visit, Clairejustine. And I appreciate the follower. I hope you will enjoy future posts!

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  8. Very clever prop! Into the "to be copied" folder :)

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    1. Thank you, Andrea, for your kind comment. I would love to see your version when you make it. Let me know if you have any questions, okay?

      Have a lovely weekend!

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  9. This is so cute! Thanks for sharing! Thank you for stopping by and linking up to the Weekend Inspirational Blog Hop! I was already following on GFC, however; now following on Network Blogs. Have a wonderful Sunday!!!

    http://singlemominspiration.blogspot.com/2012/05/weekend-inspirational-blog-hop.html

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the follows, Jenelle!

      I have really enjoyed your Weekend Inspirational Blog Hop. It is so fun to link up and visit all the other interesting blogs. :o)

      I hope you will visit again soon!
      Enjoy your evening!
      K

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  10. a very fun theme..the kids will have fun while they learn...the best way to learn!!
    I am your newest follower from the hop..pls follow back if you can.

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    1. Hi, Momto8blog!

      I am so happy that you stopped by. I am also following you. :o)

      It will be fun to read your blog posts because I am from a family of 7 children. It will be fun to see if your post brings back memories of being from a large family. LOL I love having so many brothers and sisters!

      I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday!
      K

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  11. Cute! Newest follower. Hope you stop by and follow back.
    http://www.thegirlinthewildwest.com/

    Love,
    The Girl in the Wild West

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    Replies
    1. Hi The Girl in the Wild West!

      Thanks for stopping by, leaving a comment and becoming a follower. I enjoy "meeting" new bloggers and find new blogs to follow. I will definitely swing by your blog for a visit. :o)

      I hope you are enjoying your evening!

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  12. Love the little song :)

    New follow from the blog hop! Hope you get a chance to stop by my blog.

    xo, Jersey Girl

    hairsprayandhighheels.blogspot.com

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    Replies
    1. Hi, Jersey Girl!

      Thanks for stopping by! I did make it over to your blog and am now a follower. :o)

      Enjoy your evening!
      K

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  13. Wow - such a great idea. I LOVE that prop. Thanks so much for sharing.

    I'm glad you linked up at Romance on a Dime. I hope to see you back next Tuesday. I'm pinning this.

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    1. Hi, Betsy!

      I'm so happy you stopped by and that you love the prop. My storytime friends and I are having a blast with it! :o)

      I have you blog hop/linky party in my Weekly Blog Hop list and I am hoping to link up again next week. I love doing the linkups because it is exciting and fun to visit other blogs and to have other bloggers stop by to visit and comment.

      Enjoy your week!
      K

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  14. I'm going to make this for my son! We'll be doing a farm theme for school in the Fall again this year.

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    1. Hi, Miss Courtney!

      I am so excited to hear that you are making one for your son. :o) I hope you both have lots of fun with it!

      I am working on a blog post with instructions on how to make the Storytime Craft size. I will have templates available soon. Just email me if you are interested in having them and I will send them to you as soon as they are ready.

      Have a lovely evening!
      K

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    2. Oh, btw, I would love it if you could share a picture of your version with me. I always enjoy seeing how others make their own versions. Everyone's is so individual. :o)

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  15. Thanks so much for following me! I love when people follow me and I'm excited to be your newest follower. I can't wait to see more of your cute projects! Thanks again. www.iheartpears.blogspot.com

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    1. Hi, Hubba!

      You are so welcome! And thanks for following me back. :o) I hope you will enjoy my upcoming posts. I am certainly looking forward to reading yours. It is so fun to find new blooger friends!

      Take care!
      K

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    2. LM*O! You gotta love autocorrect! Is "blooger" even a word? :o} I meant "blogger" friends.

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  16. So glad to have found your blog! I will be needing these great ideas very soon for my 16 month old (who watches too much Blues Clues!)
    --Stopping by from Inspire Me Monday

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    1. Aaaaw, Chels!

      You just made my heart smile. :o)

      I love hearing that a Mom has found my blog and is looking forward to using some of the ideas with her child. <3

      Thank you for taking the time to comment. If you ever need ideas for a specific topic or just want something new or fun to help your child with a specific developmental skill, I hope you will contact me at storytimeabcs(at)gmail(dot)com

      I would love to hear from you and will do my best to help you in anyway that I can.

      Enjoy your baby! Sixteen months is such an awesome age.

      Take care!
      K

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  17. I really like the Big Red Barn book. Thanks for sharing that fun story prop. I will have to keep this in mind the next time I read it. New Follower!

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  18. Adorable story prop for the little ones. I will pass it along to our MOPS group.

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  19. That's a great idea to ad some extra fun to storytime. Thanks for sharing it with us at the Kids Co-op.

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  20. I featured your barn on my kid's co-op link up favorites. Thanks for posting! http://zisforzel.blogspot.com/2012/06/l-is-for-links-last-weeks-picks.html

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  21. That was so cute and entertaining for the kids..

    Visiting for Color Connection- hope you can stop by:)

    http://appleduffle.com/2012/06/project-of-the-month-kids-organizer.html

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  22. Thanks for joining/linking up to Color Connection last week, the linky is up now for this week. Hope you can join again.

    PS.. Please use the badge of the meme in your post so others could join too, thanks!

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  23. We will be doing a farm unit here soon. Is their a template? or did you freehand this. I love it. My kiddos love anything animals.

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  24. I'm sorry should be more specific. I'm looking for the barn. I am in no way an artist so need all the help I can get, lol.

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