Friday 15 March 2013

Flannel Friday - Happy Birthday



Just in case you hadn't heard, Flannel Friday is 2 years old this week!
There’s a HUGE celebration of storytime ideas over on Mel’s blog (part 1 AND part 2). There is also, a very special unveiling of the map of Flannel Friday fans on Amy’s blog.
Now, UK readers: I’ve had around 75000 hits on this blog since I started it and over 9000 of them have been from the UK.  Where are you on the map? If you’ve clicked through to other Flannel Friday-er’s blogs, visited our round-ups, or accessed Flannel Friday from any other route, PLEASE let’s see it – add yourselves to the map (it’s simple to do, and you don’t have to reveal your exact location).
 

To celebrate the anniversary I've prepared a birthday song and flannel set to use when one our rhymetime-ers has a birthday. Our groups are small enough that it doesn’t happen every week.
The rhyme is adapted from one that I came across on Teachers.net posted by Leslie and Amy.







Someone's Birthday

(to tune of Frere Jacques)

Someone's birthday, someone's birthday,
Is today, is today.
Someone specials's birthday,
And it's [Flannel Friday]!
Hip hooray, hip hooray!

Let's prepare, let's prepare,
A birthday cake, a birthday cake.
Let's add a candle,
One for each year.
Hip hooray, hip hooray!

[add candles to cake]

1 candle,
2 candles, yay!





You can see all the other Flannel Friday Roundup submissions for this week on Melissa's blog Mel's Desk. Don't forget to visit the unveiling of our Flannel Friday anniversary map over on Amy's blog Catch the Possibilities too.  



If you want to know more:


Find out about Flannel Friday on the dedicated website. Features include past roundups, host schedule and how to participate.

Scan images and links to Flannel Friday posts on Pinterest.

Search for flannels and storytime ideas at Mel's Desk.

Discuss storytimes and flannel boards on the Flannel Friday Facebook Page.










Friday 8 March 2013

What Flannel Friday means to me!

I stumbled across Flannel Friday just when I needed it! 

My library's community needed storytimes. I was the person in a position to provide it, but my MLIS hadn't had any children's services content and my library service didn't have any money for storytime training. I had an hour's on the job instruction, the opportunity to observe a neighbouring library's storytime session, a small box of storytime props, the library's stock of picture books, and that was it. Flannel Friday provided the rest! 

Two years later we have weekly Rhymetime sessions for babies and toddlers, family storytimes and craft sessions, outreach visits to local pre-school groups and regular visits from school nurseries and the local after school club. Children's issue statistics have risen and participation in Summer reading schemes and early year's library challenges have improved enormously. Best of all, kids love coming to the library! 



This word cloud has been generated from my Flannel Friday posts and I think it says it all about the things that I've got from participation in Flannel Friday and what Flannel Friday means to me.

I've picked out a few of my favourites:

Share ideas for storytimes and Youth Librarianship
ParTicipate in a community of storytimers
Access a superb storytime resOurce
Introduce an additional sensoRy element to storytimes
Learn about sharing early literacY tips with parents
Improve my own storytelling versaTility
Have the opportunity to reflect on and dIscuss storytime practice
Make storytiMes more attractive
Solicit advicE and best practice
Make linkS and grow a network of early year's and youth services providers.

A big thank you to all who participate!




You can see all the other Flannel Friday Roundup submissions for this week on Storytime Reading Chick's blog Rain Makes Applesauce.



If you want to know more:


Find out about Flannel Friday on the dedicated website. Features include past roundups, host schedule and how to participate.

Scan images and links to Flannel Friday posts on Pinterest.

Search for flannels and storytime ideas at Mel's Desk.

Discuss storytimes and flannel boards on the Flannel Friday Facebook Page.


Animated Social Gadget - Blogger And Wordpress Tips