The past couple of years I’ve done a “rhyming books” storytime in the spring with my preschoolers. By spring, I figure, they’ve been in school long enough that some of the younger kids are starting to grasp the idea of a rhyme and the kindergarten-bound have a pretty good handle on rhymes. Either way, it’s a ton of fun, and there are so many great books to choose from. I posted on this a little over a year ago, and those books are still great choices, but lots of great new stories have come out since then and so it’s time to revisit!
I start with any puppet I haven’t yet used in storytime this year, and he introduces him/herself and says that he “likes to rhyme, all the time!” He will say another couple of rhyming phrases and then settle down to listen to the stories with us.
- Wood, Audrey. Piggie Pie Po. This is a new title that I really like. There are lots of picture clues the kids get (they figured out the “can’t tie his shoes” in the second story) and the rhymes are silly and fun.
- Flannelboard: “Oh me, oh my…” Words can be found on my previous rhyme storytime post.
- Dewdney, Anna. Llama Llama Mad At Mama. Really, any Llama Llama title. I love the way Dewdney draws little Llama – so expressive. The kids can easily tell how he’s feeling!
- Song: “Down By the Bay” by Raffi. I created a set of pages with the rhyming pairs in the story, using clipart images found online. I put the word for each underneath, to increase print awareness. We go over these picture/words once, without singing, so that we’re ready when they come up in the song. I found the chords for the song here, and it was an easy one to learn to play on the ukulele! The result:
- Thomas, Jan. Rhyming Dust Bunnies. I mean, OF COURSE! One of these days I’m going to pack some of my proliferate dust bunnies in a bag so I can show the kids what they are. Then they will not say “NO” when I ask if they have any in their houses!
Other rhyming titles I like:
- Fox, Mem. Let’s Count Goats. Another new title that I like for its interactive-ness. The kids, of course, help count the goats! They’ve also noticed the silly goat who’s upside down on almost every page. Who drives a car upside down? I mean, c’mon!
- Ward, Jennifer. Way Out In the Desert or Over in the Garden or Way Up In the Arctic – sung, of course!
- Ziefert, Harriet. A Bunny Is Funny.
Now it’s your turn. I want to learn!
What do you read, when rhyming books you need?
missmaryliberry.com 
One Response to “We like to Rhyme! All the Time!”