This story time is geared towards pre-walkers.

For baby storytime I like to have one main book that we read, a few songs/fingerplays geared towards the book and some lap bounces. I like to keep the lap bounces the same every week so the parent and child can get used to them. You can find some of my favorites here.

The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle

It is nice if you are able to get enough copies for each child/adult but it’s not necessary.

Old MacDonald

For Old MacDonald you can either use the pages of the book for the animals or you can use puppets. When using puppets it’s always fun to go around to each child and interact with them.

Itsy Bitsy Spider

For this song have adults crawl their fingers up the child’s arms and/or legs. It’s best to be as interact with the baby as possible.

This Little Piggy

If the baby is wearing socks or something that can easily be taken off I encourage them to do so. Otherwise adults can do this little piggy with the baby’s fingers instead of their toes.

Free Play

Free play is a great time to put on some music, put out soft toys/balls, board books and let the adults chat. It’s also a good time for the librarian to model how to play and interact with babies. Show adults how you can engage with the babies, ask them questions and wait for their response (with a smile or coo). Free play is also a great time for the adults to interact with each other and for the babies to see friends. Make sure you have a basket or a designated spot for books/toys to go if a child puts them in their mouth. All toys should be sanitized afterwards.