Playgrounds Storytime
Recently, we started to offer some storytime themes to go along with “Read Beyond the Beaten Path,” the theme of the 2022 iRead summer reading program: https://www.ireadprogram.org/ focusing on a summer camp at the library. Even if you are not using iReads materials, it is a great theme for summer stories. For an art project on playgrounds, make sidewalk chalk drawings: Sidewalk chalk painting – Projects for Preschoolers, or play one of these playground games seen here: Playground Activities for Preschoolers | Study.com.
Austin, Mike. Junkyard. Two robots clean up a junkyard to create a playground.
Dean, James. Construction Destruction. Pete the Cat decides to build a new playground at school.
Fenner, Julie M. Let’s Build. In this interactive book that encourages the audience to clap and tap, animals build a new playground.
Gorbachev, Valeri. Chicken Chickens. Two chickens are afraid but a beaver shows them how to use the slide at the playground.
Hall, Michael. Swing. Four letters of the alphabet learn to play together on the swings.
Harris, Meena. Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea. Sisters work with the community to build a playground; based on the life of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Hout, Mies van. Playground. Two children trek to the playground, through forests, rivers, and caves.
Jackson, Richard. Puddle. A rain puddle on the playground is unhappy until the sun comes out in the story with repetition.
Kuefler, Joseph. Rulers of the Playground. Children learn to share the playground.
Marantz, Keith. Clyde Likes to Slide. A hippo wants to try the slide at the park, but it is much bigger than the small slide in his backyard.
McMullan, Kate. This Is the Tree We Planted. In this cumulative tale, a class plants a tree in the playground.
Taylor, Sean. How to Be Cooler Than Cool. After finding sunglasses on the playground, a cat thinks she is so cool she can go down the slide backward.
Wolitzer, Meg. Millions of Maxes. Max thinks he is special until he meets other kids named Max at the playground.
Penny Peck, San Jose State University iSchool