Owls

Honestly?  If I could, we'd do Halloween all month long.  Buuuut I have a few parents who wouldn't appreciate that.  And so?  We do owls.

Owl Babies by Martin Waddell. This is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE book to do for this theme.  I love screaming/crying/whining Bill's line of "I WANT MY MOMMY!" - which happens often enough, that by the end of the book, the kids are doing it too.  

This is one of the newer books we've added to this theme.  It's a cute book about an owl that stays up during the day and gets to see all sorts of colors he doesn't normally.  This past year was the first year that we really used it, and I don't really remember the response.

Ok.  I might have lied.  This one is at least tied for my favorite for this theme.  I LOVE doing the temper tantrum that Baby Owl does at the end of the book.  The kids all laugh and it's super-cute.

Good-Night, Owl by Pat Hutchins.  This is one that I like to do with older kids, assigning them different noises to make during the story.  This *sometimes* works with younger kids - esp. our in-house story times where the parents will do it.

I actually have a fingerplay for this one!

5 Little Hoot Owls

(which is confusing because it starts with one)

1 little hoot owl looking at you, 

1 flew up, and then there were 2

Hoot, hoot, hoot, what a scaaary sight

Hoot, hoot, hoot on Halloween night*

2 little hoot owls high in a tree, 

1 flew up, and then there were 3

Hoot, hoot, hoot, what a scaaaary sight

Hoot, hoot, hoot on Halloween night

3 little hoot owls on a barn door, 

1 flew up, and then there were 4

Hoot, hoot, hoot, what a scaaary sight

Hoot, hoot, hoot on Halloween night

4 little hoot owls by a beehive, 

1 flew up, and then there were 5

Hoot, hoot, hoot, what a scaaaary sight

Hoot, hoot, hoot, on Halloween night

5 little hoot owls sleeping all day, 

along came a cat, and scared them away!

Hoot, hoot, hoot, what a scaaary sight

Hoot, hoot, hoot on Halloween night.

*I have recently started changing this to Hoot, hoot, hoot on such a dark night because I've had quite a few families who don't celebrate Halloween and I've tried to not alienate them as much as possible.

There is a tune I use for this little fingerplay, but it's not the one traditionally used with it, and I have no idea how to write that out for you, and I am NOT recording myself doing it - at least not yet.  It doesn't have to be sung.