Storytime: Royalty

This storytime was for a preschool-aged group at my library.

Read Aloud Books

The Knight and the Dragon Written and illustrated by Tomie dePaola

The knight knows he's supposed to fight the dragon, so he spends a lot of time preparing.
The dragon knows he's supposed to fight the knight, so he spends time preparing. So what happens when they actually try to battle? A book of few words (many pages are simply wordless) and a librarian even makes an appearance, it was a fun book to read. I may have had to explain the joke at the end to the kids, however.

King Bidgood's in the Bathtub Written by Audrey Wood, illustrated by Don Wood

"Help! Help! King Bidgood's in the bathtub and he won't get out!" Many of the king's associates try to get him out, but he is sure all business can be accomplished in the tub. With a Caldecott, the illustrations are, of course, rather amazing. I definitely took the time to show the pictures to the kids--there's a lot to see! The simple rhyming scheme and repetitions make it a nice read-aloud as well.

Over at the Castle Written by Boni Ashburn, illustrated by Kelly Murphy

One little dragon is anxiously awaiting something, but his momma keeps telling him to wait. Meanwhile, preparations are being made at the castle, with two guards keeping watch, three little lords playing, and more. It's a counting book in a rhyming scheme and the kids listening were rewarded with what the little dragon was waiting for.

Songs and Rhymes

Hello Song

Song: "Grand Ol’ Duke of York"

Song: "There is Clapping in the Castle" 

(Download the song from Nancy Music here)

There is clapping in the castle, there is clapping all around

There is clapping in the castle, mirth and merriment abound

There is jumping with the jesters, there is jumping all around

There is jumping with the jesters, mirth and merriment abound

There is twirling in the towers, there is twirling all around

There is twirling in the towers, mirth and merriment abound

There is dancing on the drawbridge, there is dancing all around

There is dancing on the drawbridge, mirth and merriment abound

Light the candles, start the music, lords and ladies one and all

With our song and dance and laughter we will fill the castle walls

Action Rhyme: Fierce is the Dragon 

(for this rhyme, we did ASL for each adjective)

Fierce is the dragon

Brave is the knight

Pretty is the princess

Tiny is the sprite

Tall is the giant

Quiet is the queen

Silly is the jester

Happy is the king

(credit here)

Goodbye Song

Games and Activities

Flannel Board: The Five Knights

Inspired by the idea found here, I made five little knights for this flannel board activity. I found just an easy, clipart image of a knight, and made each one a different color (I'm very upset that I don't have a file for you to download--I totally lost it! Boo). I even got a little fancy and used metallic paper for the armor. I put a little Velcro on the back to make it stick. Then, I made a little green dragon out of felt. I hid him behind the last knight.

This is the rhyme we all said together:

Five little knights, fearless and brave,

Went dragon hunting deep in a cave!

They heard a loud ROAR

Shaking the cave’s floor!

So one little knight ran away!

(Four… Three… Two… One…)

I had the kids "roar" as loud as they could with each time we said the rhyme and they loved it. We took off a knight after each rhyme until, at the very end, hiding behind the last knight, we found the dragon the knights were all so scared of! Just a tiny thing! Which the kids thought was pretty funny.

Also, I left this on the board if they wanted to stay afterwards and play with it. They could hide the dragon behind one of the knights and a friend (or me) would try to guess where it is. Of course my knights were a little bent out of shape after said playing. Oh well.

Craft: Crowns!

With stickers, jewels, and sequins to decorate, I had the kids make their very own crowns so that they could be princes and princesses of storytime! Yes, those stickers included our leftovers from last year's Summer Reading Program. As for the actual crown, if you can find pre-cut crowns then great. I ended up getting creative and using bulletin board border as our crowns. Yep.

Other Book Ideas

Many Moons Written by James Thurber, illustrated by Louis Slobodki
The Duchess of Whimsy Written by Randall de Seve, illustrated by Peter de Seve
Princess in Training Written by Tammi Sauer, illustrated by Joe Berger
The Princess and the Pig Written by Jonathan Emmett, illustrated by Poly Bernaten
The Paper Bag Princess Written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Martchenko