St. Patrick's Day Storytime

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

Today's storytime is brought to you by the letter 'L'. So, on the board when the kids walked in was:

Read Aloud Books

Too Many LeprechaunsWritten by Stephen Krensky, illustrated by Dan Andreasen

Finn O'Finnegan has returned home to find his village overrun with leprechauns--and what loud neighbors they are! Nobody can get anything done! So with some cunning plans and little luck, Finn sets out to solve the problem. I needed a book about leprechauns, but it turns out they're all pretty long. This one was barely manageable, but it worked.

GreenWritten and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Green comes in all shades and varieties, whether in the ocean or in the jungle. This is a very short, simple book that I used to balance out the leprechaun book. The kids liked spotting things in the illustrations. And it worked well with my felt/song (see below).

Good Luck BearWritten and illustrated by Greg Foley

Bear found a three-leaf clover, but Mouse tells him that if he finds one with four leaves, he'll be lucky. He searches and searches, despite what other animals tell him. This book was the best of the whole lot, and I think the kids really enjoyed it, too. It made for good conversation on what "lucky" means, and went perfectly with the craft.

Songs & Rhymes

Hello Song

Song: Clap, Clap, Leprechaun Clap

(Tune: Skip to My Lou)

Clap, clap, leprechaun clap.

Clap, clap, leprechaun clap.

Clap, clap, leprechaun clap,

Clap your hands for me.

...dance a jig for me.

...bow like this for me.

...sit for our next story.

Song: If You’re Lucky

(Tune: If You're Happy and You Know It)

If you’re lucky and you know it, clap your hands

If you’re lucky and you know it, clap your hands

If you’re lucky and you know it,

Then you'll surely want to show it.

If you’re lucky and you know it, clap your hands

(the kids got to shout out other actions they wanted to do)

Green Song

(Tune: Bingo)

There is a color that I say

Represents St. Patrick's Day

G-R-E-E-N

G-R-E-E-N

G-R-E-E-N

And Green is that color

(removed a letter with each repeat)

Goodbye Song

Games & Activities

Felt: Five Little Leprechauns

Felt: G-R-E-E-N

This was a simple set-up, just like Bingo. This was the visual representation to help with the song above.

Craft: L is for Lucky

Using a creased toilet paper tube, the kids got to stamp out their own clover, whether it has three leaves, four, or five! Or a million, for that matter. The really enjoyed it. Here's the file I used, printed out two to a page:

Other Book Ideas

The Leprechaun's GoldWritten by Pamela Duncan Edwards, illustrated by Henry Cole

Fiona's LuckWritten by Teresa Bateman, illustrated by Kelly Murphy

That's What Leprechauns DoWritten by Eve Bunting, illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Clover!Written by Lucille Colandro, illustrated by Jared Lee