Zombies Storytime

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

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

Read Aloud Books

The Z Was Zapped: A Play in Twenty-Six ActsWritten and illustrated by Chris Van Allsberg

Each letter has something happening to it on stage, from the A in an avalanche to the Z getting zapped! While it did not have to do with zombies, it's still one of my favorite alphabet books. The kids had a lot of fun helping me figure out what was happening to each letter, based on the fabulous illustrations.

ZombelinaWritten by Kristyn Crow, illustrated by Molly Idle

Zombelina loves to dance, so her mom decides to sign her up for ballet lessons. But when the day of the performance finally comes, will Zombelina freeze from stage fright or perform to the best of her zombie abilities? The cute illustrations and rhyming text made this a great warm-up book for our topic today--not all zombies are scary! It's a good one.

Peanut Butter & Brains: A Zombie Culinary TaleWritten by Joe McGee, illustrated by Charles Santoso

Reginald is not like the other zombies. He MUCH prefers peanut butter & jelly sandwiches over brains. How can he get the other zombies to understand? Okay, so this new book here is pretty much the whole reason I did a zombie storytime and I'm so glad I did. It was such a hit! And it's still cute, even if it's about zombies eating brains!

Songs & Rhymes

Hello Song

SONG: Horns, Fangs, Knees and Claws

(Tune: Head Shoulders Knees and Toes)

Horns, fangs, knees and claws, knees and claws.

Horns, fangs, knees and claws, knees and claws.

Eyes and ears and tail and claws!

Horns, fangs, knees and claws, knees and claws.

ACTION RHYME: Zombies!

Zombie, zombie, Turn around

Zombie, zombie, Touch the ground

Zombie, zombie, Reach up high

Zombie, zombie, Squint your eyes

Zombie, zombie, Show your teeth

Zombie, zombie, Stomp your feet

Zombie, zombie, Slap your knees

Zombie, zombie, Sit down, please

SONG: If You're a Zombie and You Know It!

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

If you're a zombie and you know it, walk like this (arms up, slow walk)

If you're a zombie and you know it, walk like this

If you're a zombie and you know it and you really want to show it

If you're a zombie and you know it, walk like this

(I let the kids pick their favorite actions!)

Goodbye Song

Games & Activities

Flannel: 10 Zany Monsters

I got this idea from Miss Mary Liberry and simple changed the wordage a bit to include some "Z" vocabulary. But the kids had a lot of fun with the game it involved!

First up, we sang this rhyme to get all my monsters on the board:

SONG: 10 Zany Monsters

(Tune: 10 Little Indians)

One zany, two zany, three zany monsters

Four zany, five zany, six zany monsters

Seven zany, eight zany, nine zany monsters

Ten zany monsters out tonight!

Then I had fun taking away one, two, or three monsters with the board turned around (no peeking from the kids!) so that they could then guess which colors I had taken. It was also a great opportunity for some math problems!

Craft: Zombie Masks

I just let the kids be creative with this one--had some blue paper, yarn, foam shapes, and some crayons out. There were some pretty great masks! I wish I had taken some pictures; mine is pretty boring compared to what I saw from the kids.

Other Book Ideas

Zombie in LoveWritten by Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Scott Campbell

No Zombies AllowedWritten and illustrated by Matt Novak

The MonstoreWritten by Tara Lazar, illustrated by James Burks

Bone SoupWritten and illustrated by Cambria Evans