This storytime was inspired by the great city I live in, Vancouver, BC and wanted to share this love with children and families. These are the songs and books I used for a 30-minute Preschool Storytime. You can hear all of the songs and rhymes by clicking on the Watch Here links. For more ideas about city living with kids check out our Pinterest board here.
Books I Shared:
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems
The Seals on the Bus by Lenny Hort
How Do You Wokka-Wokka? by Elizabeth Bluemle
City Lullaby by Marilyn Singer
Rhymes and Songs:
1. Welcome and Goodbye Song: Hi, Hello and How Are You?
Hi, hello and how are you?
How are you, How are you?
Hi, hello and how are you?
How are you today?
2. Oral Story: Pigeon and Turtle Go to New York City
This folktale explains why some animals appear in certain places, while other animals don’t. We’ve slightly modified it to fit into a city themed storytime. You can find the basic outline of the story which can be told by as many or as few people as you’d like in the About section under our Youtube video.
3. Action Song: A Hippopotamus Got On A City Bus
A hip, a hip, a hippopotamus
Got on, got on, got on a city bus
And all, and all, and all the people said,
“You’re squishing us!” (hug baby)
A sheep, a sheep, a sheep got on a city bus
and all, and all, and all the people said,
“Baaaack up!”
A cow, a cow, a cow got on a bus
And all, and all, and all the people said,
“Mooooove over!”
4. Book and Song: Seals on the Bus
The seals on the bus go arp, arp, arp
arp, arp, arp, arp, arp, arp
The seals on the bus go arp, arp, arp
All around the town.
The rabbits on the bus go up and down…
The snakes on the bus go hiss, hiss, hiss
The monkeys on the bus go eeh, eeh, eeh,
The tigers on the bus go roar, roar, roar
The geese on the bus go honk, honk, honk
The people on the bus go help, help, help!
5. Oral Story and Fingerplay: The Key to the City
This is the key to the city.
The city is on a hill.
And on the hill is a street.
And on that street there is a house.
And in that house there is a room.
And in that room there is a bed.
And on that bed there is a basket.
And in that basket there is a blanket.
And under that blanket there is a baby.
The baby in the basket
The basket on the bed
The bed in the room
The room in the house
The house on the street
The street on the hill
The hill in the city
And this is the key to the city.
6. Action Song: Construction Worker Song
This is the way we pound the nails, pound the nails, pounds the nails
This is the way we pound the nails so early in the morning.
This is the way we saw the wood, saw the wood, saw the wood.
This is the way we saw the wood so early in the morning.
Other Verses: Stack the bricks, Stir the paint, Paint the wall
7. Stretching Rhyme: Cranes Reach High
Cranes reach up
cranes reach down
cranes reach out
and all around.
8. Counting Rhyme: Five Little Houses
One little house all alone it stood
Then another was built
There grows the neighborhood.
Two little houses…
Three little houses…
Four little houses…
Five little houses
All together they stood
On a beautiful street in a happy neighborhood.
9. Song and Tickle: Put Your Shoes on Lucy
Put your shoes on Lucy
Don’t you know you’re in the city
Put your shoes on Lucy
It really is a pity
that Lucy can’t barefoot wherever she goes
Because she loves the feel the wiggle of her toes.
10. Action Song: Elevator Song
Oh the city is great and the city is grand
There’s a whole lot of people
on a little piece of land
And we live way up on the 57th floor
and this is what we do when we go out the door.
We take the elevator up and the elevator down,
take the elevator up, take the elevator down
Take the elevator up and the elevator down
and we turn around.
11. Action Song: Zoom Down the Highway
Zoom down the highway
Zoom down the highway
Zoom down the highway
Fast!
Up goes the drawbridge
Up goes the drawbridge
Up goes the drawbridge
The ship is going past.
Down goes the drawbridge
Down goes the drawbridge
Down goes the drawbridge
The ship has past at last.
Zoom down the highway
Zoom down the highway
Zoom down the highway
Fast!
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