Librarian entertains toddlers with themed storytime
By:David Learn
There was a bunch of monkey business going on at Hillsborough Public Library Monday morning.
Children’s Librarian Diane Herbert led a group of about 18 pre-schoolers through a series of songs, stories and a film strip with a strong monkey theme as part of the library’s storytelling program.
"When you clap, clap, clap your hands, the monkey claps his hands too," Ms. Herbert chanted along with a group of parents while their children did indeed try to clap, clap, clap along with the toy monkey she was holding.
"Monkey see, monkey do; monkey does the same as you!" she said in a sing-song voice that had the children clapping and giggling along.
Storytelling is a weekly event in the multi-purpose room of the library, with events at 10 a.m. Tuesdays for children 2-3 years old, and at 11 a.m. for children 4-5. Storytelling usually runs about 20 minutes.
"We try to all do the same thing," Ms. Herbert says of the children’s librarians. "It just makes it easier to do if you all do the same thing."
Monkeys are one theme the library has used. Themes will vary from week to week, but are targeted at the specific age.
"It’s also for the parents to give them ideas," said Ms. Herbert. "Some of the things they heard in their childhood, like that ‘Tom and Pippo.’ That’s a whole series."
The library in fact has been offering storytime for nearly 10 years. Ms. Herbert has been with the library since 1991.
The library will require registration when fall storytelling starts and will limit it to 25 children. During the summer, no registration is required. The program is free year-round.
The next item was a song about five monkeys jumping up and down on their bed. Each time a monkey fell off and hurt his head, their mother would call the doctor who advised, "No more monkeys jumping on the bed."
Still, the song continued until there were no more monkeys left to jump.
"Do you think they learned?" Ms. Herbert asked the children.
"No!" shouted one of the girls.
The song leads into the storybook "Tom and Pippo in the Garden" by Helen Oxenbury, and the story leads into a film strip based on Esphyr Slobodkine’s book for children, "Caps for Sale."
The monkeys in that story steal caps from a salesman while he naps under a tree, leaving him in mounting frustration as he tries to get the caps back.
"You try to mix reading with the finger play and some activities," she said. "You have to keep it moving. We usually do a film strip at the end -they really look forward to ‘the movie.’"
Soon it is time to go, and after singing a goodbye song, the children file past Ms. Herbert with her toy monkey and head into the library with their parents.
Will they read? Let’s hope. But there better not be any monkey business.