Workshop 2
(Playing With Stories and Choosing Books for your Preschooler)

Set-up: Set up the room for whole group discussion initially, and for participants to gather in small groups later. Obtain several books from each category in the guide, displaying them (grouped by category) on tables for browsing at the end of the session. Gather a second selection of books for parents to check out and read with their children at home. If possible, include copies of books listed at the back of the guide. This is an ideal workshop to hold in a school or public library, where families can readily check out books. Gather materials you will need for activities you plan to implement based on the "Playing with Stories" section of the guide. You may want to obtain several Book & Puppet Kits from your local public library, to suggest this as a way to play with books. Print enough copies of the guide for each participant/family to have one.

Terms & Concepts to Emphasize: These terms are explained and expanded upon in the glossary of the booklet and by links in the on-line versions. Taking time to help participants understand and use these important ideas will help them become more effective as they interact with children:

• Phonemic Awareness
  
  
• Pretend or Scribble Writing
  
  
• Copy/Write Words for Children to Copy
  
  
• Characteristics of Books that Help Children Learn to Read

Program Outline

1. Introduction—15 min. Introduce topic through brief lecture on content from the section, "Playing with Stories". Discuss some of these ways of playing with stories, asking participants to share any related experiences. If your public library has puppet and storybook kits, be certain to point this out to participants. Give a brief demonstration of how an adult could stimulate a child's acting out a story using a puppet.

2. Participate in Playful Activity—20 min. Choose one or two of the activities suggested in the guide to do together. For example, you could:

• make puppets and a bridge for acting out the story, The Three Billy Goats Gruff.
  
  
• gather foods for tasting from a story such as The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle.
  
  
• read a poem or story with lots of playful or rhyming words, and invite participants to enjoy saying the words with you. A good story to use for this is Henny Penny, retold and illustrated by J. Werner Zimmerman. A good poem book to use is Oh, A- Hunting We Will Go, by John Langstaff, illustrated by Nancy W. Parker.

3. Discuss Favorite Books—15-20 min. Ask participants to try to recall favorite books from their childhoods. Connect their memories to the categories listed at the end of the guide. Briefly note the significance and characteristics of various book categories recommended in the guide, pointing out where they are in your display. Show one or two books from each category. Invite participants to browse, read and talk about the books.

4. Summary/Wrap-Up—5-10 min. Urge the participants to try some of the techniques and share some of the suggested books with their children. Allow time for participants to check out books if this is possible. Remind them that you will discuss their results at the next meeting.