Three Storytime Ideas with Where Is The Green Sheep?

After a hundred readings of Where Is The Green Sheep?, I thought of three storytime ideas that incorporate our missing green friend:

1. Counting and Colors

This is simple and fun for infant audiences, or discussion can be added to further engage toddler and pre-school audiences.

Sing: "Baa, Baa Black Sheep" (I alter the words to "Yes, Sir, Yes, M'am, Three bags full" for gender inclusion.)

Read: Where Is the Green Sheep? by Mem Fox and Judy Horacek

Fingerplay: "Ten Little Children" (or as I learned it pre-PC, "Ten Little Indians",) but with sheep: One little, two little, three little sheep [...] Ten little sheep are playing!

Read: One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss

2. Sheep-Shearing

This is a longer lesson-style storytime best for ages* 5 and up.

Read: Where Is The Green Sheep?

Show: a picture of a sheep being sheared, an antique wool weaver, or a brush used on real sheep

Sing with Actions: Pretend to shear a sheep while singing to the tune of "Shake Our Sillies Out".

ex: We're gonna wash our woolly sheep (repeat three times while using both hands to scrub the imaginary sheep) and shear the woolly sheep. (next verse) We're gonna shave it back and forth (repeat three times while dramatically moving arm back and forth as if shearing a sheep) and shear the woolly sheep. Additional verses could say gather up the wool, thank our woolly sheep, comb the wool out fine, etc. 

Read: The Story of Heidi retold by Susanna Davidson, pictures by Alan Marks

Sing: "Baa, Baa Black Sheep"

3. Finding a Lost Object

This can be adjusted to engage any age.

Fingerplay: "Where is Thumbkin?"

Read: Where Is The Green Sheep?

Sing with Actions: "Where Has My Little Dog Gone?"

Read: Peek-a-Moo, text by Marie Torres Cimarusti, pictures by Stephanie Petersen

*Ages may vary; I use age as a blanket marker indicating average overall development at that age.

Are you the black sheep in your family? Or does your family have all kinds of sheep? When holiday time rolls around, family roles tend to come out more dramatically, don't you think? 

One more week to Thanksgiving! Next week, I'll have a Thanksgiving-themed storytime to share.