Purple Day Episode 14: A winter circle time and story for preschool
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Listen to the Purple Day episode in the audio player above, or directly from the Purple Day Podcast, where you can download the episode and find the RSS feed.
About this Episode
This podcast episode includes a winter-themed circle time with songs, poems, and fingerplays, followed by a gentle, nature-based story.
Our Purple Day Podcast is the audio from Storytime’s Monday episodes. Storytime in the Schoolhouse® is designed for the screen, and some elements will transfer better to audio-only than others.
Sample our video episodes, and see what it’s like!
In this week's episode of Purple Day, we will sing wintertime songs about animals in the snow and then hear a story about Old Gnome.
Explore all the episodes of Purple Day in our Purple Day Online Library.
Winter Circle Time Highlights
This Purple Day episode includes winter-themed circle time with songs, poems, and fingerplays about snow, animals, and cold weather.
A parent once wrote to me to share a sweet story about her child waking up one day and seeing frost on the window. “She ran into our room excitedly, her eyes wide, and could barely contain herself as she said, ‘Jack Frost came to visit last night!’”
This parent shared that her daughter’s connection with and interest in the natural world had grown tremendously since adding nature-based songs and stories to their life. In this case, the song “Jack Frost” created recognition and excitement about the first frost, which had gone unnoticed in past years.
This is not unusual! It doesn’t take science lessons or nature lectures to pique a young child’s interest in the natural world. Instead, creativity and imagination are the primary means of connection for children in preschool and kindergarten.
Jack Frost by Cecily E. Pike
Look out! Look out!
Jack Frost is about.
He’ll climb a tree
So nimble is he
His sugary powder he’ll shake
To windows he’ll creep
And while you’re asleep
Such magical pictures he’ll make.
The Story: Grandpa Ivy & the Wool
I wrote this story as part of a puppetry course I took with Suzanne Down of Juniper Tree Puppets. This story also serves as an excellent introduction to wet-felting with wool and can be used when you teach young children to wet-felt for the first time.
Simple nature-based stories encourage our children to pay closer attention to the slight shifts in nature and the signs of life around them.
Grandpa Ivy & the Wool, by Becca Lane
Grandpa Ivy is watching sheep graze in the meadow by his house when he notices they are leaving little tufts of wool behind as they move through the meadow. There are little white dots here and there on the grass blades, bushes, and low-hanging branches!
Grandpa Ivy collects the little bits of wool and brings them inside, where he uses soap, hot water, and a lot of hard work to make a little square of felt. He then leaves the felt to dry outside, where a little mouse finds it. The mouse thinks it would make the perfect blanket for the cold days of winter and gratefully takes it home with him.
Love Grandpa Ivy? Enjoy these Episodes Next
These Purple Day episodes also feature a Grandpa Ivy Story:
Explore all the episodes of Purple Day in our Purple Day Online Library.
Free Storytime Seasonal Sampler
Love this approach to rhythm and storytelling? Download our free Storytime Seasonal Sampler—a curated week of videos from each season to help you begin building your family rhythm.
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Are you interested in learning more nature-based songs, stories, and craft projects?
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