I hope everyone is feeling especially full of the sillies after all the fun of Halloween. Heading into the holiday season and looking forward to all the sharing and meaningfulness of celebrations of all cultures at this time of year, be sure to include the pure joy there is in having simple, silly fun together. We all know the holidays become as stressful as they are wonderful! Some people say that humor is the highest form of intelligence. That could well be! I am sure it is the most successful form of communication and a good way to good health. Laughter truly is the best medicine! So see how many ridiculous things you can squeeze into Such a Silly Day! And if that feels good, try it again and again!!
BOOKLIST:
Check out books from your library. Be sure to ask the librarian to tell you about some funny, silly books. Look through your books at home and find the most ridiculous books you have.
There is no better way to start a silly day than with a silly book or two. Try some of these favorites of mine on for size. If your library does not have them, ask for them through interlibrary loan. They are all worth the wait. (Teachers and librarians: Books noted with * are books I used for my library storytimes, some better for younger groups, some for older groups.) All these books make me laugh!
Benjamin's 365 Birthdays by Judi Barrett
Farm Flu by Teresa Bateman
The Mouse and the Apple* by Stephen Butler
Stuck in the Mud* by Jane Clarke
Mrs. Wishy-Washy's Farm by Joy Cowley
Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! * by Candace Fleming
Cat's Cake* by Richard Fowler
The Magic Hat * by Mem Fox
Monkey and Me* by Emily Gravatt
Big Chickens* by Leslie Helakoski
Pigs to the Rescue!* by John Himmelman
What! Cried Granny* by Kate Lum
Pigs in the Mud in the Middle of the Rud* by Lynn Plourde
One Duck Stuck* by Phyllis Root
What Baby Wants* by Phyllis Root
The Cow Loves Cookies by Karma Wilson
Silly Sally* by Audrey Wood
GET READY TO GET SILLY!! In 1988 I wrote an ACTION RHYME titled Froggy, Frog. It features rhyme and rhythm and ACTION. I now have two more like it and hereby place them under the general title SILLY STACKS! Someday I would like to put these in a book. Publishing them today in my blog establishes copyright. For the time being, it will be up to you to imagine illustrations, maybe draw some yourself, or collect the animals and objects in the rhymes. Create three-dimensional illustrations in your house or at your library or in your classroom, wherever you find yourself when you are using SILLY STACKS! to be especially silly! Be sure everyone knows what a bog is and what a fog is before you begin.
Froggy, Frog
Frog, frog, froggy, frog,
the frog was on the dog.
Dog, dog, doggy, dog,
the dog was on the log.
Log, log, loggy, log,
the log was in the bog.
Bog, bog, boggy, bog,
the bog was in the fog.
Fog, fog, foggy, fog,
Frog, Dog, Log, Bog, Fog!
copyright 1988 Jane Willis Johnston
ACTIONS FOR Froggy, Frog: Sit cross-legged. Put your hands together in a double fist and put them on your head. Rock side to side as you say the first two lines. When you get to dog, change your hands to floppy dog ears. Now flop your hands and rock side to side as you say the dog lines. When you get to log, drop your arms and hands in front of you and lay one arm, hand to elbow, over the other and rock side to side and you say the log lines. When you get to bog, open your arms out and bring them back together to the rhythm of the words. When you get to fog, stretch out your fingers and place your hands in front of your face. When you say the fog lines, move your hands, one up and one down in front of your face. When you get to the last line, put your frog back up on your head and do the motions for each word. Practice the words and the motions until you can do it all really fast and just as silly as possible!
Now that you know what SILLY STACKS are and how they work, you take the next two and create your own ACTIONS to fit the words. When you have been silly over and over again, go around the house and find things to stack up. They don't have to rhyme. They just have to be fun to put together and make a SILLY STACK! And remember, you can be a part of a STACK yourself. Or you can set them up and march around them being silly and saying words to the rhythm.
Batty, Bat
Bat, bat, batty, bat,
the bat sat on the rat.
Rat, rat, ratty, rat,
the rat sat on the hat.
Hat, hat, hatty, hat,
the hat sat on the cat.
Cat, cat, catty, cat,
the cat sat on the mat.
Mat, mat, matty, mat,
Bat, Rat, Hat, Cat, Mat!
copyright 2013 Jane Willis Johnston
Peary, Pear
Pear, pear, peary, pear,
the pear sat on the hare.
Hare, hare, harey, hare,
the hare sat on the bear.
Bear, bear, beary, bear.
the bear sat on the mare.
Mare, mare, marey, mare,
the mare sat on the chair.
Chair, chair, chairy, chair,
Pear, Hare, Bear, Mare, Chair!
copyright 2013 Jane Willis Johnston
Before you go to bed at the end of Such a Silly Day, read one more silly book and laugh yourself to sleep!
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