Each year, C and I do a special Halloween storytime at our branch that ends in a trick or treat parade through the library. We station staff members at the usual desks and throughout the library with candy, stickers, etc in which the kids will parade around in their costumes and practice trick or treating. It’s a wholesome and fun time that our entire staff gets into.
Here’s the full storytime script below:
Opening Song: We sang our opening song, and then got started!
Opening Question: What are you going to be for Halloween?
Book: Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson
A classic cumulative Halloween-time story! I like this one for storytelling because it has such a great pace, is suspensful without being scary, and is just plain fun! It is a bit longer, so if your crowd skews young or you have an active bunch like ours then doing it first when their attention is at its best might work well. This was C’s story to tell and they did absolutely wonderful in telling it!
Transition: Wow, what a fun book! Did you guess the ending before we got there? I loved getting to travel with the witch and all her friends through the book, but now I think we’re ready for some other Halloween creatures! Let’s try the Halloween March!
Song: The Halloween March w/ Felt
I took inspiration from the book The Ghosts Went Floating by Kim Norman to change the book into a shorter song.
The Halloween March The vampires floated 1 by 1, Boo-rah! Boo-rah! x2 The vampires floated 1 by 1, Ready for some Halloween fun! And he floated up the hill, In the chill, By the light of the moon, moon, moon, moon!
The witches cackled 2 by 2, Boo-rah! Boo-rah! x2 The witches cackled 2 by 2, They jumped on brooms and off they flew! And they all flew up the hill, In the chill, By the light of the moon, moon, moon, moon!
The goblins stumbled 3 by 3, Boo-rah! Boo-rah! x2 The goblins stumbled 3 by 3, Their drool and spit slobbered freely. And they all stumbled up the hill, In the chill, By the light of the moon, moon, moon, moon!
The monsters lumbered 4 by 4, Boo-rah! Boo-rah! x2 The monsters lumbered 4 by 4, Their feet stomped and shook the floor. And they all lumbered up the hill, In the chill, By the light of the moon, Moon, moon, moon!
The ghosts drifted 5 by 5, Boo-rah! Boo-rah! x2 The ghosts drifted 5 by 5, Along a dark and winding drive. And they all drifted up the hill, In the chill, By the light of the moon, Moon, moon, moon!
Transition: Oooof! All that marching with our Halloween friends made me tired! I’m ready for another story and I hope you are too! Let’s all find a comfy spot to sit back down and listen to our next story. This story is a little different. We’re not going to use a book or felt to tell it, but instead, we’ll use this piece of paper and a pair of scissors!
Cut-and-Tell:The Witch’s House One day I’ll record myself doing this, but for now I’ll link to a recording that I took inspiration from. This story is a simple story, but the addition of using paper to tell it adds a little magic with that surprise ending!
Transition: Have you ever heard a story like that before? Did you guess what would happen before I opened the piece of paper? Good job, if you did! I have another fun thing to do with pumpkins! Let’s try the 5 Little Pumpkins rhyme.
Rhyme: 5 Little Pumpkins
5 little pumpkins, sitting on a gate. The 1st one said, “Oh my, it’s getting late!” The 2nd one said, “There are witches in the air.” The 3rd one said, “But we don’t care!” The 4th one said, “I’m ready for some fun!’ The 5th one said, “Let’s run and run and run!”
Then Woooooooo went the wind, And out went the lights, And the 5 little pumpkins rolled out of sight!
Transition: Now, we’re going to do a song that is a ton of fun! It’s about a scarecrow. Do you know what a scarecrow does? It scares crows! Usually it scares them and other birds away from vegetable patches, but the scarecrow in our song does it with a dance. Let’s try it out!
Song: Dingle Dangle Scarecrow
When all the cows were sleeping and the sun had gone to bed. Up jumped the scarecrow And this is what he said –
I’m a Dingle Dangle Scarecrow with a flippy floppy hat. I can shake my hands like this and shake my feet like that.
When all hens were roosting And sleeping in the loft. Up jumped the scarecrow Who whispered oh-so soft – Repeat Chorus in a whisper
When all the pigs were resting With the moon behind a cloud. Up jumped the Scarecrow Who shouted very loud – Repeat Chorus loudly x2
Transition: Good job, everyone! I think you’re all experts at the scarecrow’s dance! C, you know what? We’ve gone through this entire storytime and haven’t come across even ONE skeleton! I think we need to fix that. Let’s try our next book about a skeleton who has the scariest thing of all….the hiccups!
Book:Skeleton Hiccups by MargeryCuyler
Very simple text and repetition is this book’s strong suit! First, we all practiced hiccuping and tapped our knees everytime the book said “hic hic hic” to add a little interactive element to it.
Transition: C, you know, I’ve always heard that being scared would get rid of the hiccups, but I never thought to scare myself by looking in a mirror, have you?! It might not work as well since we’re not skeletons, huh? Well, it’s almost time to go trick or treating, but I think we need to celebrate our costumes with some shaker egg dances, first!
Manipulatives: Shaker Eggs – dance to The Monster Mash
Transition: It’s finally time! We’re going to line up and go trick or treating in the library! But first, let’s practice what we’re going to say here. C, can you show us how you trick or treat? [C and I demostrate walking up to each other, knocking on a door, and then saying “Trick or treat!” We then pretend to give candy and make sure we say “Thank you!”] Now your turn, everyone! Let’s practice. Can you all knock on a pretend door and when C and I answer, you’ll say…what was it again? [let kids answer and then practice]
Trick or Treat: We walk around the library in a line and trick or treat everytime we come across a staff member. And that’s what we did this year! Happy Halloween!
Librarian Ginny 