I always like to include a Giraffe for change of pace: 'the Giraffe on the bus goes.'. Just pop out, make the sound, and back in the bag. The puppetry is easy to manage, since puppets don't even interact with each other. So this sets up a nice pattern with some guessing, some vocabulary, and lots of participation. : The monkeys on the bus go eee! eee! eee! (or whatever your preferred monkey sound is). Oh! This next animal has a long tail.and eats bananas. I wonder what other animals are on the bus?.

First it's Seal, then really any animals you want to bring out.I don't stick to what's in the book.Īfter we've all sung: 'the seals on the bus go Arf Arf Arf,' I kind of stop to build up to the next animal, and provide a clue or two: 'Now we know there are seals on the bus. Which makes it a simple series of Pop-Outs. The picture book is very clever, with Brian Karas' illustrations adding a kind of storyline to the progression of animal sounds.but for puppets, I stick to the progression of animal sounds. (I mean, Weird Al is always funnier when you know the song he's parodying). Then I introduce the book: 'There's a song about wheels on the bus what if there were seals on a bus? So they get the idea that it's a take-off. I usually tell it just after singing (or having Raffi sing) The Wheels on the Bus. And really, those slightly more involved stories end up working well, but I have to admit, the simple stuff is really reliable for this age group. Something like Squeak-A-Lot or What Will Fat Cat Sit On is just a little more fun to tell than Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?. Partly because there aren't enough really great 1-2 year old books that adapt for puppets, but also because I just like a little bit more of a story.

I always do one puppet story in my Toddler Time sessions and sometimes I have a tendency to try to squeeze a 2-3 year old story into this session for 1 and 2 year olds. Puppets: Seal, Baby, plus a handful of Other AnimalsĪudience: Toddler Time (1 and 2 year olds)

The Seals on the Bus by Lenny Hort