Storytime can entertain while helping babies develop language skills. Tell a story by singing and playing musical instruments. Encourage babies to clap and imitate the gestures you make. When using books, choose those with large colorful illustrations. You can also use books made of alternative materials, such as cloth. Do not worry if your baby is more interested in crawling around instead of clapping hands along with you. More than trying to capture the babies' attention, allow them to play with the books.
Toddlers enjoy interacting with their parents and other children, but have short attention spans, so plan storytime activities lasting less than half an hour. You can make hand puppets representing the story's characters using various materials such as felt, old socks and leftover yarn. Decorate a cardboard box and use it as a stage for the puppets when telling the story. Encourage participation by asking questions, singing songs together and making simple requests relevant to the story, such as "close your eyes" or "put your hands up."
When telling stories to preschoolers, you can use a variety of objects as props to bring the story alive. If the story is "Little Red Riding Wood," for instance, you can use a red hood, a wolf soft toy, a photo of a forest and a small basket. After you finished telling the story, children can make the story’s characters with clay. Alternatively, prepare masks of the story’s main characters and wear them as you speak their dialogues. Children can make their own masks after hearing the story.
Select a short story appropriate for the children's age group and interests. After reading the story, divide the children into groups of three to four, according to the number of characters in the story. Offer a box full of old clothes, shoes, scarves, belts, ties, hats, glasses and wigs. Ask each of the small groups to choose appropriate clothing and dramatize the story.