Idea sharing - Session content

Pick a book that you're enthusiastic about, it'll spread to the families participating. Pick books with lots of pictures that children can connect with the words they're hearing and that they can relate to at the age they're at. Most children are usually familiarising themselves with things like sounds and animals they see outside so those features are good options

Picking a book that you enjoy, that is predictable and easily visible when reading to a group.

Books with colourful pictures and big stand out words or actions that can be easily demonstrated or acted out eg. Pop! Clap! Aaaargh! And if the story is funny and has lots of words that rhyme, even better.

My favourite things to look for in a book are books with rhyme and rhythm, books that allow for interaction, and books with clear and engaging illustrations.

Make sure I practise reading the book out loud to myself first to listen to the rhythm/ flow/ rhymes in the story.

Choose books that is age appropriate. Pick books that you like, so the enthusiasm shines through your reading.

I enjoy books that have rhyme and rhythm, are colourful and enjoyable to read. Reading books before reading them to children is always a great idea.

Definitely the importance of reading books you enjoy reading; I'm lucky enough to be a parent to a young child while working as an educator, and I only choose books for storytime that I really enjoy reading myself.

I love a good rhyming story with lots of colour. Be invested in reading the story, children will engage if it's fun or a bit silly. Knowing your audience is so important when choosing a book.

I like to choose books that have only short blocks of text per page and play with the words. I also like to choose a book that connects with one or more of the rhymes we are doing (or vice versa). This helps develop and strengthen ideas.

Picking a book that I would like - assists with confidence, creativity, and helps to facilitate engagement. Pick a book that allows for interaction - little people are naturally age appropriately active and they enjoy exploring their world, therefore finding a book that allows them to actively participate can promote this and their learning.

Taking into account the ages that attend the session as this tends to vary from each session, I usually pick books that I like or that would seem to interest the children. I would consider and strongly lean towards books that are age appropriate (depending the age range that attends each session), books that have vibrant and clear illustrations (as this can be good for interacting with children, asking them what they see within the pictures), and books that usually has some kind of interaction (where the delivery team can use objects, such as puppets, or toy animals or colours to help get/keep the children engaged).

I like to choose books that have something that the group can make a noise or yell something out together e.g. animal sounds (roar), a repeated phrase ("don't let the pigeon stay up late!"), or sounds (beep beep beep).
I also like to have some simple board books on a similar theme in case only young kids turn up to a story time.
I also like to try and tie the songs we sing into the stories, which could be the same animals, or using actions that were in the book etc.

I've only done sessions for babies, never the older kids, so when I've picked out books my big focus has been on having something age appropriate - very bright and bold with lots of contrast, short and simple, more pictures than words, and so on.

I like to read the book first myself to see what it's like and I like picture books with rhyme and repetition. Also books that involve the children e.g. asks a question in the book.

Bright and engaging
Repetitive and with illustrations that mirror some words

I like picking books that have animals or a funny story or rhymes in them to engage kids and families. I also like choosing books that I enjoyed myself as a kid. I definitely think that you need to read a book that you like yourself, as the audience will be able to tell.

Pre-reading the book. Finding one that is appropriate to the age level expected. Gathering items such as props that suit the story.

I love choosing books that are predictable, or have repetitive or rhyming words . This allows for great interaction with the children

I like to choose picture books that has colourful illustrations, simple wordings with rhythms.

Choosing books that encourage participation to keep children engaged

Finding a book that interests me would be helpful, as well as one that uses words that illustrate their meaning (i.e. the word 'tall' written in a tall font, and the word 'small' written very small).

I like to choose books with rhyme and rhythm. I also like to choose books that allow for plenty of interaction and that are predictable so that children can easily join in with the story.

I find that simpler books are easier for the children to engage with and see, particularly when you're reading to a bigger crowd. Longer and more complex ones I think work better one-on-one or in small groups where the children can really study the pictures. I also think using books that rhyme or have a rhythm when reading really good and using books with things you can comment on or ask questions about are good.

I like to choose books that are colourful and funny. Laughter lightens the mood and makes everyone feel less awkward.

I choose Picture books that I like which are also good read-a-loud books. I like to have a variety of books with different themes, rhythmic text, colourful imaginative illustrations which children can enjoy. I love Pictures books which are humourous and full of life.

When choosing a book, I try to choose one of interest, that is not too long, rhymes can be interactive, and a storyline that is predictable. Nice engaging brightly coloured illustrations.

I think choosing books where the children can always interact with you are the best books. Obviously needing to cater to certain ages, and obviously sometimes we need to have an imagination of our own to be able to create opportunities while reading a book to the children for them to interact.

Choosing picture books that have great rhythm and rhyme, as well as engaging pictures will make for good read alouds.

I tend to select very easy picture books or even board books with pop-up. I also have a soft spot for non-fiction books that will encourage kids to be curious about the world around us.

When picking books I look for books that appeal to me but that I can point out rhyming words, or point out different vocab to discuss, or pictures that jump out. Making sure they are also age appropriate, and thinking of songs that can join in.

Choosing a book that I enjoy, that is able to be acted out so that it is interactive with the children, that is appropriate in length for the age of the audience, that has inviting and eye-catching illustrations that can lead to further discussion to things/people/events that they may be experiencing in their own lives, that lends itself to voice variation and fun.

Each time I only ever choose books that appeal to me.
Illustration have to pop out of the page and have a wow factor then I know the children will stay engaged and not be temped to wander.

I have children aged from newborn babies to 5 year-olds attending Story Time sessions. I read books that aren't too long, have repeatition of words and phrases, bright pictures and subjects that children relate to. As the community is rural, anything to do with farm animals and machinery is always popular with the kids. I read the books to make sure they are suitable. I use different voices for the different characters and lots of expressions. I encourage children to interact by pointing to a a character and asking a question about the colour of clothing a person is wearing etc. Sometimes I ask the children what they think will happen next in the story. Often a children will speak about an experience relating to the storyline - IE If the book is about a visit to the beach, the child will talk about what they did at the beach.

Books with repetition where the children can join in books that you can ask the children to show me for example up, down, loud, quiet. The children also enjoy being able to tell you what is going to be on the next page.

I choose books from the story time kit that are age appropriate, clear and engaging, with big pictures that can be seen from the back of the space. I love books with rhyme and rhythm and allows for interaction e.g. showing speech bubbles, or saying words together.

Choosing a book that I actually like I find always helps me to get the kids engaged because I want to share the story more. I like to look out for repetition and rhyming to make the session more participatory.

When I am deciding on a picture book to read to the little kiddies, I love to look for ones with engaging illustrations, at times I like to use pop-up books as they are always so fun for both me and the audience. I also love books that have the characters speaking so that I can incorporate silly voices that make story time much more amusing and humorous. I especially love when stories rhyme! It creates a much more engaging environment and is easier to read along especially if I am struggling with nerves. And finding a book with a relatable meaning for the kids is always a hit.

I prepare additional contents to meet the needs of our regular attendants. For example, boys like animals and cars, trucks and heavy machineries. While girls like fairies, dolls, horses or unicorns. Then there are general interests in large books.

I choose books that my audience will enjoy and ensure that they are funny, have a great story and are interactive.

Age appropriate, seasonal eg summertime at the beach, interest appropriate (puppies, tractors)
wonderful rhymes or great illustrations

I generally will pick books that rhyme, aren't too long and have things that I can point out to the kids to get them interacting with the story.

I would be picking a book that is age appropriate for the children in attendance, that has colourful or engaging graphics and the story line allows for expression or interaction.

I like to use books that are funny and have a great flow.

I like to choose books that are more interactive and get the children involved more. Or I like to do a theme and choose all books that are set under the sea, etc. As well as rhyming words really helps to enunciate the words and talk to them about the fun words they hear.

I like to choose books that I enjoy reading. This may be because of the flow, rhythm, style of writing or the story itself. I try to choose books that have a great story as its base so that it is entertaining as well as 'teaching'.

Books with repetition where the children can join in. Sounds such as animal noises encourage children to join in. Rhyming books are great fun.

Age appropriate, vibrant pictures and big words.

I like to have a theme for my story time sessions. That way we can read the book and then do a small craft activity that ties in with the book. Parents always like to assist their children with activities and I find it another way of messaging.

Picking a book you like, pick a book with rhyme and rhythm

When picking books for a session we try and find books or order books that are in line with our theme, are not to long and will hold the children attention and that is easy to understand and exciting

I like books which are fun and the children can participate in - counting, finding objects, etc. and having props which can involve the children.

I generally pick books that I know and love, ones with repetitive and rhyming words. Ones that will keep the children engaged

I like bright fun and simple rhyme or text. Most of our library sessions have children from 0-5 so we have to try and engage the younger and older. Older kindy kids come in handy to "help" read the book by being page turners or holding the book - some even do the reading for us all.

I choose books that I enjoy reading. I make sure that I have a range of age appropriate stories, with engaging text and illustrations. Rhyming books are fun. I avoid books with heavy issues and morals.

I always chose a book I like, after reading through it or picking a known favourite. I pick one to suit the theme of the session I'm planning.
I like to chose a book with rhyming words, but it's not necessary, as long as the text is simple and easy for the audience to follow and understand.

I haven't really ever chosen a book using the environmental reading option so am now keen to look into this more. I always choose books I like to read and that I think the children will relate to. I love the books that rhyme as they make it a lot of fun for everyone (predictive words that rhyme). I have also been using the stories I recently received with the finger puppets and have been getting the children to use the puppets while I tell the story. They seem to love it. I have also started reading very poplar books (which I used to try to steer away from) the children love to read the story aloud and if you ask them what is going to happen next they are so excited they know, so I pretend I have no idea and they are all over it.

We know what it's like to read an adult book we don't like so don't read one you can't enjoy to children either, it will come through in the session. Predictable, bounce along ones are my favourite.

Choosing stories that I enjoy, know well, that use rhyme and repetition to encourage children to participate.

picking a book you can have fun with

These three elements are a must for me when choosing a book to read at one of my programs.
1. I always pick a book I like
2. The book I choose must allow for both adult and child interaction
3. The words are short but sweet with illustrations play a huge part in telling the story

Pick a book you like- Definitely makes me extra enthusiastic about reading it and I know it well enough that I can read it with my eyes closed and who doesn't love a bit of repetition between sessions.
Pick a book that is predictable/Pick a book that allows for interaction- I feel one flows into the other were the kids can predict the book they start reading it along with me which I love.

I pick books that I like myself. the children pick up on that.
I like books that are predictable that way the children can get more involved.

I always pick a book that I like, that way I enjoy the session which in turn the children enjoy too.
Books that ask for interaction and predictability are great also, to engage the children in the session much more.

My favourite type of picture books are BIG books. The bigger they are, the easier anyone can see. This is good for big groups. Younger children also love big books because of their almost humorous size.
When it comes to what is inside the books I look for books that repeat themselves and have fun actions that everyone can do together.

Over the years, when planning what to read, I tend to pick books that have something to do with what is happening in Cloncurry. Rodeos, weather, sports, dance, etc. But also, we get in great new books that we like to include. I love the rhyming books with fantastic illustrators. I like books that the kids can help me with (what is going on in this book - what is on the next page - how is the child or animal feeling).
Next month, we start selecting books to go along with our pre-planned themes for each week (through August). We normally read four books at each session, but they won't all be related to the theme.

I really like the first one, to only read books you like. It's so hard to read a book when you just don't like it, or understand it.

My favourite tips were:
- Find words that illustrate their meaning
- Pick a book that allows for interaction
- Pick a book with rhyme and rhythm
- Pick a book with clear and engaging illustrations.

I have found these elements useful in the past, but was not entirely conscious that these were the reasons why I had chosen particular books that proved to be engaging. These tips will be great to keep in mind and use in future.

I always pick a story that I like. We have our picture books divided by age for example 0-2, 2-3 and 4-5 years. this makes it easier to choose for a particular story time. I also like the story to have rhythm, I find it easier to read. Humor is great to introduce as well.

Knowing your audience is so important when choosing a book. And I definitely agree that by choosing a book I like, the kids will get more out of a session because of how much more invested I am in reading the story. I like a good rhyming story with bright clear pictures for the little ones.

I love it when the words flow, and the kids can even guess the next word sometimes. It must have great pictures to with mild depth but not overpowering. I like to get the kids involved and if the page is to busy it turns into a scavenger hunt which is not what we wanted to achieve. We want the kids to love the book as well so picking one that is engaging is most of the battle.

The biggest strategy I use when selecting the books is that I pre-read a couple of pages of each one I consider first, to get a general feel for how well they'll work as a story. We keep all of our picture books (or JEs) in the same section, so sometimes these picture books will be too verbose to work well when reading it to kids - even if the subject matter is perfect for the topic of the session, I've found that kids tend to tune out after "too many" words.

When I have books that are suitable to be read aloud, I tend to lean towards the books where I can be a bit more expressive with my voice, so books that rhyme are a perfect fit - or books with lots of different characters of all shapes and sizes. I've found that the kids tend to stay engaged with the different voices.

I love books with less text and more pictures and can be adapted to create an interactive experience. Children love to be involved and it demonstrate to families how they can 'read' in a different way.

I have a preference for books that have an absurdity to the story. The audience children relax more when they can have a laugh with the story. Also, rhyme and rhythm are a great way to draw the children in as they subconsciously participate in predicting the next episode.

I like funny stories, and ones with lots of print in colours and different sizes. I make sure that the book is readable in my preperation, as sometimes it doesn't translate as well reading out loud

I love picking books that are predictable with repetitive and rhyming words . This allows for great interaction with the children

test