Preschool Storytime: A Rainbow of My Own by Don Freeman

Spend preschool storytime with a popular book for children, A Rainbow of My Own, written by Don Freeman (Puffin). It is about a little boy who sees a rainbow and decides to run outdoors to catch it. When this rainbow disappears, the boy imagines his own rainbow. His pretend rainbow disappears as well, however, the little boy is delighted to find that the sunlight through the water in his goldfish bowl makes a rainbow just for him.

Since children like to tell stories, use this story to stimulate the children's thinking skills and to tell the group what it would be like to have a rainbow all their own. Invite children to illustrate their ideas using crayons, markers and paints. As the children work, let them talk about their ideas. Write down exactly as the child tells you, on a separate sheet of paper and attach this to the drawing when the child is finished.

Personal dictation is a very important step in developing a child's reading skills. It can grow out of a shared story like A Rainbow of My Own, or it can happen from the child's play or need to tell a story. But it most often results from real happenings. You may need to encourage more from the child with gentle questions such as, "Oh, what happened next?" or "How did you feel then?"

Here are a few more suggested activities to go along with this story:

- The child and the rainbow in this book are playing leapfrog. Gather your group and play leapfrog together.
- Practice counting by playing "hide and seek" like the child in this book.
- Ask children where the rainbow could hide.
- Search books and the Internet to find out more about peacocks and the colors in their feathers.
- Go to a grocery store produce department and find fruits and vegetables the colors of the rainbow.
- Using paints, mix the primary colors (red, yellow, blue) to make secondary colors (orange, green, purple). Save to paint a rainbow picture.
- Bake rainbow cookies. Use your favorite sugar cookie recipe. Divide the dough into six equal parts. Color each one with a different color using food coloring. Children can roll part into a rope and then form the ropes into a rainbow. Bake and enjoy this yummy snack together.
- Make rainbow Jell-O. Begin with red Jell-O and pour into a large clear bowl. Each day add a new color and let set in the refrigerator. When the bowl is full with rainbow colors, scoop out portions for a colorful snack.
- Sing a rainbow song together to the tune of "Up on the Housetop."

First comes the rain cloud passing by

Dropping raindrops in my eye!

Then comes the sunshine up so high

Now a rainbow in the sky!

(Author Unknown - accessed from Channels to Children)

Practice preschool storytime as often as you can in your early childhood curriculum. There are many good books for children of this age to read and then enhance with activities. Read articles about other classic books by this same author:

From Head to Toe by Eric Carle
Frederick by Leo Lionni
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

Sources:
Personal Experience in the Classroom
Alphabet Adventures by Kathy Fagella [First Teacher Press]
Channels to Children by Carol Beckman, Roberta Simmons, and Nancy Thomas