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This Month’s Book:
Owl Babies / Las Lechucitas
Deep in the dark woods, in the trunk of a tree, live three baby owls: Sarah, Percy and, Bill. One night they wake up to discover their mommy is gone! The worried little owls try to comfort each other, but still poor little Bill, cries “I want my mommy!” Will their owl mother ever come back? Find out in this month’s book selection, Owl Babies, written by Martin Waddel and illustrated by Patrick Bensen. This sweet story reflects the anxiety some children feel when separated from their loved ones, while the beautiful illustrations present the cuteness and personality of each fluffy owlet.
Activity 1: Before reading the story, ask your child, “What do you see on the cover?” Explain to your child that the baby owls in this story are nocturnal; they like to sleep during the day and play at night! Owls also search for food at night. “What do you think these owlets like to eat?”
Activity 2: Do birds talk? Birds chatter just like people do! Talk to your child about different birds and get silly making their unique bird calls.
For example:
What do Owls say? Hoo-hoo! What about chickens? They say, “Buk, buk!,”
but maybe chickens are actually saying, “Book, book!”
Tucson is full of talkative birds! As you go about your day, talk to your child about the different birds you see in the sky, in the yard, at the park, etc…
Activity: Singing is a fun way to bond with your child!
“If You Want To Be an Owl” – (Tune: If You’re Happy and You Know It)
If you want to be an owl, screech: Hoo-hooo!
If you want to be an owl, screech: Hoo-hooo!
Then you get to sleep all day,
And at night you get to play.
If you want to be an owl, screech: Hoo-hooo!
(Verse 2) If you want to be an owl flap your wings…
(Verse 3) If you want to be an owl shake your feathers…
Activity 1: As you read the story, ask your child to look for Bill, the smallest owl. Invite your child to repeat Bill’s line “I want my mommy!”
Activity 2: Ask your child questions about the story. For example:
- Where do you think Mama Owl went?
- The baby owls think mice are nice, do you think so?
- Are the baby owls happy to see their mommy? Can you show me how the baby owls “flapped” and “danced” and “bounced up and down?”
Activity 3: Enjoy more fun books about cute little owls!
- I’m Not Cute! by Jonathan Allen
- A Snowy Owl Story by Melissa Kim
- Peek-a-WHO? by Nina Laden
Activity 1: Babies and toddlers love playing Peek-a-Boo! This helps your little one learn about object permanence, knowing that even if they can’t see something, it still exists. Have fun playing Peek-a-Boo with your baby/toddler, or Hide & Seek with your preschooler, to help them understand that even when you go away, you will always come back, just like Mother Owl in the story.
Activity 2: Make homemade owl puppets using paper bags, paper plates, paper rolls, etc. We love these examples provided by one of our Storytime families:
Join the Conversation!
Share your experience with the book Owl Babies and be entered into a raffle to win next month’s C2C Book Club title! For example, you could:
- Tell us about your child’s favorite part of the story.
- Send a video of you sharing the book together.
- Send a picture of you and your child with your homemade owl puppets.
Share your photos and videos with us on Twitter and Instagram and be sure to tag Make Way for Books. For example, you could write:
@mwfbaz We drew a picture of Bill, our favorite baby owl! #storytime