Storytime Theme: Pennsylvania One Book

Today I’m sharing something that’s close to home for me (and for readers in Pennsylvania!), but I think it’s still accessible to anyone, so I wanted to share it out! The “Pennsylvania One Book initiative is a valuable program that highlights the importance of early literacy development in preschoolers and the significance of reading early and often to children, as well as engaging them in conversation and other activities around books.”

This program has been going on for almost 20 years and it’s a great way to highlight a specific title across libraries, preschools, and childcare centers around the state. And while the process has changed over the years, the goal remains to show just how important early literacy is for preschoolers and how simple engaging with kids and books can be for parents, caregivers, teachers, and librarians.

This year’s title was just recently announced to be Arlo Draws an Octopus by Lori Mortensen and illustrated by Rob Sayegh Jr. This adorable story tells the tale of a young boy who is passionate about drawing octopuses, that is until he realizes that his drawing is all wrong. My immediate thoughts strayed toward both The Dot and Harold and the Purple Crayon when I read this story and I think I’ve got a bunch of really great suggestions below to create a PA One Book storytime lesson plan!

If you’re looking for more Harold inspiration, check out this list of read alikes and this lesson plan all about octopuses if you want to go in that direction as well!

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