Flannel Friday-Sock Puppets

Okay, I will admit it-I didn't make a new flannelboard for this week as I am heading out on vacation as of 5 p.m. on Thursday.  I have been working on a presentation that I will be doing with three of my colleagues (Alicia, Lisa, and Kara) in October at the Michigan Library Association Annual Conference called "50 Apps in 50 Minutes".  Since I have been living and breathing apps as I work on this, I thought I would show off one of the apps that works well in a story time environment.

Sock Puppets is a free app for iPads and iPhones.  When I use it with a story time group, I design my puppets and usually add in some silly features (mustaches!).  After I create my puppets, I record one of the songs that I will be using that day to make a video.  When I press "play", the puppets will then sing the song.  This works great for me as when I am up front singing, I want a cd, background music, or Sock Puppets playing along to accompany me.

If you do use this app in story time, I would recommend looking at the size of your group, then looking at your screen to make sure they can see the puppets.  If they can't or you have a larger group, you may want an Apple TV so everybody can see.  This is not something that I pull out every week, but it is a fun tool from my arsenal to make story time memorable.

While I haven't done it yet, I also see the potential in this app for a big kids' creation program.  Kids could create their puppets and content, then put on their shows for everybody in attendance.

This week's Flannel Friday round-up is hosted by Kathryn at Fun with Friends at Storytime.  If you work at a public library between Metro Detroit and Washington, D.C., you may see me popping in for a visit over the next week.