Mice are Nice Story Time

Invite your story time group over for a Mice of a Nice time-
(be sure to have them wear "play clothes" since this story time we'll be painting.)
I let the kids play- until everyone arrives.

Introduction game:
A nice game to introduce the theme is a "Guess which house the mouse is hiding behind".
Simply - draw and cut out different colored houses out of construction paper or color white paper houses. Then draw and cut out a paper mouse.

Stick the houses to a poster board, magnet board, or cork board. Then let the children take turns hiding the mouse behind a house. Everyone chant, "Little mouse, little mouse are you behind the _____ house?" (the red, yellow, blue, green, etc... )
One child picks the color to look behind. He keeps picking until the mouse is found- then he hides the mouse and a new child is given a turn to find the mouse.
Play this game- until everyone has had a turn finding and hiding the mouse.

(A friend of mine is a reader at our local library- and she introduced me to this simple game. The kids really enjoyed it!)

Story time:
Next read the selected stories
You can sing songs like, Hickory Dickory Dock together and Little Bunny Foo Foo in between stories if they are getting wiggly.

Snacks:
Enjoy a strawberry treat for snacks. These could be real, fresh strawberries or simple strawberry jam on bread, strawberry fruit snacks or fruit roll-ups. Whatever you decide.

Activity: Paint.
Let the children explore mixing colors like the three white mice. Provide paper and red, yellow and blue paint. They can use their "paws" like the mice- or paint brushes!

Activity- game: While the kids are painting... talk about other mice stories or facts.
Share the nursery song- Three blind mice. When children are done painting, clean up and then head outside for a game of chase. (cat and mouse style!) or pretend you are the "farmers wife" and chase your mice!