Giant Pop-Out Shapes: Sensory Storytime Book of the Month

Giant Pop-Out Shapes by Amelia Powers is the perfect storytime book for exploring the themes of shapes, colors, or Valentine’s Day with toddlers, preschoolers, and children of all abilities. Children love the real-life photos, guessing each shape’s name, and the GIANT pop-out shapes. Below, you’ll find ways to make the reading experience more adaptive and extend it with song and sensory play activities. Work one or more of these elements into your next Sensory Storytime for more engagement and fun!

Make It Adaptive & Interactive

Flannel/Magnet Board Shapes

Create flannel or magnet board shapes (circle, square, triangle, oval, star, heart) and place them on a board as they appear in the story to help children follow along. Use the flannel/magnet pieces to review the shapes after the story, too. The Flannel Librarian’s shapes inspired me to add googly eyes to almost everything, including the stapler on my desk.

Shape Manipulatives

My favorite way to make this book even more interactive is to distribute a cardstock or flannel shape to each child to hold during the read-aloud. Encourage them to lift and wave their shape in the air when each one is featured in the book. Some will enjoy having the shape as a fidget, and others will wait expectantly for their shape to be showcased. Ellison Die Cut machines are perfect for making paper or flannel shapes if you don’t want to cut them out by hand.

Shape Movement Songs

Get kiddos moving with this shape version of “Put Your Puppet on Your Heart” by the King Country Library System. I use this song frequently swapping puppets out for all kinds of props. If you distributed paper or flannel shapes to use with the read-aloud, then you’re all set to transition into the song!

Put Your Shape on Your Heart

Put your shape on your heart
On your heart
Put your shape on your heart
On your heart
What a lovely way to start
Put your shape on your heart
On your heart

Put your shape on your head…Now put your shape to bed…
Put your shape on your toes…Now move it to your nose…
Wave your shape at the door…Now tap it on the floor…

If You Have a Square Today Collection Song

This song lends itself beautifully to collecting an endless variety of props. You can change the lyrics to match a prop or color. For example, if you have a blue scarf, red scarf, etc.

If you have a square today, a square today, a square today
If you have a square today, please put it in the bucket
[or “place it on the board” if you’ve given them flannel pieces]
If you have a circle…triangle…heart…

Sensory Play Activities

Ending Sensory Storytime with free play provides children and their caregivers an excellent opportunity to explore and socialize. Here are great play activities to enjoy with Giant Pop-Out Shapes:

Valentine’s Pom Sorting

If you’ve got toilet paper tubes and poms in your craft closet, you’re all set for this sorting activity that supports fine motor development and hand-eye coordination. You can also get fancy by offering tongs and wrapping the tubes in colors to match your poms. More info and tips about this activity can be found on the blog iHeartCraftyThings.

Heart Suncatcher Craft

You’ll need construction paper, scissors, contact paper, and tissue paper for this craft. Precut the construction paper into the outline of your choice (it doesn’t have to be a heart!) and apply the contact paper ahead of time. Then attendees add the tissue paper pieces of their choice. See Kids Activity Zone for more instructions and tips.

Shapes Bean Bag Set

If you have the budget, this Educational Insights Shapes Beanbags set is currently $15.96 (regularly $22.99). Each beanbag features a different shape, with the shape name printed on one side and the color name printed on the other! Children like to hold, toss, and catch them. I’ve set them out during free play following storytimes about colors, too.

More Resources

Teaching Shapes in the Special Education Classroom
Excellent ideas for shape identification, sorting, and play, plus printables.

More Sensory Storytime Books

Giant Pop-Out Shapes pairs beautifully with these other storytime books:

For more information about Sensory Storytimes, including a complete outline, additional books, songs, crafts, and play ideas, visit The Youth Desk’s Sensory Storytime page!