I’ve been in the Early Childhood “biz” for decades. Literally! But today I made a rookie mistake. What was it? I read a book to a group of three and four-year-olds without having read it through myself first. Argh! It looked innocent enough… 26 naughty monkeys and each described in a short rhyme with a letter of the alphabet. What could go wrong?

Well, I didn’t take into consideration the various personalities in the room, the time of day (afternoon rest time), or the fact that I probably would be interrupted multiple times as parents came to pick up their children.

It all started well, darling little ones seated on their rest mats with stuffed animals in their arms and soft blankets over their laps. Soft lullaby music in the background. Dimmed lights. I thought, give them 10 minutes and they will snuggle down and quietly recharge before we head outside to play until their parents arrive.

HA!

As I read about the antics of the “Naughty Little Monkeys”, they started jockeying for position, moving in front of one another to see the pages better. Then scooting the mats too close together, finally overlapping and causing territorial disputes. We were up to the monkey who was jumping on his bed and the one who was chewing gum and blowing bubbles that got all over the quilt and her sibling (all to the delight of the children being read to) when the first parent arrived. I put down the book, and we all rushed out to unlock the gate, say goodbye and lock the gate when he left. Then I herded them in and got them settled and re-started the story.

Mysteriously, the energy level of my small charges started to rebound with each naughty monkey’s rhyme, spiking as first one child, and then two, and then three started to hoot like chimpanzees bouncing on their mats. Shoes came off. Blankets were tossed. Stuffed animals were thrown across the room. Sigh.

Needless to say, we never finished the story. (I hope there were some logical consequences for those naughty monkeys!)

I started to sing. (Having first turned off the lullabies that were pointless at this juncture.) They joined in (we love Hokey Pokey and Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes – especially at high speed!) and I finally got them redirected and acting like children instead of naughty monkeys. We played “I can pick up toys faster than you!” and in moments the room was presentable and my superhero helpers had put the mats, blankets and toys away.

More parents arrived and before I knew it, I found myself locking the gate for the last time of the day.

It was a busy afternoon. And as often happens, I learned, actually I had a refresher course, that children are very susceptible to suggestion. That the wild behavior in the story was just too tempting for this group at this time. And that music soothes the savage beast (or even “naughty monkeys”!)

Pro Tip from Mrs. Ryan

Obviously, never read a book to a group of children without first having read it yourself!

And, as a freebie… whenever you need to redirect and grab a child’s attention, start singing! Whether you have a great voice or not!