Program at a Glance
PICTUREBOOK Piggie Pigby Margie Palatini
MUSICALACTIVITY “Old MacDonald Had a Pig” adapted by Rob Reid
PICTUREBOOK Oliviaby Ian Falconer
MUSICALACTIVITY “P-O-R-K-Y” adapted by Rob Reid PICTUREBOOK If You Give a Pig a Pancake
by Laura Joffe Numeroff
POEM “There Was a Small Pig Who Wept Tears,” in The Book of Pigericks by Arnold Lobel
FINGERPLAY “This Little Piggy”
PICTUREBOOK Five Little Piggiesby David Martin POEM “Little Pig’s Treat,” in Falling Up
by Shel Silverstein.
MUSICALACTIVITY “I’m a Little Piggy”
PICTUREBOOK Z-Z-Zoink!by Bernard Most MUSICALACTIVITIES “The Higgy-Piggy”
“Hippo Hop Hokey Pokey”
by Kati Tvruska
Preparation and Presentation
Cut out several pink circles. Mark them with two black ovals or “nostrils.”
Put a loop of transparent tape on the back of each circle. Wear one on your nose and ask the children as they enter if they want a piggie nose. Don’t force them to wear one. Allow them to get a piggie nose later on during the program.
PICTURE BOOK
Palatini, Margie. Piggie Pie.Illustrated by Howard Fine. Clarion, 1995.
Gritch the witch needs eight plump piggies for piggie pie. She heads over the river and through the woods to Old MacDonald’s Farm (she sees his ad in the yellow pages instructing her to call EI-EI-O). The pigs disguise themselves as ducks, cows, chickens, and Old MacDonald himself. This is a long story, but lively enough to keep the audience’s attention. The illustrations have sly references that will appeal to adults (the witch fly- ing overhead spelling out “Surrender Piggies” in the style of The Wizard of Oz movie). You may want to keep the Wicked Witch of the West in mind as you read Gritch’s lines aloud. The story has countless references to the song “Old MacDonald Had a Farm.” Since the pigs are disguised as other animals, they “quack-quack here” and “moo-moo there” and
“cluck-cluck everywhere.”
MUSICAL ACTIVITY
“Old MacDonald Had a Pig” adapted by Rob Reid.
Tell the children that some people think pigs go “oink-oink” while oth- ers think pigs grunt, squeal, or snort. Sing “Old MacDonald Had a Farm”
using various pig sounds.
1. Old MacDonald had a farm. EI-EI-O.
And on his farm he had a pig. EI-EI-O.
With an oink-oink here and an oink-oink there.
Here an oink. There an oink. Everywhere an oink-oink.
Old MacDonald had a farm. EI-EI-O.
2. . . . with a grunt-grunt here and a grunt-grunt there . . . 3. . . . with a squeal-squeal here and a squeal-squeal there . . . 4. . . . with a snort-snort here and a snort-snort there . . . PICTURE BOOK
Falconer, Ian. Olivia.Atheneum, 2000.
Olivia the pig is very good at wearing people out. She tries on several outfits, builds sand skyscrapers on the beach, dreams of becoming a bal- lerina after looking at a Degas painting, and paints an abstract work of art on her bedroom wall after viewing a Jackson Pollock. Read the book in your normal voice and give the children time to pore over the unique drawings. They’ll giggle at Olivia’s sunburned body. The best line in the book occurs when Olivia’s mother tells her that despite wearing her out, she loves her anyway. Olivia kisses her and says, “I love you anyway too.”
Sequel: Olivia Saves the Circus(Atheneum, 2001).
MUSICAL ACTIVITY
“P-O-R-K-Y” adapted by Rob Reid.
I often adapt the traditional song “B-I-N-G-O” into new versions that fit the theme for that day: “D-A-I-S-Y” for a cow theme, “K-I-T-T-Y” for cats, “S-Q- E-A-K” for mice, and so on. Make an “oink” noise instead of a clap when you drop each letter.
There was a farmer had a pig and Porky was his name-O.
P-O-R-K-Y, P-O-R-K-Y, P-O-R-K-Y And Porky was his name-O.
There was a farmer had a pig and Porky was his name-O.
(Oink)-O-R-K-Y, (Oink)-O-R-K-Y, (Oink)-O-R-K-Y And Porky was his name-O.
There was a farmer had a pig and Porky was his name-O.
(Oink)-(Oink)-R-K-Y, (Oink)-(Oink)-R-K-Y, (Oink)-(Oink)-R-K-Y And Porky was his name-O.
And so on until the final verse:
There was a farmer had a pig and Porky was his name-O.
Oink-Oink-Oink-Oink-Oink, Oink-Oink-Oink-Oink-Oink, Oink-Oink-Oink-Oink-Oink, And Porky was his name-O.
PICTURE BOOK
Numeroff, Laura Joffe. If You Give a Pig a Pancake.Illustrated by Felicia Bond. HarperCollins, 1998.
This nonsensical book follows the same pattern of Numeroff’s and Bond’s successful If You Give a Mouse a Cookie series. The kids will giggle at the antics of the pig and the little girl who star in the book.
POEM
Lobel, Arnold. “There Was a Small Pig Who Wept Tears.” InThe Book of Pigericks.HarperCollins, 1983.
Mention that pigs like to lie in the mud. This poem details the anguish of a little pig who takes a bath hoping “This won’t happen again for ten years!” Other favorite individual “pigericks” include “There Was a Sad Pig with a Tail,” “There Was a Warm Pig from Key West,” and “There Was a Small Pig from Woonsocket.”
FINGERPLAY
“This Little Piggy.”
Use the traditional nursery rhyme to give the kids a chance to move a little and to introduce the next picture book. Tell them to point to their toes
“beneath your shoes,” but if some insist on taking off their shoes and socks, go with the flow.
This little piggy went to the market.
(Wiggle big toe)
This little piggy stayed home.
(Wiggle second toe) This little piggy had roast beef.
(Wiggle third toe) This little piggy had none.
(Wiggle fourth toe)
And this little piggy said “Wee-wee-wee” all the way home.
(Wiggle little toe)
PICTURE BOOK
Martin, David. Five Little Piggies.Illustrated by Susan Meddaugh.
Candlewick, 1998.
Martin creates mini-stories for each of the piggies mentioned in the nursery rhyme. The highlight comes at the end of the book, when the lit- tlest piggie cries “Wee-wee-wee” all the way home because she has to go
“wee-wee.”
POEM
Silverstein, Shel. “Little Pig’s Treat.” In Falling Up.HarperCollins, 1996.
Little pig wants pop pig to give him a “people-back ride.”
MUSICAL ACTIVITY
“I’m a Little Piggy” (to the tune of “I’m a Little Teapot”).
I found this version on several early childhood web sites.
I’m a little piggy (Point to self) Short and stout.
Here are my ears (Point to ears) Here is my snout.
(Point to nose) When I see the
Farmer in the dell (Hand over eyes) I oink, oink, oink and wiggle my tail.
(Shake hips)
PICTURE BOOK
Most, Bernard. Z-Z-Zoink!Harcourt, 1999.
A pig snores loud enough to wake all the barnyard animals plus the farmer and his family. There are a lot of opportunities for the audience to make sound effects as the cows “moo” the pig away and the sheep “baa”
her away. The ducks, chickens, goats, and frogs all join the noisy fun.
Have the audience make “shoo” hand gestures during the appropriate times. The pig finally finds comfort in the company of owls. Good luck getting the children to stop “hooting.”
MUSICAL ACTIVITIES
“The Higgy-Piggy” (to the tune of “The Hokey Pokey”).
This number can also be found on several early childhood web sites.
You put your right hoof in, You put your right hoof out,
You put your right hoof in and you shake it all about.
You do the Higgy-Piggy and you turn yourself around.
That’s what it’s all about. Oink!
(Repeat with verses for left hoof, hamhock, snout, tail)
“Hippo Hop Hokey Pokey” by Kati Tvruska.
For an extra treat, you can do a hippopotamus version of “The Hokey Pokey.” Tell the children that hippos remind you of very large pigs.
You put your clean foot in, You take your dirty foot out.
You put your clean foot in, And you squash it all about.
You do the Hippo Hop and you hop down in the mud.
That’s what a hippo does!
(Repeat with verses for snout, legs, tail)
ADDITIONAL HUMOROUS PIG PICTURE BOOKS
Alarcon, Karen Beaumont. Louella Mae, She’s Run Away!Illustrated by Rosanne Litzinger. Holt, 1997.
Everyone is searching for Louella Mae. The layout is designed for the audience to shout out the last rhyme of each stanza. In the end, Louella Mae turns out to be a pig with new piglets asleep in a tub.
Enderle, Judith Ross, and Stephanie Gordon Tessler. A Pile of Pigs.
Illustrated by Charles Jordan. Bell Books, 1993.
The pigs make a Super Duper Pig Pyramid to see what the cows are doing on the other side of the barn. Make several simple pig-shaped felt pieces, even if they are nothing more than circles with pig faces on them. Pile them in a pyramid shape as the story progresses. Have the audience sway as the pig pyramid sways back and forth. And what were the cows doing on the other side of the barn? They were building a pyramid to see what the pigs were doing.
Meddaugh, Susan. Hog-Eye.Houghton Mifflin, 1995.
A little pig tells some mighty tall tales about walking in the forest alone and encountering a wolf who has plans to make pig soup. The pig escapes by outwitting the illiterate wolf. She tells him the recipe needs
“green three leaf,” which turns out to be poison ivy. She pretends to cast a spell on him, making him itchy everywhere—“On his nose and in his hair/Even in his underwear.” The pig’s family makes funny comments throughout the little pig’s story.