Upcoming
English-Arabic Storytime
Russell J. Ebeid Library & Resource Center
FREE with RSVP
Children ages 2-6 and their parents are invited to attend storytime in the Library at AANM. A storyteller will read picture books in both English and Arabic, teaching a few Arabic words and phrases. Following the story, there will be time for free play, crafts or games in the Library.
For questions, please contact: librarian “at” accesscommunity.org.
Online Storytime
June Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book The Rainbow Fish, written and illustrated by Marcus Pfister, in both English and Arabic.April Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book The Adventures of Pili in New York, written by Kike Calvo, in both English and Arabic.
March Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book The Very Hungry Caterpillar, written and illustrated by Eric Carle, narrated in English and Arabic.February Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book The Amazing Bag by Basma Al Khatib, in both English and Arabic.
January Storytime with Sari Mira – Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book I Have A Dream by Kadir Nelson, in both English and Arabic.
December Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book What Do You Do With An Idea? by Kobi Yamada, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, What Do You Do With An Idea? in English
Story, What Do You Do With An Idea? in Arabic
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
November Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book Where Are You From? by Yamile Saied Mendez, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Where Are You From? in English
Story, Where Are You From? in Arabic
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
August Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book We March by Shane W. Evans, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, We March in English
Story, We March in Arabic
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
July Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the books Say Something by Peter H. Reynolds and Peg + Cat: The Eid Al-Adha Adventure by Jennifer Oxley and Billy Aronson, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Say Something in English
Story, Say Something in Arabic
Story, Peg + Cat: The Eid Al-Adha Adventure in English
Story, Peg + Cat: The Eid Al-Adha Adventure in Arabic
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
June Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for this month’s English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the books Juneteenth for Mazie by Floyd Cooper and Our Rainbow by Little Bee Books, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Juneteenth for Mazie
Story, Our Rainbow
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Ramadan + Eid Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for a Ramadan and Eid English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the books Ramadan Around the World by Ndaa Hassan and Eid Ka’ak by Amjaad Al-Hussain, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Ramadan Around the World
Story, Eid Ka’ak
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Arab American Heritage Month + Earth Day Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for an Arab American Heritage Month + Earth Day-themed English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the books Ten Ways to Hear Snow by Cathy Camper and Think Big, Little One The World is Not a Rectangle: A Portrait of Architect Zaha Hadid by Jeanette Winter, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Saffig Saffig
Story, Ten Ways to Hear Snow
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, The World is Not a Rectangle
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Coloring Activity Sheets:
Women’s History Month Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for a Women’s History Month-themed English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the books She Persisted: 13 American Women Who Changed the World by Chelsea Clinton and Think Big, Little One by Vashti Harrison, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Story, She Persisted: 13 American Women Who Changed the World
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Think Big, Little One
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Black History Month Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for a Black History Month-themed English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the books Dream Big, Little One by Vashti Harrison and Have You Thanked An Inventor Today by Patrice McLaurin, in both English and Arabic.
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Dream Big, Little One
Story, Have You Thanked an Inventor Today
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Matching Activity Sheets:
I Am Brave: A Little Book About Martin Luther King, Jr. with Sari Mira
Join us for a MLK Day English-Arabic Storytime as resident storyteller Sari Mira reads the book I Am Brave: A Little Book About Martin Luther King, Jr. by Brad Meltzer and Chris Eliopoulos, in both English and Arabic!
In this friendly, fun biography young readers can learn about one of America’s icons, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and draw inspiration from his story.
Holiday Storytime with Sari Mira
Join us for a holiday-themed English-Arabic Storytime playlist as resident storyteller Sari Mira shares songs and reads the books Grover’s Hanukkah Party, Llama Llama Holiday Drama and Seven Days of Kwanzaa, in both English and Arabic!
Playlist Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Story, Grover’s Hanukkah Party
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Llama Llama Holiday Drama
Spelling activity, Snow / Thalj
Story, Seven Days of Kwanzaa
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Coloring Activity Sheets:
Five Little Pumpkins with Linda Samarah
Join host Linda Samarah along with her mother for a Halloween storytime, presenting Five Little Pumpkins by Dan Yaccarino narrated in English and Arabic.
With bouncy, rhyming text in verse from the classic nursery rhyme, Five Little Pumpkins follows the pumpkins and their spooky friends as they get into some spirited Halloween fun.
La Catrina: Emotions with Sari Mira
Join host Sari Mira presenting songs and the story La Catrina: Emotions by Patty Rodriguez and Ariana Stein, narrated in Spanish, English and Arabic.
Inspired by one of the most recognized symbols of Dia De los Muertos (Day of the Dead), La Catrina: Emotions introduces little ones to emotional expressions and teaches them to recognize feelings like excitement, sadness and confidence.
The Girl Who Lost Her Imagination with Sari Mira
Join host Sari Mira presenting songs and the story The Girl Who Lost Her Imagination by Reem Makhoul and Stephen Farrell, illustrated by Fouad Mezher, narrated in English and Arabic.
This book follows a girl called Sheherazade who lives in New York City and loses her imagination for a day.
Storytime Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Song, Peace Like A River
Story, The Girl Who Lost Her Imagination
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Something Happened in Our Town with Sari Mira
Join host Sari Mira presenting songs and the story Something Happened in Our Town by Drs. Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins and Ann Hazzard, narrated in English and Arabic.
A note on content: This story explores sensitive topics of racial injustice and police brutality.
Something Happened in Our Town follows two families — one White, one Black — as they discuss a police shooting of a Black man in their community. The story aims to answer children’s questions about such traumatic events, and to help them identify and counter racial injustice in their own lives.
Storytime Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Song, We Shall Overcome with ASL
Story, Something Happened in Our Town
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Something Happened in Our Town resources:
The Proudest Blue with Sari Mira
Join host Sari Mira presenting songs and the story The Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhamma, narrated in English and Arabic.
Powerful and vibrantly illustrated, this story is about the first day of school and two sisters on one’s first day of hijab.
Storytime Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Song, If You’re Happy and You Know It
Story, Hats of Faith by Medeia Cohan
Story, The Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhammad
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
The Girl Who Lost Her Smile with Sari Mira
Join host Sari Mira presenting songs and the story The Girl Who Lost Her Smile by Karim Alrawi, narrated in English and Arabic.
In this folktale about uncovering life’s hidden beauty, Jehan wakes one morning and sees that her smile is lost, and tries everything to get it back.
Storytime Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Song, If You’re Happy and You Know It
Story, The Girl Who Lost Her Smile by Karim Alrawi
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Activity:
The Very Hungry Caterpillar with Cham Smadi
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, narrated in Arabic and English by Cham Smadi.
This book follows the caterpillar’s journey through days, foods and numbers as he transforms from egg to very hungry caterpillar to magnificent butterfly.
Activities:
- Make your own Very Hungry Caterpillar
- For additional bug-related crafts and many other projects, visit our friend “A Crafty Arab”
Sitti’s Secrets with Naomi Shihab Nye
Author Naomi Shihab Nye reads her iconic 1994 children’s book Sitti’s Secrets.
In this beautiful picture book about family and love across distance, Mona goes to visit her grandmother, her Sitti, in a small Palestinian village on the other side of the earth. They learn about each other’s worlds and discover each other’s secrets.
Activities:
Elmer’s Weather with Sari Mira
Join host Sari Mira as he leads us into spring with songs and the story Elmer’s Weather by David McKee in English and Arabic.
Meet Elmer, every child’s favorite patchwork elephant. Whatever the weather, come rain or shine, Elmer still finds a way to have fun.
Storytime Structure:
Song, We Clap and Sing Salam (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)
Song, Arabic Alphabet Song by Little Thinking Minds
Story, Elmer’s Weather by David McKee
Song/Rhyme, The Itsy Bitsy Spider
Song, Goodbye Song: The More We Get Together
Activities: