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Activity for Goodnight, Sweet Pig

Goodnight, Sweet Pig

Written by Linda Bailey
Illustrated by Josée Masse
JK – Grade 1

“Pig number one was trying to sleep, plumping her pillows and counting sheep. But big number two liked to read with a light and eat buttered toast all through the night.”

Poor pig number one only wants to get some sleep but sleep is the furthest thing from the minds of pig number two through pig number ten. With drum sets, enormous birthday cakes, wedding dresses, and basketball teams, pigs and their pastimes quickly fill her room. But what is poor pig number one to do?

A wonderfully silly and fun counting book that also makes a great bedtime read. Bailey’s playful rhyming text is enjoyable for the whole family with plenty of action that is sure to incite a few giggles. References to Shakespeare in both the text and in Josée Masse’s bright and detailed acrylic illustrations add another level of interest for the adult readers.

Storytime Suggestions

Before the story

Invite participation from your audience by asking them about their bedtime routine. Is there anything special they like to have or do before they fall to sleep? (warm milk, a story, a favourite toy, etc). What are some of the things they wouldn’t want to do before going to sleep? What things stop them from falling to sleep? (loud noises, bright lights, too dark, etc.)
This story could be part of a pajama party or sleepover theme. This can simply be done by inviting children to bring their favourite slippers to wear during the storytime session. If your situation allows, this can be extended to include wearing your favourite pajamas. Provide fun bedtimes snacks such as cookies and juice but be sure to take food allergies or diet restrictions into account.

During the story...

This story would work well with a felt board for illustration. If you don’t have a felt board available, you could use a simple sheet of Bristol board or other displayable flat service. Depending on the material used, have pig magnets, or felt pig-shapes with Velcro, or paper pig-shapes with tape pre-prepared. As each pig in the story is introduced, attach another pig to the board. This will give children another way to count along and get familiar with numbers. As the pigs leave pig number one’s room, remove the pigs from your board one at a time, allowing children to count from ten back down to one.
Stop periodically, and ask listeners questions about the story. Is eating toast in bed a good idea? Or do you eat toast in bed? Why not? What about watching TV in bed? Drinking iced tea?
What are some of the things your listeners like to do when they are actually in bed?
Draw attention to the illustrations. Can you find pig number one in each one? What is she doing? What emotions is she showing? Why?
Pig number nine is a Bengal Lancer. This is a term that will most likely need some explanation. [A Bengal lancer is a term commonly used for soldiers in elite British cavalry regiments of the Indian army between 1764 to 1947. A lance is a weapon with a long wooden shaft and a pointed steel head used by horsemen in charging]. Simply saying a horseman in the Indian army should suffice.

At the end of the story...

Ask the children if they had a favourite character. If so, who was it? Why were they their favourite?
Do any of the children share similar past-times with some of the pigs? Does anyone play drums, bake, juggle?
Continue to explore the idea of hobbies or past-times by asking the children what their favourite past-times or hobbies are.
In the end, all the pigs pitch in to help pig number one get to bed. Do your listeners have younger brothers or sisters? If so, do they ever help them get ready for bed? How? If not, who helps your listeners get ready for bed? How? These questions can easily lead into a discussion of favourite bedtime stories. Do any of the participants ever help read their bedtime stories?

Related Activities

Bedtime Show and Tell

Ask each child to bring their favourite bedtime story and their favourite bedtime buddy (usually a stuffed animal). Have each child present their book and buddy and share something about them with the rest of the group.
If time permits you may wish to read some of the titles the children bring in.
If this is taking place in a library or classroom setting, invite parents to browse the collected books. Be sure to have paper ready for parents to jot down titles of interest.
Alternatively, create your own display of bedtime stories and invite both parents and children to browse and borrow from this selection.

Little Piggy, Little Piggy* Action Rhyme

Have your children act this rhyme out. In a library or classroom setting you can simply mime the actions. At home, you can complete the actions in earnest – from shutting the bedroom door to turning off the light and saying goodnight.
This rhyme traditional uses “Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear” but can be changed to “Little Piggy” for use with this story.

Little Piggy, Little Piggy, shut the door.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, count to four.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, reach up high,
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, wink one eye.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, put away your shoes.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy that will do.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, touch your nose,
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, touch your toes.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, climb in bed.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, rest your head.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, covers to your chin.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, I'll tuck you in.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, make a wish.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, goodnight kiss.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, turn off the light.
Little Piggy, Little Piggy, say goodnight.

The Pigs go Marching One by One

Set to the traditional lyrics of the ants go marching one by one, this silly version simply replaces the word “ants” with “pigs” and “ground” with “barn”.
It’s a great way to build on the counting theme of the story.
Make sure you have the children join-in and act along. Try marching on the spot, pretending to suck your thumbs, and actually tying up your shoes!
Mime any actions that would otherwise be impossible (such as climbing a tree).

The pigs go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching one by one,
The little one stops to suck his thumb
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching two by two, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching two by two, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching two by two,
The little one stops to tie his shoe
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching three by three, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching three by three, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching three by three,
The little one stops to climb a tree
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching four by four, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching four by four, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching four by four,
The little one stops to shut the door
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching five by five, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching five by five, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching five by five,
The little one stops to take a dive
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching six by six, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching six by six, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching six by six,
The little one stops to pick up sticks
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching seven by seven, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching seven by seven, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching seven by seven,
The little one stops to pray to heaven
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching eight by eight, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching eight by eight, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching eight by eight,
The little one stops to shut the gate
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching nine by nine, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching nine by nine, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching nine by nine,
The little one stops to check the time
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The pigs go marching ten by ten, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching ten by ten, hurrah, hurrah
The pigs go marching ten by ten,
The little one stops to say "THE END"
And they all go marching down to the barn
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

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