When the leaves on the trees begin to turn beautiful colors of red, orange and yellow, I can’t help but be happy! I love to find songs that also tie into the season since it is a relevant concept for my students to understand.
For years, I have been incorporating this fun, circle time song in October, so I thought I’d share it with you!
Be sure to watch the video above to hear more about how best to teach “Pass the Pumpkin”.
Then enter your name and email below to download the lyrics sheet, activity guide, notation audio recording!
There was a preschool teacher name Cindy who started every circle time with a story. Sometimes she’d make up a story and use one of the students in her class as the main character, while other times she’d retell a classic tale such as Cinderella or Jack and the Beanstalk. Whatever her story for the day was about, the children were captivated and couldn’t get enough. It became something they looked forward to each and every day.
By the end of the school year, Cindy’s kids had not only heard a vast array of stories, they could retell a few themselves! What if you could be like Cindy too?!?
Did you know that storytelling dates back thousand and thousands of years? Before there was the written word, there were storytellers who passed down stories by word of mouth from generation to generation.
This day and age we have access to millions of books, but the captivating components of a good story being told seems to never get old.
I’ve found when working with kids, if I simply say, “once upon a time….,” the room goes silent and they can’t wait to hear my story.
That’s why I tell a story at least once a month in my music classes.
Benefits of Storytelling
The benefits of storytelling for children are endless. The focus and listening skills required by the listener to ensure they don’t miss a key part of the story are strengthened when they concentrate on the storyteller’s voice.
Language skills are built with the introduction of new vocabulary and phrases. If I use a word or phrase that needs an explanation, I’ll ask the children if they know what it means. This offers an opportunity for those who are familiar with the word or phrase to share with the group. It also shows them that it is ok to ask me if they aren’t sure what a word means.
Because I’m not reading from a picture book that provides imagery, my listeners are encouraged to use their own imagination to picture the story and what the characters look like.
Unlike reading a book, storytelling gives me the freedom to change anything I want. I will often ask the children to help me name the characters or decide what should happen next in the story. It’s like “choose your own adventure” and who doesn’t like that?!? When I do this, I’m encouraging creativity and audience participation. This of course increases overall engagement!
Note: I usually have at least some kind of prop when I am telling the story to keep them visually engaged such as a flannel board and felt pieces or puppets. BTW, If you don’t have a flannel board to do your stories with yet, be sure to check out my blog on how to make a flannel board box. It is actually my favorite way to tell a story and the kids love it too!
Last but not least, many classic folktales also contain a moral or lesson. Without realizing it, kids are learning valuable life lessons in a fun and engaging way.
How to Prepare to Tell a Story
Don’t worry if you aren’t comfortable with the idea of being a storyteller. It’s a skill and can easily be learned with a little bit of practice.
The best way to go about preparing to share a story is to find one you love. You might start with a story you already know like “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”. Or check out one of my favorite books by storytelling extraordinaire, Margaret Reed McDonald, Three Minute Tales. She has written a ton of books as a collector of stories from around the world. You also might enjoy her book The Storyteller’s Start-Up Book: Finding, Learning, Performing and Using Folktales. It offers tips and tricks to get started telling stories kids (and adults) will love to hear!
The key is to remember the basic plot and then fill in the rest with your own words. Practice telling the story while you drive or even while taking a shower.
Once you’ve become comfortable with it, just do it!
Would you like to hear one of my favorite stories? Watch the video below. and be sure to have the kids join in on the song that repeats throughout the story! Then try retelling it in your own words. What’s fun about storytelling is you never tell the story the same way twice!
It’s almost summer road trip season and that means long hours in the car with a lot of “I’m bored,” and “are we there yet?” comments coming from the backseat.
Why not use the time to teach your kiddos some of those traditional tunes that are way too quickly being forgotten?
You know, the camp songs you grew up with? The ones your parents or grandparents sang? Those are the ones!
The sad thing is, they aren’t being passed on to this generation. Instead, they are busy on their “devices” and missing out on all of the benefits that come from singing together.
It’s time to change that starting this summer. Are you in? Great!
Now check out my top 3 songs every kid should know for a road trip and let’s get singing! If you are looking for more, simply download “The Ultimate Road Trip Song Book” and you’ll have a ton of songs for your next adventure.
Top 3 Songs for Summer Road Trips
She’ll Be Comin’ Round the Mountain
This classic song has it all! From repetition to sequencing, everyone can join in and even write some new lyrics too.
Lyrics:
She’ll be comin’ round the mountain when she comes (toot, toot).
She’ll be comin’ round the mountain when she comes (toot, toot).
She’ll be comin’ round the mountain.
She’ll be comin’ round the mountain.
She’ll be comin’ round the mountain when she comes (toot, toot).
Verses:
• She’ll be drivin’ six white horses when she comes (Whoa back!)
• Oh, we’ll all go out to meet her when she comes (Hi babe!)
• She’ll be wearing red pajamas when she comes (Scratch, scratch)
• She will have to sleep with Grandma when she comes (She snores!)
>>Get The FREE Ultimate “Road Trip” Song Book <<
2. Baby Bumblebee
Get ready to practice your “b” sound as you sing all about bees! The rhyming is everywhere which is great for preparing little ones to read. You got it, rhymers are readers!
Lyrics:
I’m bringing home a baby bumblebee,
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me,
(Cup hands together as if holding bee)
I’m bringing home a baby bumblebee,
Ouch! It stung me!
(Shake hands as if just stung)
I’m squishing up the baby bumblebee,
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me,
(‘Squish’ bee between palms of hands)
I’m squishing up a baby bumblebee,
Ooh! It’s yucky!
(Open up hands to look at ‘mess’)
I’m wiping off the baby bumblebee,
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me,
(Wipe hands off on shirt)
I’m wiping off the baby bumblebee,
Now my mommy won’t be mad at me!
(Hold hands up to show they are clean)
3. See Ya Later Alligator
Many road trips involve visiting family or friends. When it’s time to bid adieu, why not have a few ways to say it?
When I was about 3 years old, I had a Sunday School teacher, Fern Peterson, who always told us flannel board stories. I loved her and all her stories.
Turns out, flannel board stories still work! I know this because, well, I tell a lot of them and kids are super, duper engaged.
For many years, I had a standard flannel board that I would use and it worked just fine. But then, one of my teachers made me a FLANNEL BOARD BOX!
I haven’t looked back. This thing is so snazzy! It allows me to be mobile at circle time and not stuck to one spot like by the book shelf where the flannel board has been glued.
With my mobile flannel board, if (ok, when) my friends start fooling around on the other side of the circle during the flannel board activity, no worries, I just stand up and move my body and the STORY.NEVER.STOPS!
I also love how it acts as a spot to store my flannels. I keep mine in separate ziplocks inside the box for activities I am currently doing at circle time. That means I always have my materials ready and waiting. When it’s time to start a flannel board activity, I simply reach for the box, open it up, and pull out the activity I am looking for.
This ways it keeps little hands out of my materials and older kiddos don’t get a sneak peek of what’s in store for them.
I’d love for you to have your very own flannel board box, so let’s get on to the directions:
Measure your piece of flannel to fit the front panel of the box. Mine was 12 x 12 and I am guessing that is pretty standard.
Glue the backside of the flannel. Make sure to get both the middle part of the flannel and the edges glued down well. You don’t want this stuff coming off during a super fun flannel story!
Welcome to December! This month in our music classes, it is all about the Nutcracker. Every year we choose this theme because it is a classic tale with AMAZING music! Plus kids LOVE it.
I can’t wait to share one of my favorite activities from our month of the Nutcracker below. If you end up teaching it, let me know how it goes!
March of the Toy Soldiers Movement Activity
The first movement song we always teach when sharing the Nutcracker is “March of the Toy Soldiers”. Its repetitive form makes it easy to create a purposeful movement experience and often times there are children who immediately recognize the tune!
If you don’t plan to read the Nutcracker story to your class, The March of the Toy Soldiers Movement Activity is still a festive one to add to the list.
Prep: Follow the directions on page 4 of the listening map
How to teach:
1. Have children gather on the carpet. Show the listening map and explain that there are several characters in the song they will hear below. Turn on the music and have them listen to each character’s special sound.
The Nutcracker who “marches”
The Mouse King who “tiptoes”
The Man with the eyepatch who makes everyone “freeze” when his music is played
The Sugarplum Fairy who has everyone “twirl” when her music is played.
2. Next have children stand up. Turn on the music and hold up the card with the character whose music is playing. You can have children choose to be one of the four characters, but I’ve found my kids want to play all the parts!
Have fun with that and enjoy each and every magical moment in this season of hope, faith and love!
It is never too early to begin fostering a love for one’s country. That’s why it is important for even our youngest citizen to be given opportunities to learn more about the place they call home. Patriotic songs and stories provide children a meaningful, fun and engaging door into their country’s history.
Let’s check out a few for America.
Patriotic Songs and Books for Kids
Song: Grand Old Flag
The American flag is a symbol that is used in many different contexts in our environment. That means kids have seen it before which will help get them get excited about the discussion. Bring in some math by counting the stripes and if time allows, count the stars too! But watch your audience so they don’t loose interest – 50 is a lot to count.
“Grand Old Flag” is traditional song that would pair well with a lesson focused around the flag. This patriotic song is catchy and has a nice, lively beat. Have children keep a beat on their legs or even create a beat pattern such as tapping legs twice and clapping hand twice as they listen to the song. This will help keep them engaged. Another fun way to mix it up is to have them put their hands in the air every time they hear the word “flag”.
2. Book/Song: “America the Beautiful”
This beautifully illustrated book by Wendell Minor gives readers the chance to check out many of America’s greatest places. From the Empire State Building to the Grand Tetons and many more in between, kids will enjoy seeing some of our country’s prized destinations. Set to a patriotic classic written by Katharine Lee Bates, “America the Beautiful” is another song worth adding to your children’s repertoire. When reading the story, I like to sing the lyrics which accompany the images throughout the book. But, if you’d rather, turn on a recording of the song and enjoy. Click here for a jazzy version of the song. Click here to check out the book on Amazon.
3. Song: Yankee Doodle
Did you know “Yankee Doodle” was not the name of a person from the war, but rather a tune sung during the Revolutionary War? It become a source of American pride and an unofficial national anthem. I think “Yankee Doodle”is just fun to say and I bet your kids will get a kick out of it too.
Listen to it below if you are not familiar with the tune:
“Yankee Doodle” is also a great song to keep in your back pocket as a piggyback tune. Try these lyrics below with the tune to get the idea. Then try writing one that works for you!
Everybody sit on down,
Please don’t sit on the door.
Everybody sit on down,
Let’s sit down on the floor.
To add some movement to this song, turn on the recording below and follow this simple movement pattern: During the chorus have the children gallop around the room. During the versus have them stop and keep the beat on their legs.
4. Book/Song: The Star Spangled Banner
Chances are most children have heard our country’s national anthem at least once. But do they know the lyrics? Or should I say, do you know all the lyrics?
Studies have shown a score of Americans aren’t even sure which song is our national anthem! That is actually very sad. So, there’s no leaving this one off the list. We need to make sure our youngest generation not only knows it, but takes pride in what it stands for – freedom!
Because it is so important to create activities that keep children’s attention, finding a way to tap into multiple senses in the learning experience is key. Therefore, combining the song with a book as suggested when teaching “America the Beautiful” offers a visual and auditory component.
And there it is, a short list which could really go on for quit a while with ideas. There are so many more songs I could have added, but at least this is a start. In the comments below, tell me what your favorite patriotic song or book is to share with kids!
