This is a weekly update of what songs we’re currently singing, yoga poses, movements, the whole nine yards.
In most cases, the song/activity listed is a link so you can read the lyrics and listen to me song, etc.
June 13, 2022
We got ready for the singalong tomorrow! Here’s what we’ll be singing:
June 6, 2022
Movie Star – Teddy requested this!
Sittin’ Down to Eat (no link)
We played a game called “Monkey Around” in which we each had a beanbag (aka banana, since monkeys eat bananas), and each child picked a card which gave us a challenge, sometimes incorporating the “banana” (balance it on your head), or not using the “banana” (walk on tiptoes).
May 23, 2022
Sittin’ Down to Eat – (no link) This is a wonderful Bill Harley song (I love just about everything he’s done).
At the end, we did a whole lot of dancing to You Gotta Sing (when the spirit says sing)
May 16, 2022
We used the rhythm sticks, playing and singing to the Ella Jenkins song 1&2&3&4 (no link), and You Gotta Sing (when the spirit says sing) and BINGO.
Bug On the Wall – I taught them sign language for “Bug on the wall.” Sorry, I still can’t share the link yet. Next week I will!
May 9, 2022
I did the signing version of the song Today is Monday, as I did last week, using sign language for the object for each day: Monday popcorn, Tuesday ball, Wednesday pie, Thursday worms, Friday gorilla, Saturday spiderweb, Sunday cake (“come on everybody, show me what you see”).
May Day song – it’s this Wed, 5/11 at 11:30, at the Big Black Hearts!
BINGO – we sang this briefly. I rearranged the letters to spell IN BOG, then we did…
Bug On the Wall – I love this song, but I can’t share the link yet, as it would give away what we’re building up to…
May 2, 2022
I introduced them to an adaptation of the song Today is Monday, but in this one, we used sign language for the object for each day: Monday popcorn, Tuesday ball, Wednesday pie, Thursday worms, Friday gorilla, Saturday spiderweb, Sunday cake (“come on everybody, show me what you see”). They were amazing at memorizing not only the signs, but which thing went with which day of the week.
May Day song – May Day is now scheduled for Wed, 5/11, as it’s supposed to be cold and rainy this Wed. That much more time to practice the May Day song!
We played the pass the beanbag game again. We’re getting consistently better at this!
Apr. 25, 2022
May Day song – we’ll be having May Day on Wed, 5/4 (rain date 5/11), so we’re learning this song in preparation!
You Gotta Sing (when the spirit says sing) – again, playing around with different ways of making rhythm, tapping, clapping, stomping – so many ideas!
YOGA – mountain, house, moon, elephant, volcano, Eve, Tai Chi Guy, WARRIOR 2, WARRIOR 1
I Shampoo My Hair – (we mixed things up again)
We used the rhythm sticks, playing along to an old Ella Jenkins song: 1&2&3&4.
We also played rhythm sticks along to BINGO, clicking in substitute for letters, e.g., X I-N-G-O, or X X N-G-O. They were excellent!
We played and sang to Walking Down the Line
After this, I played a bit with sign language, reminding them of sign language for “The gorilla swallowed the worm – ew!” (I’m using my own made up sign for “mysterious”). Then I composed a new sentence: “the mysterious gorilla swallowed worm pie – delicious!”
Apr. 11, 2022
We sang BINGO, clapping in substitute for letters: X I-N-G-O, or X X N-G-O, then we clapped for all the letters.
I Shampoo My Hair – we mixed things up today: I shampoo my hair while I’m on the elevator; I stir the soup while Im in a rocking chair, and I look for alligators while I do the hula hoop!
We reviewed sign language for “The gorilla swallowed the worm – ew!” (I had showed them this last week, too). We also remembered “spider pie, spider pie, gorillas love spider pie,” from last week.
Then I gave out pictures and asked each child to make up their own sign for their picture (e.g., rain, boat, flower, whale, helicopter).
We danced to This Little Light of Mine
Apr. 4, 2022
We started with an Ella Jenkins song called Head and Shoulders. It’s usually sung “head and shoulders, baby, 1, 2, 3,” but I’m singing it (with Red, at least): “head and shoulders and a 1, 2, 3.” (tapping head and shoulders as we sing.) We did knees & toes, X (arms across chest) & ears, ears & hands (clap hands), and thigh & belly.
We passed around a red mini-medicine ball and sang MAGIC PENNY
You Gotta Sing (when the spirit says sing)
I showed them (again) sign language for “(If) I knew you were coming I’d have baked a cake,” and them sang my version of the song. IF I KNEW YOU WERE COMING
I showed them sign language for “The gorilla swallowed the worm – ew!” (I had showed them this last week, too). Then I showed them “spider pie, spider pie, gorillas love spider pie.”
YOGA – mountain, house, moon, elephant, volcano, Eve, Tai Chi Guy, WARRIOR 2, WARRIOR 1
I Shampoo My Hair – we didn’t mix up the cards, so please don’t let the cat out of the bag.
Mar. 28, 2022
You Gotta Sing (when the spirit says sing)
I showed them sign language for “(If) I knew you were coming I’d have baked a cake,” and them sang them my version of the song, for which I have pictures. IF I KNEW YOU WERE COMING
I showed them sign language for “together” and segued to the pass the beanbag game, which requires that we all be together to run smoothly. After some practice, we got into a rhythm, and were even able to do it silently, just hearing the beanbags all hit the ground at the same time.
Tarzan – since we thump our chests when singing “Tarzan of the apes!”, I then explained that this is also the sign for “gorilla.” Then I signed “the gorilla swallowed the worm. Ew!”, and they had to guess what it meant, and working together, they figured it out!
We did a pattern of “zips” and “bams” using hand gestures to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle. Then I passed out the rhythm sticks and we did the zip bam pattern again with them. Then we played along to This Little Light of Mine.
Mar. 14, 2022
You Gotta Sing (when the spirit says sing)
This Little Light of Mine – with sign language
Freeze Dance
We passed out a long thick piece of rope and pulled, pushed and shook it for Michael Row the Boat Ashore, Row Row Row (crocodile and “putt putt” versions), and Shake It All Over Town.
Mar. 7, 2022
YOGA – candle, mouse, snake, dog, cat, mountain climber
We’ve Got the Whole World – I taught them sign language (ASL) for “world,” which is holding out three fingers on both hands (representing Ws) and spin them around as when doing Wheels On the Bus.
This Little Light of Mine– we added sign language for the verse “all around the world, I’m going to let it shine,” using the sign we just learned for “world.”
We did the pass the beanbag game again!
Feb. 28, 2022
There was a lot of rhythm – tapping hands, feet – lots of singing along in a single voice, lots of dancing. The children have such a strong sense of their bodies/voices and what they can do with them in an intentional way. They are growing so much!
We did the pass the beanbag game again, where everyone has a beanbag and we have to simultaneously pick up the one in front ofd us and pass not to the person on our left, at which point, we now have a new beanbag in front of us that has just been passed to us. They are mastering this!
This Little Light of Mine– we’re continuing to practice sign language for the chorus (This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine)
YOGA – butterfly, turtle, tulip
Twinkle Twinkle (silly version)
YOGA – mountain house moon volcano Eve TaiChiGuy warrior2 warrior1
There was a call for freeze dancing and Draw the Circle Wide so we did both, as we had time.
Feb. 7, 2022
We did a pass the beanbag game, where everyone has a beanbag and we have to simultaneously pick up the one in front ofd us and pass not to the person on our left, at which point, we now have a new beanbag in front of us that has just been passed to us. It’s tricky, and they did a great job!
This Little Light of Mine– we learned sign language for the chorus (This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine)
Jan. 31, 2022
YOGA – mountain, house, moon, volcano, Eve, TaiChi Guy, Warrior 2, Warrior 1
We did the zips and bams again today. This was new for a few who were out last week. See the previous post to find out what zips and bams look like, etc. Today we partnered up, and each pair got 3 zips and 3 bams. Person #1 made a pattern, and then person #2 played/read it. Then they would play/read it together. Then they switched.
We did the whole thing again, but this time when they played/read it together the “composer” changed the volume of zips and bams; e.g., loud zips, soft bams. So the player/reader had to change their volume. Then they tried it together, with the different volume zips and bams. See photos below.
Jan. 24, 2022
I then showed the children “zips” and “bams” made of thick paper. The zips are lines and the bams are dots. I gave each child three of each, and they arranged them in whatever order they liked, and then we played their arrangements. (“Zip” = slide your palm across a fist; “Bam” is strike the fist with your palm, as we do in the above chant, Zip Zip Bam.) You can see what the shapes look like in the photo below, which is the arrangement for zip zip bam bam bam. After that are photos of what the children made!
Dec. 20, 2021
We sang through the songs we’ll be singing at the Winter Sing (11:30 on Wednesday, near where the Silver Car was). On Top of Spaghetti is new to them – other classes will be singing this, but I wanted to introduce the songs to the Studio Red children so that they have some familiarity with it – and if they already know it, then they can sing along. And of course it’s a sing-a-long, so please bring your singing voices on Wednesday!
We also did the following that we won’t do for the Winter Sing:
Freeze Dance
Dec. 13, 2021
Yoga – mountain, house, moon, volcano, Eve, TaiChi Guy, Warrior 2, Warrior 1 (see below)
Freeze Dance (I show them a stick figure of a pose, and when the music stops, we all assume that pose)
Dec. 6, 2021
The Ants Go Marching – I create movement challenges to go with this, and some different words. E.g., stomp and do scissors hands while singing “The ants go marching one by one… the little one stops to blow bubble gum (blow up a pretend bubble until it pops); and 2-by-2: “the little one stops to hula hoop” etc.
May There Always Be Sunshine – I taught them the sign for “popcorn” and we sang “May there always be popcorn.” Then there was a brief discussion about how we need clouds, too, and so Simone made up a sign for clouds and we sang that, too.
Nov. 29, 2021
Yoga – turtle, butterfly, mountain, house, moon, volcano, Eve, Tai Chi Guy
The Ants Go Marching – I create movement challenges to go with this, and some different words. E.g., stomp and do scissors hands while singing “The ants go marching one by one… the little one stops to blow bubble gum (blow up a pretend bubble until it pops); and 2-by-2: “the little one stops to hula hoop” etc.
Twinkle Twinkle (silly version)
Boom Chicka Boom – starting letters K, P and V.
Nov. 22, 2021
Zip Zip Bam – we did just the first half last week, today we did the whole thing.
Yoga – turtle butterfly
Twinkle Twinkle (silly version)
Yoga – mountain house moon volcano Eve, and “Tai Chi Guy” (see photo in previous post below)
No More Pie – with rhythm sticks. We did things we might see underwater today, and went around the circle to hear what everyone was thinking of (e.g., “sea lion pie”)
Bling Blang – with rhythm sticks
There was a call for 3 Short-Necked Buzzards, so we did that as well.
Nov. 15, 2021
Yoga – turtle butterfly
Yoga – mountain house moon volcano Eve, and a new one, “Tai Chi Guy” (see photo below)
Boom Chicka Boom – this time we changed the first letter to S , and SH, and nothing (oom icka oom)
Nov. 8, 2021
Yoga – candle mouse snake dog
Boom Chicka Boom – this time we changed the first letter to G (both sounds), and R, and B.
We tried out some patterns with the rhythm sticks. One has a ribbed edge and the other is smooth, so when we rub one stick with another we say ZIP and when we click them together we say BAM. Then we sang:
No More Pie, and Bling Blang, with rhythm sticks.
Walking Down the Line – with rhythm sticks, too!
We Got a Good Thing Going (no link; this is a stand up and move song)
Yoga – Mountain House Moon Volcano, and the pose from the sculpture Eve Celebrant (photo in previous post, below).
Nov. 1, 2021
Yoga – candle mouse snake dog
Boom Chicka Boom – this time we changed the first letter to D, then T, then M.
We Got a Good Thing Going (no link; this is a stand up and move song)
Yoga – Mountain House Moon Volcano, and the pose from the sculpture Eve Celebrant (photo below).
Bling Blang – with rhythm sticks
Walking Down the Line – with rhythm sticks
Sam the Clam – with Sam the GIANT CLAM and sam the teeny clam.
Oct. 25, 2021
Boom Chicka Boom – this time we changed the first letter, to L and then Z: I say loom licka loom… I say loom licka locka licka locka licka loom… And then with the Z.
Sam the Clam – this time we added Sam the GIANT CLAM and sam the teeny clam.
Yoga – Mountain House Moon Volcano
Rhythm sticks – many of the children had ideas for patterns to make with the sticks, so we went around the circle and gave everyone a chance to show their pattern (or way of using the sticks) and tried out each idea.
Bling Blang – with rhythm sticks
Oct. 18, 2021
Oct. 4, 2021
No More Pie – with rhythm sticks
Walking Down the Line – with rhythm sticks. They’re starting to sing this!
Sept. 27, 2021
No More Pie – with rhythm sticks; we sang different types of pie, some that they made up (raspberry, coconut, tree, Studio Red…) clicking the sticks with each syllable and counting the syllables.
Walking Down the Line – with rhythm sticks
Yoga – mountain, house, volcano, dead tree, short-necked buzzard
Yoga – Owl
I’m a Little Cookie – chocolate bar and tootsie rolls verses.
Sept. 20, 2021
No More Pie – with rhythm sticks; I sang the children’s names (e.g., Lily pie), then we clicked the number of syllables we sang (I didn’t use the word “syllables,” we just did it)
Walking Down the Line – with rhythm sticks
Yoga – mountain, house, volcano, dead tree, short-necked buzzard!
I’m a Little Cookie – chocolate bar and tootsie rolls verses.
Yoga – Turtle
Yoga – Owl
Sept. 13, 2021
Walking Down the Line – we played rhythm sticks to this.
Yoga – Turtle
Time To Move On – Elliot had the idea of clapping to this, and then Ferdinand suggested that we stand up and sing it, and all jump up in the air on “HEY!” so we tried that, too!
Repertoire
(a running list of songs that we’ve sung this year)
3 Little Hot Dogs
3 Short-Necked Buzzards
54321 Shake Exercise
Alligator Pit
Alligator Song
The Ants Go Marching
Bamboo
Be My Echo
BINGO
Bling Blang
Boom Chicka Boom
Bug On the Wall
Come Sail With Me
Draw the Circle Wide
Elephant in my Shoe
Flea Song
Head & Shoulders (Ella Jenkins, no link)
Here Comes Mouse
I Couldn’t Sleep Last Night
I Shampoo My Hair
I’m a Little Cookie
I’m a Mushroom
IF I KNEW YOU WERE COMING
Look Out the Window
MAGIC PENNY
Mama’s Soup Surprise
May Day song
May There Always Be Sunshine
Michael Row the Boat Ashore
Movie Star
Mrs. O’Leary
My Favorite Things
Mysterious Fish Tank
No More Pie
On Top of Spaghetti
Ooh Ooh
Open Shut Them
Owl
Pancake Jake
Pirate Song
Popcorn Chant
Rattlin’ Bog
Razzamatazz
Row Row Row
Sam the Clam
Shake It All Over Town
Sit Down Stand Up Song
Sittin’ Down to Eat (Bill Harley; no link)
Skidamarink
State Laughs
Tarzan
There Was a Little Turtle
Time To Move On
This Land is Your Land
This Little Light of Mine
Touch the Ground
Twinkle Twinkle (silly version)
Under One Sky
Walking Down the Line
We Got a Good Thing Going (no link)
We’re Talking Big
We’ve Got the Whole World
What Makes the Fire
When I First Came To This Land
Where’s My Pajamas?
You Gotta Sing (when the spirit says sing)
Zip Zip Bam
