Spring and a Playlist

Spring is coming. In Chicago, we got a taste of it yesterday. The snow is melting and I have even seen a few green stems pushing their way out of the partially frozen earth.

Here are two songs to get you and your children ready for the changing weather:

Springtime
(Tune: Do You Know the Muffin Man?)

Springtime's when the flowers bloom,
The flowers bloom, the flowers bloom.
Springtime's when the flowers bloom!
Hey! Springtime is here!

Springtime's when the bunnies hop,
The bunnies hop, the bunnies hop!
Springtime's when the bunnies hop!
Hey! Springtime is here!

       Other verses:
           Springtime's when we play outside.
           Springtime's when the snow will melt.
           Springtime's when the birds will sing.

Let your children write their own verses. Nothing rhymes in this song and almost anything will fit. What does Spring mean to your kids?

You can also sing "Hey! Springtime is near" if you don't feel like Spring is quite here yet. (Considering Chicago is probably going to get snow tonight, I will be singing about Springtime being near!)

Flowers Growing Tall
(Tune: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes)

Red flowers growing tall, growing tall.
Red flowers growing tall, growing tall.
Spring is here with beauty for for us all!
Red flowers growing tall, growing tall!

I made flowers for my felt board and I use this song as an opportunity to work on identifying colors. You could sing it outside and identify colors you see in a garden or you could take a field trip to the local garden center or a green house.

One more thing!

I have recently put together a playlist on rdio.com. It has many of my student's favorite songs. The neat thing about rdio.com is you can download an app and take it with you on your mobile device! You can stream it in your car or classroom!

WeeGroove Playlist

Happy Singing!

Winter Olympic Songs

I love the Olympics! I give my mom credit for this. We always watched the Olympics together when I was younger. (Our favorite events were/are figure skating and gymnastics.) I don't really enjoy watching other sports, but there is something different about the Olympics. I think it is the national pride and watching people make their dreams come true. I always think about how hard they have to work to get to the highest level of competition and how proud they must be of their accomplishments. I think about how proud their family must be, how proud their home towns are and even their whole country! How exciting it is to see people sing their own national anthem when they are standing on the metal podium.

The Closing Ceremony is on Sunday and then I will have to wait two more years for the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. This week we sang about the winter games and here are two of our songs.

The Olympic flag might not mean much to your children, but we can still count the rings and talk about the colors! I made a flag for our felt board and we added one ring at a time.

The Olympic Rings
(Tune: Three Blind Mice) 

One round ring. One round ring.
Olympic rings. Olympic rings.
Sing about the blue ring. Sing about the blue ring.
Olympic rings. Olympic rings.

Two round rings. Two round rings.
Olympic rings. Olympic rings.
Sing about the yellow ring. Sing about the yellow ring.
Olympic rings. Olympic rings.

Repeat with all the other color rings: black, green and red.

Cheer, Cheer
(Tune: Row, Row)

Cheer, Cheer for your team.
At the Olympic games!
Win the Silver or the Gold!
The winter games are oh so cold!

Skate, skate figure skate!
Do a fancy trick.
Win the Silver or the Gold!
The winter games are oh so cold! 

Ski, ski, down the hill.
Ski as fast as you can!
Win the Silver or the Gold!
The winter games are oh so cold!

Sweep, sweep, sweep the ice.
For the curling stone!
Win the Silver or the Gold!
The winter games are oh so cold!

Push, push, push your sled.
Push your bobsled fast!
Win the Silver or the Gold!
The winter games are oh so cold!

I also used this song to celebrate all the different nationalities in my classes! We sang for the USA, but we also sang for the Dominican Republic, South Africa, Austria and the UK!

Cheer, Cheer for your team.
Cheer for the USA!
Win the Silver or the Gold!
The winter games are oh so cold!

The syllables might not quite work out, but the effort is well worth it!

Enjoy the last few days of the Olympics. I know I will!

Happy Singing!

Songs About Love

This week we celebrate Valentine's Day. I have two Valentine's songs for you, but this is a great time to pull out your favorite love songs and share them with your kiddos. I always go to the Beatles. They have very kid friendly songs that translate well from romantic love to family love. Try "Love me Do," "I Want To Hold Your Hand," or "All You Need is Love."

Be Mine
(Tune: Mary Had a Little Lamb)

Owen be my Valentine, Valentine, Valentine.
Owen be my Valentine. Please be mine!

Sing "Be Mine" with all the names of every member of your family, all of your friends or all the children in your classroom.

Five Little Valentines
(Tune: Five Green and Speckled Frogs)

Five little Valentines.
Each for a love of mine.
Waiting to be given away.
Hearts that say "I love you."
Each for a love that's true.
Only four left. Is one for you?

...Repeat with numbers four through two. Untill You get to...

One little Valentine.
It's for a love of mine.
Waiting to be given away.
Hearts that say "I love you."
It's for a love that's true.
Zero are left. Don't cry boo hoo!

Happy Valentine's Day all! Happy Singing!

Kids' Work Chicago Friendship Week Concert

Today is the day of the show! The Ashland and Roscoe classroom are singing for their friends and family. I love these days. I love when we get to share some of the songs we love to sing in music class with our families.

I know that sometimes my little friends come home singing and the lyrics are hard to understand. I wanted to post the songs we are singing today so there is no questions about lyrics.

Welcome to Music
(Tune: Shortening Bread) 

Welcome to music, music, music,
Welcome to music class today.
Welcome to music, music, music,
Welcome to music class today.

We’re here to dance and sing a song.
Come on friends and sing along.
We’re here to dance and sing a song.
Come on friends and sing along. 

Welcome to music, music, music,
Welcome to music class today.
Welcome to music, music, music,
Welcome to music class today.

I Use My Hands
(Tune: When the Saints go Marching in) 

I ask for more. I ask for more.
I ask for more. I ask for more.
I use my hands to tell you what I need.
I ask for more. I ask for more.

Other Verses:
I need to stop.
I ask for help.
It’s time to play.
I want to dance.
We are all done.

You Are My Sunshine

You are my sunshine. My only sunshine,
You make me happy when skies are grey.
You’ll never know dear, how much I love you.
Please don’t take my sunshine away.

The More We Get Together

The more we get together, together, together.
The more we get together the happier we’ll be.
Cause your friends are my friends and my friends are your friends.
The more we get together the happier we’ll be. 

See How I’m Jumping

See how I’m jumping, jumping, jumping.
See how I’m jumping up and down.
You didn’t know I could jump so high.
You didn’t know I could stand so still.
See how I’m jumping, jumping, jumping.
When I get tired… down I flop.

Other Actions: 
Wiggling
Marching
Dancing
Jumping
Robot

Brr… It’s Gotten Cold
(Tune: Head, Shoulders , Knees and Toes)

 Snowflakes are falling down, falling down.
Snowflakes are falling down, falling down.
Winter’s here and brr…. It’s gotten cold.
Snowflakes are falling down, falling down. 

Other Verses:
I build a snowman with my friends
My hat and gloves will keep me warm.
My boots and coat will keep me dry.

Skinamarink

Skinamarinki dinki dink. Skinamarinki doo.
I love you!
Skinamarinki dinki dink. Skinamarinki doo.
I love you!

I love you in the morning and in the afternoon.
I love you in the evening and underneath the moon!
Oh… Sinkamarinki dinki dink. Skinamarinki doo.
I love you!
And you. Boo boo bee doo!