Tuesday Tip! Use Your Voices... all of them!

New parents and teachers can sometimes be intimidated about singing or even reading aloud to children. So here's a tip that will insure you're an instant hit! Nothing tickles children's funny bones more than hearing you change your voice. They don't get to hear adults do this normally, and it's just so weird to them! So when you're reading about a mouse, make your voice very tiny. When you're singing about an itsy bitsy spider, make your voice...well, itsy bitsy! A Dinosaur song? Well, you get the idea. Exaggerate words not only when it makes sense, but randomly. Why infants and children alike find this so amusing is one of life's little mysteries.

Here's a similar idea...

Take a familiar song and sing it with the children in different voices.

Some children will have no trouble making suggestions (happy mad, sad, silly), but some children will need your help with ideas. This works best with short songs, like Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. You can also do this with a short poem or finger play. And don't forget to get your whole face involved ( a little fake crying always draws giggles, too!). The more drama the better! So just have fun with it!

These ideas work well not only in the classroom or while you're reading to your child, but when you're stuck in traffic or changing a diaper, or any other situation where you need a distraction. Everyone will be in a better mood and you'll be building those very "special" memories together!

Tuesday Tip! Fun With Old Macdonald

Want to have some fun with Old McDonald's Farm? Here's something I did with my kids when they were little, and continue to do in my concerts...

Put a bunch of your children's stuffed animals in an old pillow case and sing the song... When you get to "and on his farm he had a...," poke your head in the bag and make a sound for one of the animals. Have your child guess the animal, then bring it out and finish the song. It doesn't matter if the "animals" are animals at all. Could be trucks or other toys, or animals. The challenge is coming up with a sound! Children love this because of the element of surprise.

Now I have a pillow case-sized bag. decorated with a barn and animals. Very fancy! It's filled with farm animal puppets, so there is much drama and lots of giggles. This song always coaxes the most reluctant singers to participate, and therein lies its magic. But whether you use an old pillow case or make a fancy bag, your children will love to sing this favorite song over and over with its contents as they wonder at its contents!

This idea is great for teachers, librarians, and parents. Some songs never get old!

Tuesday Tip: Getting to Know You (for 3-6 year-olds)

Here’s a fun and easy activity based on one of my free songs of the month. It’s particularly useful now, when your young students are still getting to know each other. In this song, children will walk around the circle and pick up a shape at the end of the song. They then try to find their “friend,” the child who has the same picture on his or her shape. It’s basically a matching game-song. Children love this, and will want to do it several times. So here’s what to do:

Download my free song of the month, "Who Will Be My valentine?" at http://nancymusic.com/Whovalplay.htm. Use it to learn the melody. There is also an instrumental version of the song you can download. Print out the general instructions, but change the lyrics to:

"Who will be a friend of mine?" (instead of Valentine)

Then, instead of making pairs of hearts, make pairs of apples, or any other shape you choose. I use apples at this time of year since much of the curriculum centers around them. Follow the rest of the instructions for the song. By changing the shapes of the cards and or the pictures (or letters) on the pairs, you can easily modify this song for year-round use. And of course, when Valentine’s Day comes, you’ll be all set!

Tuesday Tip! Books that Sing

"Books that Sing" are picture books based on familiar songs, like Old Macdonald's Farm, Five Little Ducks, or The Itsy Bitsy Spider, to name a few. There are hundreds of them, and new ones being added all the time. The styles of illustrations are quite varied, which makes them appropriate for a variety of ages. Below are a few of my favorites, but the best thing to do is visit your local library and ask your children's librarian to help you find some of his or her favorites.

Why do they work? Children already know the melody, and will immediately sing along! They LOVE to look at the illustrations, and these books work magic on a restless child or group of children. I always have at least a half a dozen newer ones from the library as well as my own collection, which I use at school visits.

Here are just a few of my favorites:

Old MacDonald’s Farm, by Jessica Souhami (out of print, but can be found)

A Hunting We Will Go, by John Langstaff

If You’re Happy and You Know It, by David A. Carter

What Shall We Do When We All Go Out? illustrated by Shari Halpern

The Itsy Bitsy Spider, by Iza Trapani (many other story song books by this author)

The Farmer In the Dell, illustrated by Kathy Parkinson

Go Tell Aunt Rhody, illustrated by Aliki (many others by this illustrator)

There are also a lot of original songs in this format, and they either have the melody in the back, or include a CD of the song. My new favorite of these (which means the children's favorite!), is We All Go Travellin' By, a sing-along with Fred Penner, by Sheena Roberts and Siobhan Bell. You can find it on Amazon.com.

If you have some favorite titles, please share them on this blog!

Tuesday Tip! My Favorite Resource Website

If you are a parent or teacher, and don't know about www.Enchantedlearning.com, you MUST go there! It's my favorite site for just about any learning materials to use with children of all ages. Although it's free, there is an optional membership of $20 for an individual teacher or family, or $125 for entire school. I highly recommend you purchase the membership so we can ensure this amazing site continues to exist.But agian, you don't have to subscribe.This website has just about anything you might need, from maps and diagrams, to crafts, animal facts and printouts,games, flags, science,little printable books- you name it! When I create my songs of the month I often try to find relevant websites that will expand the topic of the song. When I do a search, Enchantedlearning.com ALWAYS comes up first. I don't even look anywhere else anymore. If you poke around the site for five minutes, you'll be sold! Hope this tip makes your school year more fun and productive!

Tuesday Tip! Creating Your Circle Time Space

Here are 3 simple tips to make your circle space welcoming and functional for a variety of activities!

1. Allow enough space! I can't tell you how many classrooms I have performed in that didn't have enough wiggle room for kids! We sometimes cram kids into a small space where they can't help but bump into each other while doing simple movement songs, and wonder why we spend so much time reminding them to stay in their own "personal space."

2.Make sure you're not sitting in front of a window, as glare can make it hard for kids to see you. And watch that sun! If your circle space gets sun, have window coverings available so kids don't wilt!

3. Having an area carpet, either circular or rectangular helps children find a place more quickly. And again, make sure it's large enough to allow elbow room!

Stay tuned for my next blog article for a more detailed discussion of circle time space...and have a great school year!

Tuesday Tip! Back to School Songs

Okay, I know the sun JUST came out here in the Great Northwest, but I also know you teachers and librarians are busy little bees (oh yes, the bees are finally here, too!) getting ready for the beginning of school again. And nothing says welcome like a good song!

So here's my tip:

Go to my website and download all of the past September songs of the month.My songs are organized by category, by year and month, by playlist, and alphabetically, so just choose the "by month and year" list. Most of the past September songs are great for back to school topics. And the same goes for the rest of your school year. For example, download all past December, or October, or April songs, and you'll have seasonal collections to take you through the year. All have either printable activities or movement of some kind. And don't forget- ALL MATERIALS ARE TOTALLY FREE TO DOWNLOAD!They are there simple to make our job easier, cheaper, and more fun!No password needed and no signup. So you can practically grab them on your way out the door when you're not sure what you're going to do that day!

And one more tip for September- download the playlist of classroom management songs. Some of them are not September songs, so you'll want them at the beginning of the school year. Link to my website songs of the month: http://nancymusic.com/SOMArchive.htm