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Thursday, October 16, 2014

Windy Songs from the Windy City!

Hello! MacaroniSoup with Miss Carole from Chicago here!  Wherever you live you may experience windy days. It may be in the Spring, when the wind can bring rain and the smell of damp earth and sprouting things. It may be in the Winter, when the wind blows cold and sounds hollow. It may be in the Summer, when it is a welcome relief to a sweaty day. But I like the Autumn winds, making leaves and squirrels dance! 

For my blog this month I’m sharing three great songs and a chant!  Don’t forget to check back on my 2012 (SeasonSings) and 2013 (Blow the Wind) September/October blogs for more windy songs!  
Let’s begin – WHOOSH!

THE CHANT:  The Windy Day
Walking at the beginning...

This simple poem will get everyone moving.  First demonstrate the movement to your children while they are sitting down.  Simply speak the words rhythmically while walking to the beat. On the last line, turn and face the other direction, ready to begin again walking again. Then invite them to try it with you. Pause briefly at the end of each repetition to be sure everyone changes direction.  Go a little faster with each repetition!

Now we're running really fast!




There was a man in our town,
Went for a walk one day

The wind it blew so very hard
It turned him the other way!

To hear this, click here! It's on my "H.U.M. - Highly Usable Music" cd.  
I usually do 4-5 repetitions. 

NOTE:  Be sure you have open space for running! Do “The Windy Day” outdoors, too!

Miss Carole and class - ready to fly!


SONG 1:  BLACK BAT FARM!

I first blogged about this song several years ago - so I'll be brief here - check out the original blog "Making BOO Fun" for even more details!

A visual can really help for this slightly spooky song – you and your child(ren) can draw the farm on paper, or use a flannelboard as I do. Each child loves to put a bat on the farm before we start!  The tune is “The Green Grass Grew All Around” – but in a minor key – that’s the slightly spooky part!  It is also on my “H.U.M. – Highly Usable Music” cd. It will soon be available for album download if you prefer that to a cd.

This is a call/response or echo song. The leader sings the line, the children sing it back. We flap our bat wings during the chorus. I advise my younger students to snuggle up to a friend or teacher should they become scared, which hardly ever happens.

There was a farm…
A spooky little farm…
The spookiest farm….
That you ever did see—eee!
A field’s on the farm, the farm’s full of spooks – BOO!
Chorus:
And the black bats flew all around, all around
The black bats flew all around, OH –
The black bats flew all around, all around
The black bats flew all around!

Our flannelboard Black Bat Farm!
V.2 And on that farm…
      There was a vine
      The creepiest vine
      That you ever did see-eee!
      A vine’s on the field, the field’s on the farm, the farm’s full of spooks – BOO!
Add a verse:
V.3  On that vine, there is a pumpkin
        The cutest little pumpkin 
        That you ever did see-eee!
V.4  And in that pumpkin, 
       There are some seeds
       The slimy-est seeds 
       That you ever did see-eee!

What to do for motions? We trace a square in the air for the farm. We flat-hand a circular motion for the field.  Use your pointer finger to squiggle a line from high to low for that creepy vine.  Smile when you make a circle with your thumbs and pointer fingers for that cute pumpkin.  And wipe your slimed hands together for the gooshy seeds!  Flap those bat wings, flinging hands overhead for the “OH” in the chorus.
    Children ask me for this song all year long – it’s a favorite!

A Friendly Blue Goblin!
SONG 2:  10 LITTLE GOBLINS!
Ok – I’ll be up front about this one – it’s one of MY favorites!  Get out your scarves and have a blast!  

    We first talk about what a goblin might be – since they are pretend, we can make them anything we want – big/small, nice/nasty, quiet/loud – it’s a great chance to talk about opposites!  Hear it on my “Season Sings!” cd!
    Then we put a scarf over our head – because goblins can be any color – and tiptoe, float, and say “boo!” before putting the scarf on the floor to “sleep on the ground.” 
    While my students are quietly sleeping, I whisper “When I count to 3, you will wake up, stretch your arms, then sit criss-cross, applesauce.”  Once accomplished, I call them to put their scarves away by color – “If you have a blue scarf, put it in the bag,” and so on.

Ten little goblins dancing in a ring
Goblins of every hue!
Ten little goblins hear them sing:
Ooo ooo ooo  (use high voices!)

Ten little goblins floating all about
Ten little goblins, hear them shout!
Boo! Boo! Boo! (use loud voices)

Ten little goblins dancing all alone
Ten little goblins, hear them moan:
Ahhh Ahhh Ahhh  (use low voices)

Ten little goblins sleeping on the ground
Ten little goblins – don’t make a sound!
                  © KimboEducational 1985
Sleeping goblins - as cute as goblins get!



If are looking for great scarves, try BearPawCreek.com. They offer scarves (and many other great props for movement) made to my specifications. If you order from the Miss Carole’s Macaroni Soup Specials page, you’ll get a discount!





SONG 4: HEY LITTLE LEAF
My good friend Susan Salidor posted this one just days ago – hot out of her fertile musical mind!  It’s a great zipper song – and you can sing it TOMORROW!  WatchSusan do it HERE!

Hey little leaf, little leaf, little RED leaf
Hey little leaf, fallin’ on the ground
Hey little leaf, little leaf, little RED leaf
Hey little leaf, fallin’ on the ground.

Rake up the leaves, put ‘em in a pile
Throw ‘em in the air with an October smile!
Rake up the leaves, put ‘em in a pile
Throw ‘em in the air with an October smile!

Repeat with different colored leaves! It’s that simple – whoo-hoo!  A BIG THANKS to Susan Salidor for sharing!  In case you’re thinking, “Where have I heard that name before?” – fellow author on this blog Brigid Finucane listed Susan as one of her fav Midwest Children’s Musician/Educators in her July blog!

Please check back for my November 16 blog – my newest cd, “Polka Dots! is set for November 1st release, and I’ll be sharing more new songs!  Let me know how you’re using the songs I post each month.  I also take requests – “Miss Carole – I need a new banana song – whatcha got?”  (and yes, I have a banana song!)

Yours for a Windy Song!

“Miss Carole” Stephens

3 comments:

  1. Thank you, once again, Carole for a great post - brimming with seasonal and spooky fun!
    Clearly written, replicable and open-ended ideas perfect for PreK and K classrooms!

    ReplyDelete
  2. You are welcome, Miss Brigid! I try!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Always enjoy your posts Carole. I do a similar version of the Wind Chant and ask children what else could be in our town....

    ReplyDelete

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