Aiken Drum

Preschoolers have been singing the song "Aiken Drum" to practice keeping the steady beat.  The song goes like this:

There was a man lived in the moon,
Lived in the moon, lived in the moon,
There was a man lived in the moon,
And his name was Aiken Drum.

And his head was made of pizza,
Of pizza, of pizza,
And his head was made of pizza,
And his name was Aiken Drum.

And his ____ was made of ____,
Of ____, of ____,
And his ____ was made of ____,
And his name was Aiken Drum.

Students substituted all of his body parts for different kinds of food.  As we sang about each body part, we tapped the steady beat on that part of our body.  We also drew Aiken Drum on the board.  He looked pretty crazy!

Listen to the song here:

A Pumpkin for the Pie

It's almost Thanksgiving time and our preschoolers are learning a new Thanksgiving themed fingerplay called "A Pumpkin for the Pie."  While we learned this fingerplay, students talked about their favorite foods that they eat around Thanksgiving.  This rhyme includes pumpkin pie, apples, and a heavy turkey!

Here’s a pumpkin for the pie.

   (Make a large circle with arms out in front)

Apples red to bake.

(Hold up two fists)

Turkey for the roasting pan,

(Hold up fists with thumbs extended)

I can hardly wait!

(Rub palms together quickly)

Did your child share this song with you from their Ask Me sheet? Let Mrs. Hiltz know by filling out this form!

Veteran's Day Assembly

Congratulations to our Memorial School Chorus for a great job at the Veteran's Day Assembly!

Mama Goonie Bird

First Graders learned the song "Mama Goonie Bird" to help them practice keeping the beat.  Beat competency is such an important skill for students, and we spend a lot of time on it in our First Steps in Music curriculum.  So many advanced musical skills build off of the ability to keep the beat.

Ask your child to sing the song for you.  It goes like this: 

Mama Goonie Bird, had seven chicks,

Seven chicks had Mama Goonie Bird.

And they couldn’t walk,

and they couldn’t talk,

But they all could go like this!

Spoken: One wing!

Repeat the song, adding

“Both wings!”, “Add your foot”, “both feet”, “add your head”, “sit down”

As students add each body part, they should continue singing, keeping the beat with their "wings" or feet. This is a skill that takes practice, especially when adding multiple movements at once. Try it with your child!

Click the link below to hear a recording of Ms. Giguere's class singing this song.

Mama Goonie Bird

Below is a great recording of this song, sung by Jill Trinka. We moved to this recording in class after the students had learned the song well.

Did your child sing this song to you from their "Ask Me" sheet?  Let Mrs. Hiltz know by filling out this form.  Your child will earn a sticker!