As 3rd graders continue to prepare for their new rhythmic unit, they learned a song called "Old Raggy." The words are:
Old Raggy, Old Raggy with your pack on your back.
Old Raggy, Old Raggy, put down your load.
Can it be candy bars, toy trains or little cars?
Open it, open it, don't let us see.
They started out by listening to the teacher sing the song and choosing an item for Old Raggy to pull from his pack. If the students liked the item, they would respond with "mmmmm" and if they disliked the item, they would respond with "ewww." Students enjoyed choosing items to pull from the pack. After hearing the song several times, students were ready to sing the song themselves.
Once students were comfortable singing the song, we added a game. Four students were selected to play the game at a time. Students would sing the song and select an item to pull from the pack. The could choose a desirable item, an undesirable item, or "dogs to chase you." If students chose "dogs to chase you," the students playing the game would need to run to the other side of the rug without being tagged.
After playing the game, students were very comfortable singing the song and they were asked to decode the rhythm of the song using rhythm syllables. Students will eventually be able to read and write the rhythm of this song using those rhythm syllables.
Hear Mrs. Fazio's third grade class sing and decode the song using the links below:
Old Raggy
Old Raggy - Decode
