Ourselves & Our Friends Level: Early Grades - Songs & chants

Have You Brought Your Singing Voice? (pitch)

This is a good introductory activity for helping children to 'find' their singing voice and humming voice as opposed to their talking voice. It's one of the first things to do in music with a new group of children. It's also a good attention-grabber to use at any time to settle the children down. Whatever voice the teacher uses, the children copy it when they reply.

• Teacher says: Have you brought your talking voice?
• Children say in a normal talking voice: Yes we have! Yes we have!
• Teacher sing-songs: Have you brought your singing voice?
• Children sing-song: Yes we have! Yes we have!
• Teacher whispers: Have you brought your whispering voice?
• Children whisper: Yes we have! Yes we have!
• Teacher hums: Mm mm mm mm mm mm mm?
• Children hum: Mm mm mm! Mm mm mm!
• And so on ...

Hickory Dickory Bumble Bee (rhythm)

Ideally, you need a furry bumble bee to help you to indicate which child you are focusing on. When the bumble bee looks at each child in turn, you sing, 'Hickory dickory bumble bee, won't you say your name for me? The child replies by saying their name. It's fun (and good for learning to count sounds) if you ask 'How many claps was that?' after each name is clapped. You can decide in what ways you want the children to copy the name pattern eg talking, humming, clapping, whispering.

• TEACHER - Hickory dickory bumble bee
• Won't you say your name for me?
• CHILD: Edward
• TEACHER: Everyone say it
• CHILDREN: Edward
• TEACHER: Everyone clap it
• CHILDREN: Clap clap
• TEACHER: Everyone whisper it
• CHILDREN: Edward

Getting to Know You

Pat Pat - Names (pulse)

Everyone sits in a circle, cross legged and spaced as widely as is practical. Pat your knees twice, making big movements, and then gesture in a welcoming way towards each child in turn, for just long enough for you to sing-song that child's name. Keep going, round the circle in order, until all the children have been included.

The children join in with patting their knees, in time with you. They could optionally join in with singing each child's name.

• Pat pat
• Arms wide and sing-song Holly
• Pat pat
• Arms wide and sing-song Sophie

The aim is to keep the pulse steady and keep going. If this happens, you can praise the children by saying, 'We're keeping a steady pulse going round the circle - well done!' Children are learning new words all the time and they will pick up meaning of pulse if you use it in context.