Tag: Preschool Songs

Three Little Blue Cars – Preschool Fingerplay

Posted on by S. J. Little

 

Are you teaching about community helpers, such as mechanics, or is your theme transportation? Is your child simply excited about cars? If you answered yes to any of these questions then you’ll want to check out the preschool fingerplay below.

The Three Little Blue Cars fingerplay promotes learning to count to three, problem-solving, and builds vocabulary.

Three Little Blue Cars

Original words by S. J. Little

Tune/rhythm: Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

 

Three little blue cars driving down the road,

One popped a tire and could not go.

“Oh no!” said the driver. “What shall we do?”

“Call the mechanic to make you good as new.”

 

Two little blue cars driving down the road,

One hit a big tree and crushed his bumper.

“Oh no!” said the driver. “What shall we do?”

“Call the mechanic to make you good as new.”

 

One little blue car driving down the road,

He blew his engine and smoke billowed out.

“Oh no!” said the driver. “What shall we do?”

“Call the mechanic to make you good as new.”

This fingerplay lends itself well to visuals. Therefore, I put together a free printout for you. I recommend either printing it on blue paper or colouring the cars blue after you have printed them out.

Three Blue Cars Visual – Free Download

 

Have fun sharing this fingerplay with your little one!

Interested in more preschool transportation songs?

Take a look at the 9-1-1 Song, and the Taxi Song.

2 Educational Space Songs for Preschoolers

Posted on by S. J. Little
Toy planets behind title: 2 Educational Space Songs

 

I don’t know why it is, but I’ve had countless 2-4 year olds in my class who are fascinated by space. Whether we’re talking about planets or spaceships or stars, they love it!

While they do not fully grasp the concepts of the planets being in space and that we live on earth, they still enjoy learning the names and order of the planets and which one is ours. I would encourage you to find a poster or props that show all the planets in order.

To help you teach some of the basic realities of space, here are two simple and educational space songs to sing with your youngster who is intrigued by space.

The Planets Spin Around the Sun

Original song by S. J. Little

Tune: The Wheels on the Bus

 

The planets spin around the sun,

Around the sun,

Around the sun,

The planets spin around the sun,

We live on earth.

 

The sun is found in the middle,

In the middle,

In the middle,

The sun is found in the middle,

It keeps us warm.

Actions:

Planets spin around the sun – hold one hand in a fist to represent the sun. Move the other hand in a curricular motion around the sun to symbolize the planets.

We live on earth – point to yourself

Sun is found in the middle – hold the same hand in a fist as with the first verse, but this time point to that hand with your free hand.

It keeps us warm – hugging yourself, rub your shoulders as though trying to warm up.

Names of the Planets

Song words adapted by S. J. Little, original author unknown

Tune: 10 Little Indians

 

Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars,

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.

All the planets out in space,

Spinning ’round the sun.

Actions:

If you have a poster or props of the planets, point to each planet as you name it.

All the planets out in space – motion broadly toward the sky

Spinning ’round the sun – hold one hand in a fist to represent the sun. Move the other hand in a curricular motion around the sun to symbolize the planets (same as with the first song).

 

I hope you enjoy these simple space songs for preschoolers. If you’re looking for more unique and easy preschool songs, click here.

Simple Gingerbread Man Song For Preschoolers

Posted on by S. J. Little
Gingerbread man cookies in a mug

 

A while back, one of my coworkers was looking for an easy gingerbread man song to sing with her preschool class at Christmas. Her search led me to come up with my own simple gingerbread man song for the holidays. Now I’m sharing it with you.

*As this is an original song, please be sure to include my name as the songwriter any time you share this song.

The Gingerbread Man Song

Words by: S. J. Little

Tune: Slippery Fish

(If you don’t know the Slippery Fish tune, I’ve included a link to it at the bottom of this page.)

 

Gingerbread man, gingerbread man,

You look sweet and tasty!

Gingerbread man, gingerbread man…

Yum, yum, yum…

Oh no! It’s been eaten by a cat!

 

Repeat the song with a different animal eating the gingerbread man.

Feel free to use just about any animal to eat the gingerbread man. Here is a list of ideas to get you started:

  • Cat
  • Dog
  • Horse
  • Fox
  • Goat
  • Owl
  • Bunny

 

I recommend using five gingerbread man visuals and then using a visual for each animal who is going to eat a gingerbread man.

If you don’t already have gingerbread man visuals, here’s a great free colouring sheet you could print and cut out to use:  http://www.supercoloring.com/coloring-pages/simple-gingerbread-man

Developmental Skills Practiced When Singing the Gingerbread Man Song

Counting:

If using five gingerbread men, you could start by counting how many gingerbread men you have. Sing through the song and have the “eaten” gingerbread man disappear. Then, before singing the song again, count the four gingerbread men that are left.

Depending on the developmental level and attention span of your children, you may want to use more or less gingerbread men.

Language:

The simple repetitive nature of this song helps children catch on and feel confident to sing along.

Using visuals of whatever “eats” the gingerbread man allows children to learn the names of the animals.

Social Skills:

Taking turns – try increasing the interaction with your children by letting each of them have a turn choosing which animal ate the gingerbread man.

 

Don’t know the Slippery Fish tune? Check out this video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aW3hNADgf-A

Looking for other original preschool songs by S. J. Little? Check out the links below.

The Flamingo Song

Shine Shine Christmas Lights

Baby Jesus, Welcome Lord

The Harvest Song

9-1-1 Song and Safety Tips For Preschoolers

Posted on by S. J. Little

 

How young should we teach a child to call 911? That’s a good question. Many preschools will dedicate a week to teaching 3-4 year olds how to call 911 and other safety information they might need in case of trouble.

If you do a quick search on Google, such as “4 year old calls 911” you will likely find various news articles and recordings of humorous reasons young children have called 911 along with tales of heroic children who knew just what to do when the only adult with them passed out, such as this news clip on YouTube.

Yes, a preschooler might needlessly call 911, but they may also be in a situation one day where calling 911 saves someone’s life. With this in mind, I encourage you to teach your child how to call 911, but be sure to tell them that it is only if there is an emergency.

The following song is a great way to start teaching your child about calling 911.

If you have a different emergency number in your area, this song may still work, just switch out the number as you sing.

*As this is an original song, please be sure to include my name as the songwriter any time you share this song.

9-1-1 Song

Original song by: S. J. Little

Tune: If You’re Happy And You Know It

If you need the ambulance, call 9-1-1.

If you need the ambulance, call 9-1-1.

If you need the ambulance, if you need the ambulance,

If you need the ambulance, call 9-1-1.

 

If you need the police, call 9-1-1.

If you need the police, call 9-1-1.

If you need the police, if you need the police,

If you need the police, call 9-1-1.

 

If you need the fire truck, call 9-1-1.

If you need the fire truck, call 9-1-1.

If you need the fire truck, if you need the fire truck,

If you need the fire truck, call 9-1-1.

 

Actions

Every time you sing “9-1-1” hold up the correlating number of fingers – 9 fingers, then 1 finger and then 1 finger again.

If you want, find pictures of an ambulance, police car, and fire truck and point to each one as you sing about it.

Other Safety Tips to Teach Preschoolers

There are many other safety tips you can teach a preschooler. What follows are a few I recommend. If you know others, feel free to mention them in the comments section below.

  • Teach your child their own first and last name
  • Teach your child their parents’ first and last names
  • Teach your child their parents’ phone number
  • Teach your child “stranger danger”
    • If you aren’t there with them, a stranger, no matter how nice they may seem, might want to hurt them. They should never go anywhere with a stranger, unless you give them permission, even if the stranger offers candy or a chance to see puppies.
  • Teach your child who is safe
    • Explain to your child that if they ever get lost in a crowd, they should look for either someone who works there or a mom with kids as these are more likely to help them find safety. Next time you’re out at a large store or venue with your child, practice spotting employees or other safe people your child could go to if they need help.
  • Teach your child what to do in case of a fire
    • Stay low and go outside. You could even practice having a fire drill.
    • Show your child pictures of a fireman with his mask on. Teach your child that this is what a fireman might look like if he was coming to rescue them from a fire.

Let us pray that our children never need to use any of these safety tips, but, just in case, the preschool years are a good time to begin teaching these important things.

Want more original preschool songs? Check out these links:

 

Preschool Harvest Song

Posted on by S. J. Little
Just harvested carrots and onions behind title: The Preschool Harvest Song

 

Ah, autumn. The time when leaves turn beautiful fall shades, children return to school, and gardens must be harvested before frost hits. It’s also the perfect time to talk about harvest with your preschoolers.

Using harvest as your preschool theme is excellent for discussing concepts such as healthy eating and for learning to categorize fruits and veggies. Not to mention all the discussion about colours and shapes that can be had.

Whether you’re using “harvest” as your fun theme or not, here’s a fantastic new song to sing with your children. I’ve been asked to sing it over and over again, and I suspect that you will be too.

 

Tips for singing the Preschool Harvest Song

  • Take a moment to explain what the word “harvest” means, as most children will be unfamiliar with it. I like to say that harvest is when farmers go to pick all the yummy food they grew so that people can eat it.
  • Invite your children to participate by choosing which food to sing about next. I’ve created a list of optional verses for you to choose from, but feel free to come up with more of your own. Depending on the attention span of your children, I recommend only singing 3 to 5 verses each time you sing the song.
  • Try adding visuals, whether you bring real examples of the food, make pictures of them, or cut pictures of them out of flyers. Visuals help young children understand and follow the song, especially if they are still learning English.

 

As this is an original song, please be sure to include my name as the songwriter any time you share this song.

Preschool Harvest Song

Song by: S. J. Little

Tune: Are You Sleeping

 

We are growing, we are growing,

Long orange carrots, long orange carrots.

Now we’ll harvest them to eat, now we’ll harvest them to eat.

Yummy, yummy, good! Yummy, yummy good!

Actions:

We are growing – pat field around you in several places

Long orange carrots – move fingers along outside of long carrot shape

Now we’ll harvest them to eat – start with arms wide then bring in towards self as though gathering armload

Yummy, yummy, good! – pretend to eat

 

Optional Verses:Hand holding freshly harvested carrots

  • Bright red tomatoes
  • Lots of potatoes
  • Juicy red apples
  • Tall yellow corn
  • Rich green spinach

 

What food items did you sing about with your children?

Looking for more original and engaging preschool songs? Check out the Flamingo Song and the Taxi Song both by S. J. Little.