Move with the Classics

Families Sing Music Kit: Move with the Classics

Library storytimes are designed to enhance a child’s language development by giving them a variety of experiences. Take this Families Sing Music Kit home and create your own family storytime at home with our books, felt board stories, fingerplays, songs, music and action rhymes.

Although we have included a plan to use all the materials in one 45-minute sitting, each item can be used independently or with just one or two other items.

We hope you have fun exploring each theme in your home and at your own pace!

KIT CONTENTS:

White Program Notebook

1 Traveling Felt Board with felt board story“Three Little Pigs” ( 7 pieces)

BOOKS

Kuskin, KarlaThe Philharmonic Gets Dressed

McPhail, DavidMole Music with CD

Moss, Lloyd Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin with CD

Perlmutter, RichardBeethoven’s Wig with CD

Raschka, ChrisSimple Gifts with CD

Prokofiev, SergeiPeter and the Wolf with CD

CDs

Baby Dance: A Toddler’s Jump on the Classics

Beethoven’s Wig

Beethoven’s Wig 2

Families Sing, a collaborative project of the Mohawk Valley Library System and member libraries, is supported by Federal Library Services and Technology Act funds, awarded to the New York State Library by the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Prepared by Joyce R. Laiosa for the Mohawk Valley Library System, 2006

Families Sing Music Kit: Move with the Classics

Suggested Program

1) Sing/Chant: “Sing a Song of Sixpence” – Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme

Sing a song of sixpence

A pocket full of rye (pretend to pull some grains of rye from pocket)

Four and twenty blackbirds (count with fingers 4+10+10)

Baked in a pie. (pretend to hold a pie in hands)

When the pie was opened,

The birds began to sing,

Wasn’t that a dainty dish

To set before a king?

The king was in the counting house (place crown on head to show king)

Counting all his money; (pretend to count coins)

The queen was in the parlor, (place smaller crown on head)

Eating bread and honey. (pretend to eat)

The maid was in the garden,

Hanging out the clothes, (make motions to hang clothes on a line)

When along came a blackbird, (make one hand “fly” over head)

And nipped off her nose. (nip nose with fingers)

Nursery rhymes, by their nature of being rhymes, are a great way to play with language for children. This is called phonological awareness. Play with the rhymes and make up others for children to hear rhyming words. It can be done with any set of words, real words or made up words. It is the rhyming that is important. Phonological awareness is one of the steps to help a child reach their early literacy potential. It will prepare the child for reading when he/she enters school.

2) Read/listen to Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss

Listen to the book as it is being read on the CD. The illustrations are very busy so this is a good opportunity to point out the different instruments on the page and to count the number of players that make up each spread: a duet, a trio, a quartet [2,3,4, etc.].

Read the book again without the CD and have children count players for the different groups of instruments. How many instruments can you find?

3) Sing and march: “The Finger Band”

The finger band is coming to town,

Coming to town, coming to town.

The finger band is coming to town,

So early in the morning.

(Wiggling fingers, move hands from behind back to front.)

This is the way we wear our hats,

Wear our hats, wear our hats,

This is the way we wear our hats,

So early in the morning.

(Hands form pointed hats on heads.)

This is the way they wave their flags….

(Hands above head, wave back and forth.)

This is the way they beat their drums….

(Beating motion with hands.)

This is the way they blow their horns…

(Hands cup mouth like horn.)

Add more instruments and actions to match as children come up with ideas.

4)Read: The Philharmonic Gets Dressed by Karla Kushkin

5)Chant/Action Rhyme

I’ll dress up, I’ll dress up.

Here’s what I’ll wear when I dress up.

My new shoes, my new shoes,

I’ll wear my new shoes when I dress up!

(Point to shoes and pretend to put on. Make motions for getting dressed with each piece of clothing.)

Other choice for verses:

New shirt (or a [color] shirt)

New pants (or a [color] pair of pants)

Socks

Hat

Sweater

6)Read and listen to Beethoven’s Wig

This is a very famous piece of music, written by Beethoven, with lyrics put to the music. It is a marvelous way for children to listen to classical music and get silly. Beethoven did NOT wear a wig, but it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t have to make sense. It is for fun, rhymes, and a way to remember the composer of this piece of music.

7)Fingerplay: “Look at me!”

Look at me! (point to self)

Upon my head I wear a hat of brightest red. (hands on head)

Look at me! (point to self)

Don’t I look neat with shiny shoes upon my feet? (point to feet)

Look at me! (point to self)

Hip hip hooray! (clap hands)

With shirt and pants (point to clothing)

I’m dressed to play. (jump up and down)

Repeat

8)Listen to Peter and the Wolf CD and turn pages of book with story.

This is a beautiful piece of music, and a story that captures the imagination. After the story has finished, ask the children about their favorite characters, which animal they liked the best, which animal they liked the least. This is called dialogic listening. It is an early literacy skill where you engage your child in a discussion, and ask questions with open-ended answers. You do not want to ask “yes” and “no” questions. You want them to discuss the book in their own way with you. This skill will prepare them for reading when they enter school.

9)Felt story: “Three Little Pigs.”

Felt board with felt characters

Here is another story with a wolf in it. You can tell a very short version of the three little pigs, their houses of straw, sticks, and bricks, and don’t forget to use the phrase: “Little pig, little pig, let me come in.” “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin.” “Then I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house in!” You may end the story with the wolf in the traditional manner, of him being killed in a boiling pot of soup, or you may leave it open-ended and have the children suggest an ending.

Use the felt pieces as you tell the story, or have the children put the pieces on the board as you tell it. The second time around, the child can tell the story with the pieces.

10)Read/listen to Simple Gifts by Chris Raschka

Listen to the CD as you turn the pages of the book. Follow the cat over the pages and try to sing the song with the chorus at the end.

11)Sing/Chant: Fingerplay: “Where is Thumbkin?”

Here is a very simple fingerplay song that is easy to remember and fun for children to do!

Begin with hands behind back. Every line is repeated twice – for each hand/finger. Bring the appropriate finger forward and then hide it behind back again.

Where is thumbkin? Where is thumbkin?

Here I am, here I am.

How are you today?

Very well, thank you.

(Have fingers wave to each other.)

Go away, go away.

Where is pointer? Where is pointer?

Here I am, here I am.

How are you today?

Very well, thank you.

Go away, go away.

Where is tall man? Where is tall man?

Where is ring man? Where is ring man?

Where is small man? Where is small man?

12)Read/listen to Mole Music by David McPhail.

This is a very soothing book. After you have finished you might want to talk about the beautiful music mole played. You could finish with “Twinkle twinkle little star.”

13)CD – Baby Dances: A Toddler’s Jump on the Classics or Beethoven’s Wig

There are many great pieces on this CD. Use it for soothing songs or for marches around the house. Give a child a scarf and let him/her use it as a cape or anything they can think of. Let them color to the music, or take a nap. Put the CD on as background music to playtime.

14)Art Activity

It is always fun to extend your reading and music time with other activities.

Make paper puppets for the Three Pigs and the wolf. Let the children tell the story with their puppets.
Have the children help bake a pie (use pre-made pie dough) and pretend you are baking a “blackbird” pie. Mom and Dad can be King and Queen!
Listen to the CD and pick out the instruments that you have now learned from the books. See if you can take out books from the library about instruments for excellent pictures. Cut out magazine pictures if you see any instruments.
Make a book of favorite nursery rhymes with pictures of your children and their own color pictures.
Listen to the third piece from Beethoven’s Wig book (“Moonlight Sonata”). Have children cut out pictures of cars and trucks and glue them on to paper to tell the story of the honking cars. Or they can be mounted on craft sticks as stick “puppets” to retell the story with the music.

Felt story: “Three Little Pigs.”

Story includes 3 pigs, straw house, stick house, brick house, and wolf.

Use the felt pieces as you tell the story, or have the children put the pieces on the board as you tell it. The second time around, the child can tell the story with the pieces.