I have two people that are my "go to" choice for music in the classroom: Dr. Jean & Shari Sloane. They are both fantastic and if you have never checked them out, you are totally missing out!
My favorite morning song to use is called "Hello Friend" by Dr. Jean. The kids love it and it gets them moving around and shaking hands with all of their friends. This song is on the CD called Dr. Jean in Espanol. The awesome thing is that after we listen to "Hello Friend" in English, we then play the Spanish version called "Hola Amigo."
This always makes my spanish speaking kids smile (because after all, they know all the words). The other kids eventually pick up on the words and do actually learn how to sing along with the song pretty well. On days when we were short on time, I always let them vote which version to sing--and they always choose the Spanish version. :-)
My favorite alphabet song is from Shari Sloane. "Letter Pop" is a song that helps kids learn letters and sounds. It's set to the tune of the 50's song 'Lollipop' and the kids love singing it. You can listen to a sample of it here, on Shari Sloane's website. (you will probably end up humming the tune for the rest of the day.....it's pretty catchy!)
After my kids learn this song really well, I often use it as a transition song during the day. Cleaning up seems to go so much faster when they know they have to finish by the end of the song....and since they love singing it, they really don't complain about the 'clean up' part.
My favorite math song is also from Shari Sloane. It's called "Bingo, Bango, Bongo" and is a skip counting song. In this song kids learn how to count by 2's, 5's, 10's, and even 100's. Any song that makes skip counting fun is a win in my book!!! You can listen to a sample of it here. This was one of those songs that the kids begged to sing over and over. It's also one of those songs that will probably get stuck in your head. :-)
So what about you? Do you have some favorite songs you use in your classroom? Don't forget to join the linky party and share your favorite songs to use in the classroom!
Love Dr. Jean's Hello Friend song... I didn't know there was a Spanish version. I need to get that CD!!! I haven't heard of Shari Sloane but I love those previews!!! I'm definitely getting those!!!
ReplyDeleteI found you through the linky party and I'm a new follower!
-Jessica
A Turn to Learn