Meet Them in Music

Biddy Biddy Hold Fast

Wed, 06 May 2026 09:46:00 +0000

Activity

Have students sit in a circle. One student stands in a far away spot in the room - This student is the “finder.” While the class sings the song, another student will go around the circle pretending to drop an item in each students’ hands - This student is the “hider.” The “finder” will have 3 guesses to find where the hidden object.

Whoever had the hidden object becomes the finder, the finder becomes the hider, the hider returns to the circle.

It's a dignity issue: Age-appropriate music for your self-contained students

Mon, 04 May 2026 21:25:00 +0000

You’ve taught Five Little Speckled Frogs a hundred times. You know exactly how it goes. It works. That matters.

And somewhere in the back of your mind, maybe you’ve wondered whether it’s the right fit for every student in the room. Maybe you haven’t. You’re busy. The lesson loads fine. The class leaves happy. It is familiar but it was made for two-year-olds.

But here’s the question worth sitting with: who decided what “working” looks like?

Let Us Chase the Squirrel

Mon, 04 May 2026 12:41:00 +0000

This is best done outdoors on grass.

Activity

Stand students in a circle with their arms outstretched. They should be just far enough apart to touch fingers with their neighbors. Assign one student to be the squirrel and one to be the dog. The squirrel can run in and out of the circle but the dog must stay on the outside. When the squirrel runs through a hole in the tree, the door closes and they cant go back through.

Chickema

Fri, 01 May 2026 12:39:00 +0000

Activity

This is a four corners game. Assign a number to each corner of the playing area. One student (or the teacher) will guess which corner they think other students have snuck to. When students are “caught” they sit in the center of the room and sing the song. Only students who get out have the opportunity to be the guesser.

Teaching Tips

Make the rule that you if you make a noise to fool the guesser, you are automatically out and don’t get a turn that round. You can compliment the student for being clever, but talk about how it is unfair and what it would feel like if they got out because somebody did that to them.
When there are 4 or fewer students, do not allow the sharing of corners. This makes the game more fun!

Language/Cultural Note

Obwisana

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 08:15:00 +0000

This is a fun passing game but can be challenging because it requires all students to pass accurately. If students do not pass correctly, there will be a pile-up of rocks/beanbags.

Activity

Sit students in a circle. Teach the song by rote (noting the repeat). Practice passing one beanbag or stone around the circle to a steady beat. Once you can do it with the song and a single beanbag, give every student a beanbag or rock of their own.

Bim Bum Biddy

Sun, 19 Apr 2026 21:23:00 +0000

Activity

I introduce this by saying “the points of this song is that it is challenging. It is hard to keep up with the hand movements!” Productive Struggle is important!

Word	Movement
Bim	Both hand tap legs
Bum	Clap
Biddy Biddy	Snap or tap thumb and fingers

A lot of kids can’t snap. I call tapping the thumb and fingers “crab clapping.” This also helps with speed.

Extension As the teacher, you get a ton of practice. Kids will notice and ask how you are able to do it so fast. Turn it into a math question! “I have been teaching this to 5 classes this week and I practiced it with you 10 times … I got 50 practices this week. BUT! I have been teaching for 15 years … "

Audition Music

Sun, 19 Apr 2026 16:05:00 +0000

It is possible the trumpet part will not sound quite right. If the notes song wrong on the turmpet, set the transpose label to Bb and the octave label to -1

Lucy Locket

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 14:49:00 +0000

Activity

Sit students in a circle, close enough to pass an object to their neighbor. Practice singing the song while everyone taps the ground in front of themselves.

Practice passing a baby shoe around the circle to the beat, repeating the word “pass” with every pass. Remind students to place it on the ground, not toss it, hand it to their neighbors, or hold onto the shoe.

Pass the shoe while singing the song. Freeze on the word “shoe” and see who is holding the shoe.

Slides shortcode reference

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The slides shortcode creates a text-based slideshow inside any song library entry or page. Slides are separated by --- on its own line. Navigation works by clicking the prev/next buttons, pressing the arrow keys (when the slideshow has focus), or using the fullscreen button for projection.

Basic syntax

{{< slides >}}
# First slide heading

Any supporting text goes here.

---

# Second slide heading

More text, a list, whatever you need.

---

# Third slide
{{< /slides >}}

Typography

Headings and text follow the site’s color rules inside a slide:

A Ram Sam Sam

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 08:35:00 +0000

Language Note

This song comes from Morocco and uses Moroccan Arabic. As a result of French influence, Moroccan Arabic is very different and, at times, inaccessible to speakers of other forms of Arabic.

When presenting this song to students, it would be better to describe it as "Moroccan" instead of "Arabic" to avoid cultural disambiguation.

I have attempted to check aspects of this song and language with my Arabic speaking and culturally Arabic university students.

Activity

Toodala

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 08:02:00 +0000

Activity

Sing the song while standing as still as possible. When you get to the B section (“Mighty pretty motion”) do a simple dance. Examples of a dance are waving your hands in the air, patting your heat to the beat, hopping in place, etc.

Invite students to create dance moves to put in the song. Remind the students to freeze before each repetition of the song.

The same activity fits with the song Clapping Land

Atta Katta Moeva

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 08:47:00 +0000

This is a Dutch song from the Netherlands that is used to help teach articulation and enunciation. From what I can tell, the lyrics are mostly non-sense sounds but I welcome information otherwise.

Related Song

A song with similar activities and skills is A Ram Sam Sam.

As an English speaker, I like this song for enunciation because Dutch is very similar English with greater attack on the consonants.

Activity

Sing the song for the students. Being an unfamiliar language it may take some time to learn the lyrics. My students latch on to the B section quickly.

Book Review: Love Builds Brains

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 07:53:00 +0000

Jean Clinton is a Canadian developmental psychiatrist, and Love Builds Brains is her accessible, practitioner-facing argument that children’s behavior, learning, and long-term wellbeing are not primarily a matter of discipline or motivation. They are a matter of neuroscience, and more specifically, of relationships.

Quote of the Book

“Every child needs a person whose eyes light up when they walk in the room”

Dr Jean Clinton

The brain is not a finished product

Ally Bally

Sun, 12 Apr 2026 22:15:00 +0000

Activity

Remove all but Do-Mi-So from the xylophones. Invite students up to play with you or set up a few to have students play as a group. On the “To buy some chocolate candy” have the students hold the mallets in both hands make an excited face (like when the kid says “it’s so fluffy Im going to die!” from the movie Despicable Me)

The challenges with this song are:

High Bird

Sun, 12 Apr 2026 20:21:00 +0000

Aurally Received

I learned this song aurally and have not seen in notated elsewhere. It feels “music learning theory.”
Though notated in c minor it may be better in e or f minor for childrens’ voices.

Activity

Provide students with scarfs to flow around their bodies as you sing the song. Try high, low, on different parts of the body.

Change words for high and low.

We All Went On Safari

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 14:47:00 +0000

Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 14:44:00 +0000

Moja Means One

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 14:43:00 +0000

Jambo Means Hello

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 14:31:00 +0000

Purple Light

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 13:55:00 +0000

Activity

This is a standard echo songs. Students echo the same as the teacher but the echoes line up in the middle of sentences making this feel a bit tricky for students at first.

Visual Supports: These slides were created for me by an AP Art student in my district. They may projected in your classroom but not altered or sold in anyway.

Purple Light, In the canyon, thats where I long to be. With my 3 good companions. My guitar my pony and me

Radna and Petko

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 11:52:00 +0000

Activity

Give every student a beanbag to balance on the back of their hand (to represent an engagement ring). While singing the song, smoothly flow the beanbag around being careful not to drop it.

Students like to show off that they can balance a beanbag on one finger. Do this on the second repetition.

Allow students to suggest other places to put the beanbag and fit this into the song. Are there other types of jewelry that would make sense for these body parts? How can you make it rhyme with the song (Eyebrow rhymes with “engagement ring, now”)

Pole Pole

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 10:21:00 +0000

Swahili

“Pole, pole” is a Swahili phrase meaning “Slowly, slowly” or “Step-by-step.” It is pronounced “Poh-lay.” The phrase can mean “drive slowly” on a dangerous road. It also is used as a mantra similar to “take it easy”

Activity

This is a nice echo song using Swahili words and mentioning animals from Africa. Teach students to echo you as a group or by giving each student a solo turn.

This can also become a movement activity (think Snail Snail or Going on a Bear Hunt). Pretend to drive a truck on a safari, looking for animals.

Your lessons need a predictable structure

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 21:22:00 +0000

When I started teaching students with disabilities, my entire formal preparation consisted of one undergraduate course where I learned initialisms (ASD, MoCi, etc) and the word “differentiation.” The rest I had to figure out in the room, with real students, through a lot of trial and a fair amount of error.

What I have landed on, after years of refining, comes down to two things: a predictable lesson structure and a visual schedule. They are strategies that work together, and once you see why, you won’t want to teach without them.

Old Raggy

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 22:40:00 +0000

Old Raggy

Old Raggy is like a worse version of Santa Clause. He only brings presents you definitely don’t want!

Activity 1:

Have the students stand in Longways Sets, as if doing a folk dance. Old Raggy stands between the lines, with their feet stuck to the floor. After the students sing the song, Old Raggy tells them what is in the bag. It is always gross, nasty presents like a plastic bag full of toenails, moldy pizza, or blood. My one rule is “we NEVER use poop, pee, or people’s names.”

Haul Away Joe

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 22:08:00 +0000

Activity

Sit students in a circle around a stretchy-band/coop-band. Practice passing the band in around the circle while saying “pass” to a beat. After students are familiar with the song and are ready to sing, ask them to sing the “Way Haul Away” while you sing the other words. Practice going back and forth.

For extra fun, tie a ribbon or scarf around the stretchy-band. Cheer with the class when it lands on a different student. If there is a student who really needs to have it land on them … CHEAT!

Frog in the Meadow

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 21:19:00 +0000

Two versions are provided depending on the reading concept being taught.

Activity

One student is the “frog” while the others are the meadow. The Frog stomps around the room to the beat of the song. The student should freeze at the end of the song and select another student to be the frog.

John the Rabbit

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 17:18:00 +0000

Activity

This is a traditional echo song. Some classes do well starting with the whole group responding first while others do better by going around the room one at a time.

Be willing to wait necessary processing time for students who require lengthened processing time. I will wait up to 8 seconds for some students.

Assessment:

Nonverbal or minimally verbally responsive students may not respond as expected. Listen for responses approaching the appropriate pitch and time. A sample rubric is provided below.

Clapping Land

Mon, 06 Apr 2026 09:02:00 +0000

Other Movement Ideas:

Marching
Twirling
Tip Toe
Flossing
Jumping

Poor Old Crow

Sun, 05 Apr 2026 18:47:00 +0000

A Note on Mixolydian

If you are not accustomed to singing in Mixolydian, pay attention to the C natural.

Activity:

Have students come up to play a xylophone with you 1 and at time or in small groups. After the song is familiar, as students what food they would like to be in the song instead of “meat.” My kids always mention McDonalds!

I use bass bars but use the largest Orﬀ instrument you have, removing everything except the notes you want to use. You will need a tonic (I) and dominant (V) in whatever key you have available. D and A are nice because it sits within a child’s singing range.

A Qua Qua De La Omar

Sun, 05 Apr 2026 17:14:00 +0000

Activity:

This is a passing game where the students pass the beat.

Students sit or stand in a circle. Have them put their left hand out, palm up. Next, have them put their right hand palm up on their neighbor’s hand. To pass the beat, take your right hand over to your left hand. The next person does the same.

Continue around the circle on the beat. When you get to the word “Five” the person whose hand will be clapped must pull their hand back before they are struck.

Skin and Bones

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 22:32:00 +0000

I chose to write out each phrase individually as the rhythm is not consistent between all phrases.

Activity:

Social Extension:

Ask the students “Why was it her job to clean up the bones?” Talk about “Integrity” and how “doing the right thing is always the right thing to do.”

If you see something wrong, the right thing to do is to try to fix it … Maybe not cleaning up dead bodies, though!

Peas and Honey

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 22:05:00 +0000

Zoom Zoom Zoom We're Going to the Moon

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 15:27:00 +0000

Your classroom layout is a behavior management tool - here's how to use it

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 14:48:00 +0000

West Japan Railway had a problem that signage and staffing can’t fully solve: passengers — particularly those who have been drinking — stand up from platform benches and fall onto the tracks.

Their solution was not to add a warning. It was to rotate the benches 90 degrees.

That is the idea behind this post.

Your music room is already shaping how your students respond. The direction the chairs face, the distance between floor spots, the presence or absence of a designated calm space, and window coverings are not neutral features of the room. They are behavioral nudges. For students who are expressing their needs through behavior, those nudges either work for them or against them.

Did You Feed my Cow

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 12:47:00 +0000

Original source:

The original words (recorded by Thomas Talley) described the death of the cow. I have slightly altered the words to match our modern sensibilities. A link to the original words is on page 78 of the source book linked above.

If this song is too complicated with its multiple responses, try John the Rabbit. It assesses responding on tonic with different words than prompted.

Activity: This is a standard echo/response song procedure. You will need to give the students the answers before. Since they are not copying you, this is more challenging than a simple echo song.

Brendan and the Blarney Stone

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:41:00 +0000

Listen to my Trumpet

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:33:00 +0000

The Pigeon Will Ride the Roller Coaster

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:30:00 +0000

Whoops!

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:29:00 +0000

Giraffes Can't Dance

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:25:00 +0000

The Remarkable Farkle McBride

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:23:00 +0000

Ukulele Dreams

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:18:00 +0000

Love Builds Brains

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:11:00 +0000

Choice Boards: The Gateway to Speech and Song

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 16:45:00 +0000

Here’s a moment you’ve probably had. You’re about to launch into a singing activity, the kind your class is going to love, and you glance over at the student who is non-speaking or minimally verbal. And you quietly ask yourself: what do I do with them right now?

It’s an honest question. And most music teachers who ask it are already doing more than they give themselves credit for. The ones who don’t ask have already answered it, usually in one of two ways:

Stirring the Brew

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 22:24:00 +0000

If you can’t do songs with witches in them, similar activities go with the songs Frog in the Meadow and Akka Bakka Soda Cracker. Those songs are in duple meter and major, though.

Activity

Hold a xylophone mallet as if it is a large stirring stick in a witch’s cauldron. Walk around the room, singing and stirring the brew with both hands holding the mallet. Whichever kid you are standing in front of at the “Boo!” gets to take their turn next.

Go 'Round the Mountain

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 21:43:00 +0000

This is a favorite game with my students but it makes me incredibly dizzy!

This is the way I memorized the song years ago. It may not be “true” but it is right to my ear! The version others use is notated below.

Activity:

Build a circle of drums. I like to make “drum mountain” out of my tubanos with the teacher drum in the middle. March around the drum mountain, hitting the next drum on beat 1. Invite a student up to join you BUT they must march on the opposite side of the circle from you.

Grandma's Glasses

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I love this song as a way to get students familiar with the difference between duple and triple meter.

Introduction:

Ask the kids “In your family, who is taller: grandma or grandpa?” (Of course, not everybody has a grandpa or grandma. Use your discretion)

I like to say “In my family, my grandma is taller and my grandpa is shorter. My grandpa likes to wear cowboy boots to make himself look taller.” This is a true. If needed, I can also say “When my other grandpa was still alive, he was taller than my grandma.”

Great Big House in New Orleans

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is a great song to bring out the bass xylophone or bass bars.

Activity:

For classes that need it, I will often have the kids come up in turns. For classes that are more independent, I will set out multiple instruments. On the first attempt, play with the students on the same instrument.

Have a student choose the type of pie that is in the Great Big House. Fill in that word instead of “pumpkin.” Any answer is the acceptable!

Akka Bakka Soda Cracker

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Activity:

Turn taking game: One student stomps around the room to the beat of the song. On the final quarter note (“you!”) the student points to another student to take their place.

For students who are hesitant to participate, or who have movement difference, they can hold the hand of the teacher or their favorite paraprofessional. Additionally, a seating chart and a finger/pointer can take the place of stomping around the room for students who cannot safely move around the room.

Hogs in the Cornfield

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Activity:

Pair up students for rock-paper-scissors game. If a student wins, they find a new partner. If a student loses, they sit down. The goal is to get to a single “champion.”

Adjusting for movement differences: Create cards for each of the hand signs, select from a visual choice board, or AAC. Alternatively, students who are capable of doing the hand signs but not in time with the chant can hold their hand behind their back or turn around to reveal their choice.

Jeremiah Blow the Fire

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Activity:

Give every child a scarf. Have them copy your movement as move it from one side of your body to the other to the steady beat. Try other motions such as passing between hands, holding the scarf in both hands at once, trying to keep the scarf balanced on an elbow, resting it on a toe, or flowing with the scarf on your head. An challenging extension is to place the scarf over your face and blow on the word “blow.”

Pickles and Pie

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I learned this song aurally from a friend. Originally, my friend used a Lydian version of the tune. I chose to re-arrange the song in Mixolydian to match my ears’ preference.

This is a great song to get students to open up and begin talking. In the notation, I have put parenthesis around the word (Elephant). Allow students to replace the word elephant with whatever they would like. It is up to the TEACHER to find a way to fit it in the song! Kids will enjoy trying to trick you and this builds a great opportunity to build relationships.

Welcome to Meet Them in Music

Sun, 29 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Somewhere along the way, you got a student who didn’t fit the lesson you planned. Maybe they couldn’t hold the instrument the way the method book showed. Maybe the echo song fell apart because processing the call took longer than the response allowed. Maybe you looked at a room full of kids and realized your go-to repertoire wasn’t reaching the kid in the corner, and you didn’t know why, and nobody had ever taught you what to try instead.

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