Fun Seated Activities and Kids Songs for the Classroom
/We love creating songs and activities that work in all different types of environments and situations. Every day something new happens — homes and classrooms can be raucous one day, calm the next. It's helpful to have kids songs for any occasion.
Sometimes, like when we wrote "Scooter Scat", a child brings us a problem to solve (or a favorite thing to celebrate) and we use children’s music to talk about it. Other times, we notice that a situation could be enhanced with a new activity.
In fact, we've learned that MOST situations can be enhanced this way!
Here are Fun Seated Activities to Try in the Classroom
Sometimes it's helpful to have a seated movement activity in the classroom. Often done in a group setting, seated activities can promote repetition, core strength, and coordination.
Try some fresh ideas for your circle time!
While "Wheels on the Bus" and "Itsy Bitsy Spider" can be great, here are three original Yo Re Mi songs to help you mix it up. These easy kids sing-along songs were all written during circle time in classrooms, when a new song was helpful to the conversation at hand, or guiding the group to a new activity or discussion.
1. Making a Pizza
Do you love pizza as much as we do? Let’s make one together! We love to take a fun cooking adventure with big stretching movement, a logical story, and of course, pizza!
2. Sittin' On The Floor
This song contains a double negative, we know. Ain't no big deal. :) “Sittin’ on the Floor” works on sequencing and cross-body movement, and is a hit with children ages two and up. Sing along with us!
3. Wash Your Hands
Help your children (and yourself) avoid spreading germs! This Yo Re Mi children’s song is popular with teachers who are helping children during transitions to/from lunch, bathroom or outside play time. Try it with your students!
The Benefit of Creating Songs for Every Situation
Gathering, getting energized, relaxing, empathizing, being silly, focusing, letting out your inner unicorn, resolving a conflict, recognizing the power of our community, or saying goodbye... we love making songs and sequences for all occasions!
As active members of the learning community, when we share original songs or artwork we demonstrate several things:
By sharing songs that relate to what's happening in the room, we let children know we hear them, and see them.
We recognize that we have something to contribute which we think would be interesting to others. Modeling this sort of risk-taking is crucial to helping children feel safe sharing their own thoughts and ideas. There is no greater support for SEL than classroom discussion. Many times, sharing a new song with children will lead to a surge in ideas and sharing — "I have a new song!" "Listen to my song!" "My grandpa wrote a silly song once..." - it can become a very active discussion!
Loris Malaguzzi, founder of the Reggio Emilia approach wrote: "The child has a hundred languages, a hundred hands, a hundred thoughts / a hundred ways of thinking, of playing, of speaking." Embracing these hundred languages ("And a hundred hundred more") is an open, inclusive invitation to express. Encouraging children to use these languages - whether through movement, sound, story, painting, or another way - offers them a sense of respect. We respect that they have ways they want to create, and that their ideas and expression is important for the group.
Sharing a new song — one way in one language of expressing — encourages all forms of expression. And I hope it's clear - if singing isn't the language you want to share through - there are a hundred ways ("And a hundred hundred more"!!) that you can offer your expression to your children.
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