We are so busy trying to give children what we didn't have
that we are failing to give them what we did have!
When my grandson completed kindergarten I asked him if he had ever played “The Farmer in the Dell.” He didn’t know what I was talking about! “The Farmer in the Dell,” “London Bridge,” “Mulberry Bush,” "The Wheels on the Bus" and so many other songs and games are part of what I refer to as our “early childhood heritage.” If children don’t experience these things in pre-K or kindergarten, then they’ll probably never get to do them! And that’s sooooo sad!
The crazier our world gets, the more we need to remember our roots and traditions.
Why?
Three of our leading educational theorists give insight into why these songs and games are so powerful in early childhood. Piaget observed that the more actively involved children are with people and things in their world, the more quickly they will assimilate new learning. Dewey emphasized that educational experiences are intricately interwoven with social experiences. Vygotsky also stressed the importance of social interaction to the child’s ability to construct meaning.
Get ready for some fun with these songs:
1. The Wheels on the Bus
2. Coming ‘Round the Mountain
3. I’ve Been Working on the Railroad
4. Old MacDonald
5. Bingo
6. Home on the Range
7. My Bonnie
8. Skip to My Lou
9. Farmer in the Dell
10. Mulberry Bush
11. Frog Went a Courting
12. Humpty Dumpty
13. Jack & Jill
14. Hickory Dickory Dock
15. Hey Diddle Diddle
16. Little Boy Blue
17. Muffin Man
18. Little Miss Muffett
19. Baa Baa Black Sheep
20. Jack Be Nimble
21. Little Jack Horner
22. Mary Had a Little Lamb
23. I’m a Little Teapot
24. London Bridge
25. Twinkle Twinkle
26. Itsy Bitsy Spider
27. Yankee Doodle
28. Three Little Kittens