The Cow Says “Moo”

Young children LOVE to learn about farm animals. When our sons were little, their favorite children’s stories about farm animals included Oh Dear by Rod Campbell and The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle. There are many traditional farm songs, too. I’d love to have you try out this one, The Cow Says ‘Moo’ from Jump Jump Everyone by Kathy Kampa (available from ETJbookservice, CD Baby, and iTunes).

Let’s get started. Show pictures of the various farm animals from a picture book or from these blog images. Children might suggest additional animals from the farm, too.

black and white dairy cow s head
Photo by Public Domain Pictures on Pexels.com

cow

white sheep during daytime
Photo by Public Domain Pictures on Pexels.com

sheep

brown horse on grass field
Photo by David Dibert on Pexels.com

horse

beagle puppy
Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

dog

nature animals pig alp rona
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

pig

two brown hen and one red rooster
Photo by samer daboul on Pexels.com

rooster

Name the animals. What does each animal say? Even animals make different sounds in English! You can make a game matching the animal picture with its sound or with its name.

Display the vocabulary words. Print the images in this blog and put them into clear file folders. I put magnets on the back of mine. I can use the files with different vocabulary. Hang the picture cards on the board in the order of the words.

Children can stand and sing the song. There are two parts to the song.

The first part is the animal name and sound. Do you see the pattern in the song?

The cow says “Moo”

The cow says “Moo”

“Moo! Moo! Moo! Moo!”

The cow says “Moo”

The second part includes TPR actions. Practice these with the children. Did you notice the rhyming words (floor/ more/ four)? That’s important for our students!

When the cow says “Moo” you’ve got to clap, clap, clap,

When the cow says “Moo” you’ve got to pat, pat, pat,

When the cow says “Moo” you’ve got to touch the floor,

Are you ready for more? Count 1-2-3-4!

Children listen for the next animal sound. In this song you’ll find a sheep (baa), horse (neigh), dog (woof), pig (oink), and rooster (cock-a-doodle doo). The verse with the rooster is slightly different.

Screen Shot 2019-09-14 at 18.30.22

Once children know the song, you can add some props.

  1. Make these animal masks from LifeoverCs. I put a piece of yarn on each mask so that the children can just put them over their heads. You can put a number on the masks to help you remember the order of the animals.

2. Use Beanie Babies, stuffed animals, or puppets. Children love to hold these.

Small groups: Give each child one animal card or puppet. Listen for the name of each animal. When each animal is called in the song, the child with that animal card/puppet goes to the middle of the circle. The other children can walk in a circle around the child.

You can see my English class here.

Large class: If your students use desks, you can have each row designated as one of the animals. The child at the front of the row can hold the card. When each animal is called in the song, the children in that group can move around their desks.

You can also make a card for each student. When each animal is called in the song, the children with that animal card move around their desks holding their card up.

The music for this song is available on the CD “Kathy Kampa’s Jump Jump Everyone!”

Jump Jump Everyone

You can find it on iTunes, CD Baby Store, and ETJbookservice as well as streaming services, such as Spotify and Apple Music.

Have a wonderful time singing and moving with your students!

You can find Kathy on the farm in the summertime. There are no animals here, but lots of fresh veggies are growing.

Kathy Kampa is a passionate educator of young learners. She seeks to nurture children’s imaginations and spark creativity through fun and engaging activities. Kathy believes that music and movement should be a part of every young child’s learning.

Kathy is the co-author of Magic Time, Everybody Up, Oxford Discover (ELTon winner), and Beehive (published by Oxford University Press). She has been teaching young learners in Tokyo, Japan for over 30 years. Kathy is also active as a teacher trainer, inspiring teachers around the world. She has currently returned to her home state of Minnesota in the US.

If you’re interested in more of Kathy’s work, check out her YouTube channel at Kathy Kampa

Secrets to Teaching Songs in Young Learner English classes

If you teach young learners, you probably use chants and songs in your class. But how do you teach them to use them most effectively?

Each song we use has different challenges and is magical in its own unique way. Your challenge is to find that unique magic and share it with your students.

Do you know the secrets to teaching songs to young learners? You'll find helpful tips here.

I’m sharing an example from my online Zoom class with English students in Japan to help you see what we did with songs. Today we’ll look at the first song in this video called She Has a Shirt, from Magic Time 2.

Let’s talk about the parts of the lesson that lead up to the first song in this video. Magic Time, Unit 6 lesson takes place in a jungle where everyone has packed their clothing for the trip. In a Magic Time lesson, students first learn the six new vocabulary words (shirt, skirt, cap, dress, jacket, sweater). I like to introduce this vocabulary by making it magical, such as using a suitcase to hide the clothing items or the picture cards. The students are surprised to see them. In the textbook, students search for the vocabulary items in the double-page spread and practice the words in a chant. In the final listening activity, I invite students to predict which number will be said. They say, “I think number one is ________,” and put their eraser on that picture in their book. Then they write the number. This continues until all six numbers have been called. This activity pushes output from an early stage. The kids love it! We play additional games, too.

In the next lesson, students add the grammar paradigm: She/ He has a _________. When I’m in a classroom with the students, I make a rebus sentence using the grammar paradigm and the picture cards.

Now that the students have practiced the vocabulary and grammar, they’re ready to sing the song. Make sure that you listen to the song before you teach it. The first time my students listen to the song, they’re looking at the images in their book. The second time we add movements. You can see the students pointing to their clothing, too. They really love the silly monkey part.

The children really loved this song. It helped them use the vocabulary naturally. What makes this work?

First of all, the language was gently scaffolded. Students had an achievable step. This is called the Zone of Proximal Development.

Next, the language was taught in a variety of ways. On the right, you can see the “Multiple Intelligences Pizza.” This theory was developed by Dr. Howard Gardner and adapted for the classroom by Dr. Thomas Armstrong. Some teachers have used this theory to look at students’ talents. I use it, however, for planning varied ways to teach my lesson. In our lesson, students looked at pictures (individually and in context), followed patterns, explored musical songs and chants, and moved their bodies. They learned alone and played games with their classmates. Learning like this provides repetition that is varied and engaging. When you use MI (Multiple Intelligences) strategies, you create variety in your lessons. 

Remember: Repetition, Repetition, VARIATION.

Last of all, making learning a positive experience is a very important aspect of learning. To nurture students’ imaginations and fun, use hands-on materials, including picture cards, stuffed animals, puppets, instruments, beanbags, scarves, and found items.

Songs build fluency. Games build on the language taught in class. This dice game is so much fun and builds fluency along with reading skills. You can see the children rolling the dice, adding the sight words, then reading the sentence. This activity creates some funny sentences, such as “He has a dress.” (dice pattern in MT 2 Teachers’ book). Alternatively, you can use picture cards. Students turn over one of the character cards, choosing he or she. Then the student adds “has a,” followed by another vocabulary picture card (i.e. shirt).

Just a note that before students go home, I like to play the song again. Create the chance fo students to catch SSIYH, the “song stuck in your head” phenomenon. Good songs are easy for students to repeat. Repetition helps, too. Students will sing independently and happily.

Do you have a secret to teaching songs? Let us know at magictimekids@gmail.com. We’d love to hear from you!

Kathy loves to write music for children. If you’re looking for songs for little ones, check out these two CDs, available on iTunes.

Kathy Kampa is a passionate educator of young learners. She seeks to nurture children’s imaginations and spark creativity through fun and engaging activities. Kathy believes that music and movement should be a part of every young child’s learning.

Kathy and her husband Chuck are co-authors of Magic Time, Everybody Up, Oxford Discover, and Beehive (published by Oxford University Press). They have been teaching young learners in Tokyo, Japan for 30 years. Kathy and Chuck also active as teacher trainers, inspiring teachers around the world. They have currently returned to their home state of Minnesota in the US.

If you’re interested in more of Kathy’s work, check out her YouTube channel at Kathy Kampa. Kathy has collected numerous activities to link with her here on Pinterest.

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A Loose Tooth?

It has happened countless times in my teaching. A young student loses a tooth right in the middle of my lesson. I was most worried when one student bumped into another student during my class. The student was bleeding, so I ran to get her a towel. Then I saw her smile! She had been worried about her loose tooth, and it finally popped out. Whew! I wrote this song for her and for all of the kids who worry about losing a tooth.

Last week one of my students in my online English classes had a loose tooth, so we sang this song. Maybe one of your students does, too?

Here are the lyrics to my song Loose Tooth on Kathy Kampa’s Special Days and Holidays.

Loose Tooth by Kathy Kampa

I’ve got a loose tooth, Wiggle, wiggle. 

I’ve got a loose tooth, Wiggle, wiggle.

I’ve got a loose tooth, Wiggle, wiggle.

A loose tooth in my mouth.

Wiggle front to back, Wiggle, wiggle,  

Wiggle side to side, Wiggle, wiggle,

Wiggle up and down, Wiggle, wiggle,

Wiggle all around . . .  (repeat from the start)

Final: I had a loose tooth . . .

Here’s our YouTube video from our Zoom lesson.

What can your students learn during this song?

*Directional movements (front/back, side/side, up/down, around)

*oo/ sound (loose/tooth)

*Simply, it can help children stop worrying about a loose tooth. It fills the air with happy, fun, and silly vibes.

How does your culture celebrate the loss of a tooth? If you want to learn more about traditions around the globe, check out this informative article. And if you want to read a picture book about this, check out this post by Show and Tell.

Here in the US, a child places the tooth under their pillow at night. During the night, the tooth fairy collects the tooth and leaves some money in its place. Here’s a simple idea from East Coast Mommy for a darling tooth bag. For more ideas, go to my Pinterest page.

The studio version of Loose Tooth can be found on iTunes on Kathy Kampa’s Special Days and Holidays, track #2. Click here to take you there!

This album is filled with songs to celebrate the many events in a child’s life–a birthday, a loose tooth, and many major holidays.
About me

Kathy Kampa is a passionate educator of young learners. She seeks to nurture children’s imaginations and spark creativity through fun and engaging activities. Kathy believes that music and movement should be a part of every young child’s learning.

Kathy is the co-author of Magic Time, Everybody Up, Oxford Discover, and Beehive (published by Oxford University Press). She has been teaching young learners in Tokyo, Japan for over 30 years. Kathy is also active as a teacher trainer, inspiring teachers around the world. She has currently returned to her home state of Minnesota in the US.

If you’re interested in more of Kathy’s work, check out her YouTube channel at Kathy Kampa.

For a special playlist of Kathy Kampa’s Special Days and Holidays, click here.

Happy singing, dancing, and wiggling!!

Discover the parts of a flower with this magical fingerplay

When I was living in Japan, springtime was filled with one beautiful flower after another. We could find flowering trees (especially plum and cherry blossoms), purple and blue hydrangeas, wisteria, tulips, rapeseed, azaleas, and lots of roses.

Now we’re living in Minnesota. It’s been too cold for anything to start blooming yet. Once it warms up, however, we can find gardens filled with colorful flowers–zinnias, daylilies, purple coneflowers, hollyhocks, daisies, bee balms, and more. This year we’re going to plant a pollinator garden to help the bee and butterfly population.

The kindergarten children at my former school learned about living things. They planted seeds and watched them grow. Look at a real plant with your students. Look at the stem, the leaves, the buds, and the flowers. Do all plants have the same types of leaves? Buds? Flowers? What do they look like? If you don’t have a real plant, you can often find a silk one at a bargain store. I like to show students a watering can, too. This graphic showing how to plant from a Garden of Goodies (Pinterest) may be helpful.

Looking at how seeds changed into a flower

My students loved this poem called Here’s a Leaf! They would ask to do it over and over again. Yours will, too! You’ll see the magic when you try it. I use small, lightweight hemmed scarves like these. Search for “hemmed scarves” or “juggling scarves.” Check the reviews. I like mine! These scarves expand beautifully for this poem. Young children can practice naming the color, too.

Screen Shot 2020-03-19 at 16.55.57

In my video, we take you to Munsinger-Clemens Gardens, one of my favorite places in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Special thanks to my son, Christian Vilina for his awesome video work.

To begin, scrunch up the scarf in your hands, so that it can’t be seen. Here’s the video to show you how you might do it.

Here’s a Leaf (also known as The Flower Poemadapted by Kathy Kampa

Available on iTunes (Jump Jump Everyone)

Children listen and answer.

Here’s a Leaf video

Do you have a scarf? (Yes!) 

Let’s scrunch up our scarves. (tsch, tsch, tsch, tsch . . . . .)

(Scrunch up the scarf in your hands so that it’s not visible.)

Is your scarf very tiny? (Yes, it is!)

Are you ready? (I’m ready!)

Let’s pretend.

Let’s plant a seed in the dirt.

(Bend down and tap the ground, pretending to plant a seed in the dirt.)

Water it!

(Pretend to water the seeds by tipping your hands.)

Watch it grow and grow and grow.

(Stand up slowly.)

Now show me your thumbs. Here we go.

Here’s a leaf, and here’s a leaf.

(Pretend that your thumbs are leaves. Wiggle one thumb, then the other.)

Count them. 1-2.

(When you count 1-2, move your thumbs up and to the side.)

Here’s a bud.

(Open your hands slightly to reveal the scrunched-up scarf.)

Here’s a flower,

(Open your hands a little more.)

blooming just for you.

(Open your hands and let the scarf ‘bloom’ like a flower.)

Hooray!

(Toss the scarf into the air!)

Let’s grab our scarves and do it again!

For more kid-tested music and movement activities, check out my music on iTunes.

Jump Jump Everyone
Kathy has produced two music CDs for very young learners, Kathy Kampa’s Special Days and Holidays and Jump Jump Everyone, which build English language skills through movement while nurturing creativity and imagination! Grown and loved by real kids!

Kathy Kampa is a teacher, author, and teacher-trainer specializing in working with young learners. As a PYP (Primary Years Program) teacher, she uses a globally-minded and inquiry-based approach to teaching through which students develop 21st-century skills. She also supports the development of English language skills by creating songs, chants, and TPR/movement activities targeted to young learners’ needs.

Kathy and her husband Charles Vilina are also co-authors of Magic Time, Everybody Up, Oxford Discover (ELTon winner), Beehive/Buzz (2022), Blue Dot (2024), all published by Oxford University Press.

Thanks again to my son Christian Vilina for his vision in creating this video.

Images: “Easter Lily” by Recherché Furnishings is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Two-Two-Two-Two-Two

February 22, 2022 is a historic day–it’s 2/22/22! AND it’s on a Tuesday, yes, that’s TWO’S-DAY.

I wrote a little song called “Two-Two-Two-Two-Two” to celebrate this auspicious day.

One of the wonderful outcomes of the pandemic was meeting amazing teachers online, like Aimee Curtis Pfitzer. Aimee is a passionate musician, songwriter, and teacher. She’s constantly creating. She has written numerous books with Beatin’ Path Publishing. Check her out at www singsmileplay.com. So I reached out to Aimee to collaborate with me on this little song. Here’s our Zoom photo!

In this blog post, you’ll find the song lyrics, the notation, accompaniment, and a video with movement suggestions. We hope that your Tuesday, February 22, 2022 will be amazing!

Here are the lyrics:

Two, Two, Two, Two, Two!

Here’s the musical score for the song with the words written out. Thanks to Aimee Curtis Pfitzner for creating this score.

Have fun by adding some movement! Hold up two fingers. Make the shape of the number 2! Add some 2 count patterns by clapping, patting, stamping, and snapping. Grab your “tutu” if you have one!

Here’s a slow version of the song “Two, Two, Two, Two, Two” using hand gestures.
Here’s the faster version using “body percussion.” I made a pattern–pat, clap, pat, clap-clap.

Here’s the “karaoke” accompaniment on Chrome music lab. It’s fun for your students to see how the melody is moving. We’ve made two versions, a slower tempo and a faster one. If you have Boomwackers, your students can play this.

Slow version: 80

https://musiclab.chromeexperiments.com/Song-Maker/song/5761674782441472

 Fast version: 105

https://musiclab.chromeexperiments.com/Song-Maker/song/4818068420689920

Chrome Music Lab – Song made Feb 12, 2022

Join the fun and have a very happy 22222!

Kathleen’s two CDs for young learners, Kathy Kampa’s Special Days and Holidays and Jump Jump Everyone, build English language skills through music and movement while nurturing creativity and imagination.
 
Kathleen strives to help all students feel supported, balanced, and successful in the classroom. She supports the development of English language skills by creating songs, chants, and movement activities targeted to young learners’ overall needs.

Jump, hop, tiptoe . . . this CD invites children to move and use their imaginations. Grab a scarf and pretend to be a butterfly or a flower. Make the sounds of the rain on your legs. Children move in developmentally appropriate ways.
This album is filled with songs to celebrate the special days in your child’s life–a birthday, a loose tooth, plus lots of holidays. Songs prompt fun movement for kids.

Let’s Celebrate the New Year 2021!

images-1 Happy New Year 2021! We have celebrated O-shogatsu (New Year’s) with toshikoshi soba and o-sechi ryori, traditional New Year’s foods.  A couple of days ago my friend Kumi stopped by with her children. They had the song “Happy New Year” playing in their car. It fun to hear them singing along with with it. What a precious moment!! When our son Christian was in elementary school, he started playing this simple melody on our piano.  Now he’s grown up and is acting in Hollywood! I love this recording with Christian and my husband Chuck singing it at home for you:.

 

Happy New Year

Words and Music by Christian Vilina and Kathleen Kampa  © 2013

Happy New Year!  Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!  Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!  Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!  Hip hip hooray!

How should we move with this song? When students first listen to the song, they might like to jump, march, or twirl around.

When I first teach the words to this song, students keep a “steady beat” by patting their legs or clapping their hands. Then, to make it a little more challenging, students can create a pattern by patting their legs once, then clapping their hands. Think “pat-clap-pat-clap” or “down-up-down-up.” Do this for the first three lines.

We like to do something special on the last line:

—  On Happy New Year!  my students like to shake their hands above their heads. Some students like to turn around quickly!

—  On Hip hip hooray! students roll their hands, then jump once in place.

For an even bigger challenge, students can do the pat-clap pattern with a partner by patting their own legs, and then “air clapping” both hands with a partner.

Check out this pre-COVID video to see what my students did a couple of years ago! Students stand in a circle facing their partner. First they pat their own legs, then clap with their partner. Then they turn to the person on the other side (called a “corner” in folk dance), repeating the pat-clap. They repeat the pattern with their partner, then corner until the Hip hip hooray

With COVID protocols in place, I’m going to revise this activity. Every student has a set of sticks, so I’m going to experiment using sticks like the Indian Dandiya dance. This will give students a chance to interact with a partner at a distance. Perhaps you have an idea for adapting this? 

Happy New Year 2021!  So perhaps you’re not singing with your students. Remember my chant.Screen Shot 2021-01-05 at 17.13.38

We hope that you keep a song in your heart and a smile on your face. May this year be filled with lots of joy!

Kathy

Special Days and HolidaysHappy New Year is one of 15 great songs for kids on Kathy Kampa’s Special Days and Holidays. The CD includes a handy attached booklet with lyrics, and is available for teachers in Japan at ETJ Book Service.

For teachers residing outside of Japan, the songs are available for download through iTunes. To hear the studio version of this song, go to iTunes, and click on Track #3. CDs are also available for sale through the Mad Robin Music & Dance in Seattle, WA.

 

Kathy’s second CD Jump Jump Everyone is filled with songs to get students moving! Songs and chants build Cover screen shotEnglish language skills through simple movement activities. They nurture a child’s imagination and creativity.  There are beautiful seasonal songs, lively gross motor movement songs, plus effective transitional songs. Grab a scarf and play along. Grown in the young learner classroom, you’ll find that your children will ask for these songs over and over again.

 

Let’s Add a Little Music and Movement

If you’re looking for activities for young learners, check out my Facebook LIVE workshop. I teach children from age 2 – 12 in Tokyo, and these activities have all been LOVED in my classrooms. The activities support English language development as well as developmental body movement.
Today’s FB LIVE (February 21, 2019) included the following: It Is Raining (focus on body parts), Little Worms (vocal expression, yoga movement, building group unity), Come and Sit In Front of Me (transitional), Tiny Egg (Butterfly Life Cycle, creative movement, connection to Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar), Flitter Flutter Butterfly (pronunciation practice, rhyming sounds, movement), Here’s a Leaf (seed-leaf-bud-flower), Folding Scarves (transitional), Scarves Please (Transitional), We Love Hina Matsuri (song/canon for Japanese Girls’ Day), We Did It.  You can find all of the lyrics inside the CDs. 

If you like my music, it’s available on iTunes or https://www.etjbookservice.com/…/kathy-kampas-cds-4/

Materials for "Tiny Egg" chant
These are the materials used for the Tiny Egg chant (available on iTunes)

Kathy Kampa's Special Days and Holidays
 .     .  Children’s songs for special events for pre-school, kindergarten, and elementary students

Jump Jump Everyone
Jump! Turn into butterflies. Plant magical flowers!

Run, Run, Run!

happy kids , jumping
I teach very young learners. I love the energy that these students bring to my class!  The question is how to harness that energy productively.  This chant from Magic Time One 2nd edition (OUP) is perfect for very young learners.

In the lessons prior to this, students learned about various pets, such as cat, dog, rabbit, bird, turtle, and frog.  (Actually the artwork shows additional pets that the children find in the pictures). The four verbs in this lesson are jump, run, hop, fly.

First of all, students practice each of the four verbs–jump, run, hop, fly–standing in one place.  It’s also important for young learners to learn “Stop!”  It’s fun to make it a game by saying these verbs several times (Jump! Jump! Jump!), and then “Stop!”  You can do this with music by starting and stopping the music.  When my students, they love to make interesting poses, too.

Secondly, put these four words into the chant pattern.  I like to do this as a fingerplay sitting with the students.

For jump, place two fingers in your palm, then pretend to “jump.”

For run, make your fingers move quickly in your palm.

For hop, place one finger in your palm, then pretend to “hop.”

For fly, move your fingers in the air.

You can place the four picture cards in the order of the song like this.  Put the three verbs in one row, and run in another.

Jump           Hop                Fly

              Run

You can see in the video that my students matched the animals to the picture cards.

Run, Run, Run! from Magic Time One 2e Unit 10

Jump! Jump! Run, run, run!

Jump! Jump! Run, run, run!

Jump! Jump! Run, run, run!

Jump! Jump! Stop!

Change jump to hop.  Then change to fly.

Here’s a video of some of my very young learners performing this chant.

Students extend this language by putting it into the phrase, It can _______.  Students are then able to talk about all of the pets they’ve learned about.

Have fun!!!

What Day Is It?

happy children group in school
Students love to make letter shapes with their bodies.

Learning the names of the days of the week in English can be tricky.  For many of us, we teach our English class on the same day each week.  This song “What Day Is It?” is a fun way to practice the days of the week.

First of all, write a letter on the board or show a picture card.  Model making that letter with your fingers, arms, or whole body.  Make the letter so that students are able to read it. You might imagine how that letter would look when you write it on your whiteboard. Students will be able to “read” your letter. Invite students to make letters with you.  They might even make letters with the entire class! Try making letters in many different ways.

We started at the beginning of the alphabet.  Students made  A, a, and B, b (see B below).  In Magic Time (Oxford University Press) students have fun making letter shapes to learn the letter name and its sound.

Now write the names of the days of the week.  Run your finger under the word as you say it (Sunday). Point out the first letter. Encourage students to make that letter with their bodies in several ways.  Remind students that days of the week begin with capital letters. As you can see, sometimes the letters appear flipped around to us.  The important idea is that students are making the letter shapes.

I love to catch my students making their amazing letters by taking photos. Remember CCBA (Catch Children Being Amazing!)

Pass out the “days of the week” cards, one to each student. Students line up in order around the circle starting with Sunday.  Students make the initial letter shape as they sing  each day of the week.  When they sing “Tra la la la la” add a group movement, such as pat your knees, clap your own hands, clap your “neighbor’s” hands.

What Day Is It? 

from Magic Time Two, Unit 8, Use the Words

What day is it?

Today is Sunday.

Today is Sunday.

Today is Sunday.

Tra la la la la.

*repeat with the remaining days of the week

Here are some of my students demonstrating this song.  Come and join them!

 

 

 

 

What Are You Going to Be For Halloween?

Image from Graphic Stock

Image from Graphic Stock

Are you preparing for Halloween? I know that many of my teacher friends are. I love Halloween because it invites students to nurture their creativity through imaginative activities. Students move in more expressive ways and play with facial expressions. Let’s explore moving like various Halloween characters.

First of all, I like to gather students in front of me to teach the vocabulary. I sing the transitional song “Come and Sit In Front of Me.” (by K. Kampa) The professional version of this transitional song is here for you.

Come and sit in front of me, in front of me, in front of me.

Come and sit in front of me, in front of me,

You can print the I’m a Witch picture cards and teach students the following song.

I’m A Witch

Words by Kathleen Kampa and Charles Vilina,

melody: Skip to my Lou

Spoken: Let’s be witches and fly on our broomsticks.

Hee! Hee! Hee! I’m a witch

Hee! Hee! Hee! I’m a witch!

Hee! Hee! Hee! I’m a witch!

Happy Halloween!

2. Spoken: Let’s be ghosts and float gently through the air.

Boo! Boo! I’m a ghost! (3X)  Happy Halloween!

3. Spoken: Let’s be bats and fly through the night sky.

Eeek! Eeek! I’m a bat! (3X)  Happy Halloween!

4. Spoken: Let’s be owls and turn our heads from side to side.

Whoo! Whooo! I’m an owl! (3X)  Happy Halloween!

5. Spoken: Let’s be black cats. Put on your whiskers and sneak around.

Meow! Meow! I’m a black cat! (3X)  Happy Halloween!

I’m a Witch (picture cards)

Now it’s time to be creative and move. Decide on the space that your students can move in. I usually start with movement in a circle, and then allow students more freedom to move in an open space. You can use the spoken cues to help guide your students’ movements. Students start by posing like the characters, such as the witch, then move around in a circle. I often tap a drum to the rhythm of the movement. To make it more magical, add the words “Abracadabra! You’re a witch!”  When you can see that students have moved enough, say “Stop!” Continue with the other characters. I like to recognize students who are really being imaginative and creative with their movement.

Finally, either sing the song acapella or play the song on the CD Kathy Kampa’s Special Days and Holidays. My students love the special effects.

Special Days and Holidays

If you’re interested in the music, you can download the song from iTunes or get the CD with lyric sheets from CD Baby and Englishbooks.jp.  Find more Halloween ideas here on the blog and on my Pinterest page.

Happy Halloween!  Kathy and Chuck