I’ve seen a lot of funny things in my years of working with kids, but one of the funniest has to be watching a child learn to play the kazoo. For some, it clicks right away, but most of the time there is a learning curve involved.

My two-year-old fell into the latter category; once he got it, though, I finally had to hide the kazoo during naptime to give my ears a break ;)

Learning to play the kazoo 😂 #parkergram #bingo

A video posted by Rachel Rambach (@rachelrambach) on May 9, 2015 at 6:49am PDT

Parker’s rendition of “Bingo” inspired me to write a song all about playing the kazoo, which was a topic I hadn’t previously tackled. The song ended up in my Ring, Sing, Strum & Drum songbook (along with 11 other songs for all kinds of instruments).

The key to teaching a child to play the kazoo is to first help him or her master humming. When I use this song, I introduce it first with no kazoo at all; instead, we just sing and hum. Then we add kazoos, at which point there’s no turning back!

Kazoos are great for working on oral motor skills, proper breath support and control, and of course, upping the silliness factor of any class or music therapy session. I’m in the middle of planning my upcoming Listen & Learn for Little Ones session, and this song might just have to be included.

P.S. Did you know that you can gain instant access to a vast collection of over 200 songs (mp3, lead sheet, and instrumental track), videos, tutorials, and visual aides, plus ALL new releases from Listen & Learn Music?