There Was An Old Lady Who Played the Bell

by | Jun 8, 2011

There Was an Old Lady Who Played the Bell

I’m a big fan of all the “old lady” books, including There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly and I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie.  That old lady was the inspiration for today’s song, which I wrote for my students to accompany bells of any kind.

I incorporated a few different ways of playing the bells, but there is definitely opportunity for additional verses. Here’s what I came up with:

There was an old lady who played the bell,
Just like you she played the bell,
She played so well.

There was an old lady who played so fast,
Quickly as the time flew past,
Just like you she played the bell,
She played so well.

There was an old lady who played so slow,
On and on and on, she’d go,
And after that, she played so fast,
Quickly as the time flew past,
Just like you she played the bell,
She played so well.

There was an old lady who played up high,
In the air, from morning to night,
And after that, she played so slow,
On and on and on, she’d go,
And after that, she played so fast,
Quickly as the time flew past,
Just like you she played the bell,
She played so well.

I’d love to make a little picture book to go along with this song eventually. Or maybe even an entire series about the old lady who played different kinds of instruments. How fun would that be?!

The Feelings in My Heart

by | Feb 4, 2010


We talk a lot about love during February.  After all, it is the month in which we celebrate Valentine’s Day!  But what about all of those other feelings we experience on a daily basis? Recognizing, expressing, and regulating emotions are important skills for any child, including those with whom I work. I had this is mind when I wrote today’s song, “The Feelings in My Heart”. Take a listen:

Happiness, Excitement, Anger, Sadness, and Love,
My feelings are in my heart.
You can tell how I am feeling by my actions and words,
But in my heart is where they start.

I laugh and I smile when I’m happy,
Having fun with my friends for a while,
Happiness is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me laugh and smile.

I jump up and down when I’m excited,
When good things are coming around.
Excitement is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me jump up and down.

CHORUS

I yell and I pout when I’m angry,
When there’s something I’m mad about,
Anger is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me yell and pout.

I cry and I frown when I’m sad,
When I’m hurting or feeling down,
Sadness is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me cry and frown.

CHORUS

I hug joyfully when I feel love,
For my friend or my family,
Love is a feeling I have in my heart,
It makes me hug joyfully.

I used this song yesterday with a class of middle school students who have behavioral issues.  After each verse, we went around the room and gave examples of healthy ways to express that particular emotion.  Not only did I receive some very interesting responses, but I got a little more insight into my students and what they are all about.   I’m planning another activity related to this topic for next week.  I am going to create snippets of popular songs, which I’ll play for the class and ask them to identify whether each song reflects happiness, excitement, anger, sadness, or love.  I will provide the lyrics for analysis, and of course, some of the songs will fall into more than one category.  I’ve learned that anytime you can incorporate music that the students actually listen to outside of school (as long as it is school-appropriate), the opportunity should be seized!

Friday Fave: Reindeer Games

by | Dec 11, 2009

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of leading the music portion of my church’s “Breakfast With Santa” event. This was the second year of my involvement, so I knew better what to expect and what the kids wanted (the chance to get up, dance around, and sing Christmas songs) as well as their parents (happy, occupied children and cute photo ops). I managed to combine all of these things in a ten-minute activity, and it was so much fun that I thought it deserving of “Friday Fave” attention!

Reindeer were the theme of the music room, made evident by the reindeer antlers on my head. Once all the children arrived, were seated, and commented on my headgear, I asked them if they knew who was the most famous reindeer of all. Of course, they all shouted, “Rudolph!” and we went right into the song, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

Next I asked if they were aware that Rudolph isn’t Santa’s only reindeer, and told them that I would need 8 volunteers to show them what I meant. This worked out perfectly, because the groups were made up of 10-15 kids, and there were always a few who just wanted to watch. My volunteers came to the front and reached into my bag of tricks:

After all, every reindeer needs a good pair of antlers (the jinglier, the better) and a substitution for hooves (rhythm sticks, of course). I knew the props would be a hit, but I wasn’t quite ready for the excitement they would stir up. And that was fine with me!

The finishing touches were the nametags, which my “reindeer” wore around their necks. I made these by printing the names in a Christmasy font, laminating, and hole-punching so that I could string the sparkly rope through and tie it at the top.
Not all of the kids could read, so before the song, I pointed to each “reindeer” and read his/her name aloud. Then I told them to listen carefully, because when their name was called during the song, I wanted them to fly away just as the lyrics instruct.

The song that I used for this activity is one of my own, The Other Eight Reindeer. Both the kids and parents got a real kick out of it, and you should have seen those cameras flashing as each child “flew away” when it was his/her turn.

After the song, I asked the children to return to their seats for the next song, Up on the Housetop. They all clicked their “hooves” and sang along, still wearing their antlers (I’m telling you, it was a chore getting them off their heads and back into my bag). At the end of the song, it was time for the group to move on to the next station. I repeated this activity eight times that morning, and had a nice long nap when I got home :)

Flower, Stand Tall!

by | May 26, 2009

Flowers are popping up all over the place, and they are a great topic for a song around this time of year. Flower songs are good opportunities to address color identification, which is what I had in mind when I wrote the song below.

Red, orange, yellow, green,
White, purple, pink and blue.
Flowers are so colorful and smell good too.
There are many different kinds Mother Nature grows,
In a pot or in a field or garden rows.

Red flower, stand tall,
Red flower, stand tall,
Can you choose your favorite red flower of all?
(You just might be the fairest flower of all!)

Repeat, using each color.

My initial idea was to give each child a scarf and ask him/her to stand up as that color is mentioned in the song. I made visuals for each color flower, and to practice making choices, the child can choose which of three flowers of that color he/she likes best. For children who don’t have that ability, there are alternate lyrics in parentheses.

If You Could Give a Gift This Christmas

by | Dec 18, 2008

As we inch closer and closer to Christmas break, everyone (including staff!) is getting antsy. It seems that all my students want to talk about are the holidays, which is fine with me. It gives me a perfect excuse to utilize all the great songs I’ve come across and/or written.

The kids love to tell me what they want for Christmas, and tomorrow I’ll share a song with you that encourages them do exactly that. But a week later, as I was planning their music therapy session, I had an idea. Rather than tell me about what they asked for, I wanted to hear what they would give to others if money was no issue. Here’s what I came up with:

If you could give a gift this Christmas,
No matter how much it cost to buy,
You could give it to your family or friend,
What would you choose, tell us who and why.

It doesn’t have to be from a store,
A gift from the heart means so much more.
You could make it yourself or do something nice.
Not all gifts have a price.

If you could give a gift this Christmas,
No matter how much it cost to buy,
You could give it to your family or friend,
What would you choose, tell us who and why.

After each chorus, I called on a student and asked him/her to choose a recipient and share what they could give to this person, and for what reason. The answers I got were all over the board, ranging from giving a fellow classmate a new video game (which made that student very happy!) to buying a new house for his/her mom or dad. My students took this exercise seriously, and it really did show another side of them.

Sometimes it’s hard for kids to remember that the holidays are about more than getting presents, but really all they need is a simple reminder.

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