The title of this post is a bit deceiving, because as I’ve stated — oh, a thousand times or so — I don’t really like Halloween at all!  But I put on a happy face for my students this time of year, and sing “I Like Halloween” with plenty of (believable) enthusiasm.

Lisa Casciola, MT-BC (owner of Kids Sing Studio) is my former internship supervisor who turned me on to this song and Cathy Bollinger’s music in general.  Cathy was a huge inspiration to me as I began songwriting, and even responded to an email I sent her a couple of years ago asking for some advice.  Her words of encouragement went a long way, and now my music is listed right alongside hers on Songs For Teaching.  Pretty amazing!

Anyway, getting back to this song.  I love its versatility, not to mention that it’s short, memorable, and catchy.  A nice one to have in your bag of tricks, for sure.  I’ve learned all kinds of new things about my students through this song, and I now know what each of them are planning to dress up as for Halloween and what kind of candy they are hoping to receive.  So much Halloween fun, so little time…only one more week until we move on to Thanksgiving.  Thank goodness!

Out of all 480+ posts I’ve written, one I wrote last year titled ‘Dem Bones, ‘Dem Bones happens to be one of the most viewed pages of this entire website.  And not just around Halloween time; it’s popular all year ’round.  I’m assuming that this must be an in-demand song, which is why I decided to feature it as a “Sunday Singalong” video this week.

I figured out this version myself after using a recording of the song one day with a group of students.  I really liked how the music in the recording modulated up as the bones in the body were named, and I wanted to do something similar.  But I like to keep my guitar playing super simple when I’m working with kids, because I want the focus to be on them (not my fingers).  My method of playing this song could pretty much be used by anyone who knows 3 chords: D, A, & G (and if you want to add the key change at the end, E & B7).

Rhythm sticks are my instrument of choice if anything; but most of the time, my students are more than happy just to sing along and point out each body part, or “bone” if you will, as it is mentioned in the song.  I love to mix it up by adding other bones (like hand, elbow, arm, shoulder, etc.) and speeding up the tempo for a bit of a challenge.  Hope you can use and enjoy this song, too!

I know October has only just begun, but I’m making a concerted effort to get into the Halloween spirit this year. Those of you that have read this blog for awhile or who know me in real life are aware that I am not a fan of this particular “holiday”. But almost every child is, including my own students, so my efforts are for their sake :) We’ll see how this goes…

“Halloween Stew” is a good way to ease into the Halloween season, because it brings back so many great memories of music class with Mrs. Goodhart in the basement of Butler Elementary. Every October, we’d look forward to listening to the recording of “Witches’ Brew” by Hap Palmer; I’d sing it so frequently at home that even my little brother knew all the words!

One way to make this an interactive activity with my students is to have them help me write new verses to the song.  What kinds of things would they put in their own Halloween Stew?  I might even have them draw their own pictures, and add them to the “pot” as they are mentioned in the song.  The greatest part is that there is no wrong answer (unless they suggest inappropriate items, which, if you work with older children especially, you know that happens from time to time).

There are probably about a hundred other ways to incorporate this song into a lesson, music therapy session, or just for fun.  Got any others?  Let’s hear them!