"Give", Said the Little Stream

Today we took a break from program songs and sang songs that remind us of spring/summer. For example, "The prophet said to plant a garden", "Birds in a tree", "In the Leafy Treetops", "Oh what do you do in the summertime", "My Heavenly Father Loves Me", and "Give said the Little Stream". It was fun to sing different songs. For, "oh what do you do in the summertime", I had several children come up and imitate the different parts of the song. I had them decide how to portray the summer activity i assigned them like fishing, gazing at the clouds, swimming, etc. It was a quick and easy way for them to learn the song. After we sang it i asked who had heard the song before and NO ONE had ever heard it. I was shocked. It was a staple when i was younger. So strange to me that that song isn't so widely known anymore-but it was fun to sing. Anyway, I digress. My topic wasn't "oh what do you do in the summertime", but i couldn't resist putting in a plug for that song.

A previous chorister in our ward used to sing, "Give", Said the little stream as a wiggle song so i thought i'd try it with senior primary. Every time you sing a word that starts with a "G", you stand up (then sit down quickly). Every time you sing a word that starts with a "S" you clap your hands. What a workout! It was lots of fun and a nice change to sing a different wiggle song that was a challenge for senior primary. (and for me! The ups and downs made me feel old!)

Try it in your primary and see if it wears them out! :)

Songs from dads

Since this sunday is Father's Day, i decided to include some dad's in singing time. (without them actually having to be there) Using my smartphone, i recorded several dads singing primary songs. A couple dads chose to sing in different voices to try and throw the children off. (we'll see if it worked!) Anyway, i told the dads they could pick any song to sing (provided the primary knows it) or i would assign them a song to sing if they preferred. Each dad sang for about 20 seconds. I will play each recording on sunday and have the children guess who is singing and what song it is. In order to limit the pool of dads the children choose from, I will have a paper "bust" of each dad for them to choose from and a bunch of paper ties with the songs written on them. I will choose a reverent child to try and place the correct tie on the bust of the dad who sang the song. (I think i'll give them 3 chances to get it right-if they need it) When they get it correct, we will sing that song all together. Anyway, that's it. Pretty simple. It just takes some time getting the dad's recordings but i think the primary will enjoy guessing. I used dad's who have children in primary, male teachers, and i had the bishopric sing together for one song (challenge question) Have fun!

Update: This was sooo much fun today! I ended up not listing the names of the singing dads like i thought i would. I just played the recording and let the kids guess who it was. They did great and only had trouble guessing one dad. (I gave them some clues to help and then they got it) Lots of fun. Rather than making paper ties, I pre-tied several of my husbands ties and had those hanging on the board. When they guessed the singing dad correctly, they got to put a tie on our "dad". (I used a bust from a game I found in our game closet). Most the dads sang in their normal voices but one dad sang "In the Leafy Treetops" with a very heavy Texas twang and the kids couldn't stop laughing. Very fun day!

Pass the Buck

Have 4-5 children come up to the front. Give them a dollar bill to pass back and forth between them. The entire primary sings the song, watching you carefully for cut off. When you cut them off, whoever is left holding the dollar bill sings the next word. (or phrase) You can do it like the singing bee game and put the dashes on the chalkboard representing how many words they have to sing. I let them use their class for help if they want. Simple, fun. Good way to review and sing a song repeatedly.