Baking cookies is fun to do!

I can't remember where i saw this idea, but it's a great one and the kids love it! Sing "Fun to Do" using these words/actions:

Making some cookies is fun to do...

Mixing the dough....

rolling the dough...

Cutting the shapes...

Sprinkling the sugar...

Waiting for baking is hard to do. (fold arms, tap foot like waiting)

Eating our cookies...

The younger kids, sunbeams especially, love this!

Freeze Frame

I'm always looking for new twists to the standard wiggle songs. This morning, while watching a cartoon with my daughter, i thought of this: while singing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" i'm going to shout "Freeze!" at which point everyone holds their current pose but the pianist keeps playing. Then i'll shout "go!" and we'll pick up singing from wherever the pianist is at in the song. I plan on having the pianist play the song through 2 times so we can stop and go several times. This activity would work with any song really, as long as you assign an action to be done during the song. I love how it requires us to pay attention and follow along in our heads with the pianist so we'll know where to start singing again when i say "go".

*i had another chorister send me a cute idea for popcorn popping. In portuguese, popcorn is pipoca (pronounced pee poka). When you use that word instead of the English translation-popcorn-it becomes quite a tongue twister! Try it!

"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! :)

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

My pianist pointed out today that at the end of this song in the songbook, there is a suggestion on how to sing it. I don't know how i've missed that but it says, "...sing slowly and move parts of the body as they are mentioned. For example, nod head, shrug shoulders, bend knees, stand tiptoe, and so forth." So, instead of pointing to our body parts, we sang it this way today and the kids really loved it-especially because i messed up a few times-it takes concentration! I love my pianist, she points out many useful things and has great ideas!