Music For Kiddos Podcast
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Winter is gearing up, so I thought it would be fun to let you know which three of our Winter songs are very popular on streaming - I am actually kind of surprised by them! I will also share some extra links and implementation ideas for them.
“Hot Chocolate”
Far and away, the most popular Winter song last year - even more popular than “Blowing In the Wind” or “Five Perfect Pumpkins” - is “Hot Chocolate.”
Hot Chocolate, hot chocolate
Yummy, yummy, yummy hot chocolate
Pour the cocoa, whipped cream on top
Then *blowing sound* ... ‘cause it’s hot!
Hot Chocolate, hot chocolate
Yummy, yummy, yummy hot chocolate
One for me and one for you
Hot chocolate! It’ll do
So I sing the theme, and then we do a teeny tiny cup, like an itty bitty mouse cup. We do the motions teeny tiny, give a teeny tiny blow on the teeny tiny cup to cool it off, and then take the teeny tiniest sip. Kids absolutely love that.
We also do a version with a big, giant cup of cocoa. This like an elephant’s cup or a polar bear’s cup. This time it is sung a little lower and scruffier, which is really fun, too. Give a really big blow and take a big gulp!
I’ve also seen some really great ideas of this song being used in programs and things like that. One I truly loved was where the kids were lined up on stage, and the teacher provided them each with an empty paper cup with a plastic lid - like you would get at Starbucks. Throughout the song, they moved side to side with their cups, did gestures, and tapped their cups along with the snapping part. So, they turned a cup in to a little percussion instrument that they also pretended to drink out of!
I thought it was really smart and clever. Kids could even decorate their own cups with glitter, paint, washi tape - even bells and pipe cleaners - if you wanted to let them get really creative in that way.
“It’s Snowing Outside”
The next most popular song that people seemed to enjoy streaming last year is called “It's Snowing Outside.”
It's snowing outside and I don't know what to do
It's blowing outside and I don't know what to do
So I march outside and head out the door
And then I dance, dance, and dance some more
Let's DANCE!
Something I like about this song is that it's a pretty standard movement song. You follow the instructions in the song and you move along with it, but I like the general heaviness of it, which I think naturally comes with snow as well. You're kind of trudging through the snow, and if you think about it from a sensory perspective that feels heavy. I think it's good to do those heavy movements from a sensory regulation perspective.
You can get really creative with the motions in the first section movements, such as:
So I march outside and head out the door
And then I stomp, stomp, stomp, and stomp some more
Let’s STOMP!
Then, the next part of this song really, really calms down.
The gentle snow it comes and goes
The gentle snow it comes, it goes
This section would work really well with scarves, streamers, or ribbon wands. Or, you could let the kids move creatively through it and see what they come up with. Then, it moves back into the heavier movements, which again, from a sensory perspective is really nice.
So where would I place this in a lesson plan?
I would place it right where movement is really needed. Either right away as the active movement song from a sensory regulation perspective, or I would pair it with another active movement song. Maybe you do “Move It, Move It!” Then “It’s Snowing Outside,” then move to a sitting movement song like “Move To The Beat.”
Either way, I would definitely use it for that grounding feel, and really take advantage of that aspect. You can even talk to the kids about how it is difficult to walk in snow that’s deep, and have them imagine that they are walking through deep snow in their heavy snow boots. Giving them those sensory images and feelings is going to have them move in a different way.
“Skating”
If you have followed Music For Kiddos for a while, you've probably heard of this song. It has always stayed pretty a pretty high-streaming favorite. It’s “Skating.” It is a movement song, and kids follow the instructions that are sung.
Skating, I am skating
Skating all around, skating all around
I’m skating
(Repeat)
So I skate, skate, skate, skate, skate, skate, and wait
Skate, skate, skate, skate, skate, skate, and wait
I have the kids “skate” on paper plates - those really inexpensive, flimsy paper plates - and I love for them to decorate their plates, too. This works really well on carpeted floor. If you have a hard floor, I have heard from people that socks are fine, but skating on pieces of felt is even better. Felt or other slippery fabric (but not too slick!) can easily be reused over and over.
One of the best uses of this song, in my opinion, is when I've used it with various groups of kids as an icebreaker. It's a really fun song to win kids over. I think it's because it requires quite a lot of attention for the kids to be able to do the motor movements carefully, especially on these paper plates. Sometimes, when we give kids something that is doable but difficult, their attention is brought in, in a very cool and effective, way.
Another example of this is, sometimes when I feel like I'm losing the engagement and the attention of kids, I'll ask them to do something difficult from a motor perspective. Or, I'll do a verse in a movement song, for example, that is maybe wiggling eyebrows. For kids, they really have to concentrate a lot to do that successfully, but it's very motivating, too. They want to do that.
So, I find “Skating” is somewhat similar to that. They want to figure out how to skate on these paper plates, so they're all in and they are giving it their best.
It is fun for me to see what everybody finds useful and helpful throughout the seasons. These three Winter songs - “Hot Chocolate,” “It’s Snowing Outside,” and “Skating” - really stand out.
These are all publicly available anywhere music is streamed. To find them, search my name “Stephanie Leavell.” We also have a YouTube channel where you can find lyric videos and movement shorts of our songs.
If you would like some additional resources, we have a the Winter Songs for Kids packet that has notated lead sheets, chords, lyrics, and implementation ideas!
LOOKING FOR THESE AND MORE WINTER SONGS?
Checkout our WINTER SONGS FOR KIDS album on Spotify and all music streaming platforms!
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