Call and offbeat response
January 21, 2018 6:26 AM Subscribe
I'm looking for songs involving audience participation.
Specifically, to broaden my ESL teaching songbook, I'm looking for songs inducing a creative interaction, allowing an opportunity to express something original in the course of the performance.
That means that these songs should invite kids to come up with different ways to take part in the unfolding of the song : creating a new verse or choosing what verse is to be sung, using a new word, changing the lyrics, miming something or acting something out...
I like Ella Jenkins a lot, Call and response singing is great, and I'd like to find new songs that feel like games.
I'm sure a number of songs like these already exist, but I'm not familiar enough with the tradition to find them out.
Thanks !
Specifically, to broaden my ESL teaching songbook, I'm looking for songs inducing a creative interaction, allowing an opportunity to express something original in the course of the performance.
That means that these songs should invite kids to come up with different ways to take part in the unfolding of the song : creating a new verse or choosing what verse is to be sung, using a new word, changing the lyrics, miming something or acting something out...
I like Ella Jenkins a lot, Call and response singing is great, and I'd like to find new songs that feel like games.
I'm sure a number of songs like these already exist, but I'm not familiar enough with the tradition to find them out.
Thanks !
Best answer: Minnie the Moocher was my first thought, too, but I'm not sure it satisfies the requirement that the responders exercise their own creativity. The way it's usually performed is that the soloist scats one line and the group parrots it back.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:38 AM on January 21, 2018
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:38 AM on January 21, 2018
Best answer: Whenever I lead kids in “Old MacDonald” or “My Little Rooster,” I call on one of the kids to choose the next animal. With “My Little Rooster,”you can also do it so that the leader picks the animal but calls on responders to make the animal noises.
Not particularly "offbeat," though.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:46 AM on January 21, 2018
Not particularly "offbeat," though.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:46 AM on January 21, 2018
Best answer: Going on a Bear Hunt is more of a repeat after me format, but it's fun and can be done with actions to help the early learners get meaning from it.
The Quartermasters Store is a one that plays on rhyming words, so might be a bit more challenging but can be fun.
We sing Old MacDonald as a 'name the animal' song so everyone gets a turn to suggest the animals and make the silly animal sounds.
Down by the Bay is another animal/rhyming one which can be fun.
You might try looking up Sharon, Lois and Bram, Sandra Beech or Raffi (Why, yes, I'm Canadian...) for simple kids songs. They all have a fair number of interactive kids music songs, which while aimed at younger kids, are probably good for ESL learners.
posted by Northbysomewhatcrazy at 9:06 AM on January 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
The Quartermasters Store is a one that plays on rhyming words, so might be a bit more challenging but can be fun.
We sing Old MacDonald as a 'name the animal' song so everyone gets a turn to suggest the animals and make the silly animal sounds.
Down by the Bay is another animal/rhyming one which can be fun.
You might try looking up Sharon, Lois and Bram, Sandra Beech or Raffi (Why, yes, I'm Canadian...) for simple kids songs. They all have a fair number of interactive kids music songs, which while aimed at younger kids, are probably good for ESL learners.
posted by Northbysomewhatcrazy at 9:06 AM on January 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best answer: If I Had a Million Dollars is not too structurally complex, and has the kind of playfulness where students could totally make a new verse or two.
posted by tchemgrrl at 10:04 AM on January 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by tchemgrrl at 10:04 AM on January 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: The Arrogant Worms' "Mounted Animal Nature Trail" has a funny counter-intuitive sing-along chorus.
posted by underthehat at 10:32 AM on January 21, 2018
posted by underthehat at 10:32 AM on January 21, 2018
Best answer: When I was a camp counselor, we'd have the kids play competitive There's a hole in the bucket, where one team would sing the Liza part and the other team the Henry part. Team Liza would suggest ways to fix the hole in the bucket, and Team Henry would come up with reasons Liza's suggestions wouldn't work. They'd alternate verses until one team got stuck and couldn't come up with a response verse, making the other team the winners.
posted by the primroses were over at 11:20 AM on January 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by the primroses were over at 11:20 AM on January 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Seconding primrose's suggestion of camp songs - there are a bunch on youtube, and most of them are silly/casual enough to be creative with the lyrics and many come with hand movements/miming/dances or they lend themselves well if some are made up. I still remember so many camp songs from my limited time as a camper and counselor, so the catchiness factor is there too!
particularly good ones for your purposes might include: shabooya roll call, the one that goes "everywhere we go-o-o, people wanna kno-o-o-w...", and a bunch more on this site!
posted by carlypennylane at 1:47 PM on January 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
particularly good ones for your purposes might include: shabooya roll call, the one that goes "everywhere we go-o-o, people wanna kno-o-o-w...", and a bunch more on this site!
posted by carlypennylane at 1:47 PM on January 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks a lot ! Good ideas and some songs I had never heard before.
posted by nicolin at 12:27 AM on January 23, 2018
posted by nicolin at 12:27 AM on January 23, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by BostonTerrier at 8:13 AM on January 21, 2018 [2 favorites]