Oh how I love the imaginations of preschoolers! Today’s recommendation is a HUGE favorite of my students and never fails to invite some imaginative play.
Image from Society 6
Row Your Boat
(Yes-it’s another version of Row Your Boat!) I recommended one just a few weeks ago, but this one is entirely different.
Wee Sing and Pretend’s version takes your kids through the song three times, first on a beautiful sunny day and all the way into some pouring rain. Since my students know this one, they almost always augment the song to make a more complete story… raincoats, umbrellas, speed boats, & probably even some sharks at times. It’s always a blast and we almost always sing it more than once.
There’s another reason I like this song:
it gives my students an experience of varying tempos within a song.
(That’s music speak for the song changes speed). The concepts of fast and slow are fairly natural concepts to teach to a preschool. The next step after those basic concepts is understanding fastER and slowER— putting tempo on a spectrum as opposed to leaving it as two distinct points. This version of Row Your Boat is perfect for that. The tempo gradually gets faster (due to the approaching rainstorm!).
There’s no need to point out the tempo changes to your preschooler. The more important thing is for them to experience it and to feel the change in their bodies. It’s like a little secret bit of education tucked into a really fun song. Sort of like sneaking vegetables into something else tasty.
Find this version on Amazon
And, speaking of itunes, I’m excited to announce the winners of the itunes gift cards giveaway that I mentioned last week. Congrats to Libby and Mairead! Thanks to all of you for subscribing and following along with the Handpicked series.
