I'm a Music Therapist

As an early childhood music teacher, I’ve had a few surprises. One is that children are extremely imaginative. Like when I asked my kiddies what was missing from our “Wheels On the Bus” rendition, one boy told me we had forgotten the octagon (he meant stop sign). But even with the amazingly cute antics of young children, I’ve been bored lately with myself. It’s easy for me to fall back into tried-and-true songs when I have an extra five minutes to fill. I’ve probably played “Wheels on the Bus” in 75% of my classes because it is an easy song, known to everyone, and is really flexible.

A big hit because of the catchy melody and simple ukulele arrangement. Just be sure to rewrite the line about bunnies…

A song about going to school and making friends. Lyrics are really relatable for school-age children.

A jazzy little song with about dancing that kids and their parents can’t resist.

Everyone knows this song. And the chorus can’t get any easier so there are no excuses for not singing along.

Another familiar song to everyone. Kids love singing “a-weem a-wep” over and over. I like to ask kids to choose an animal to put in the Jungle a la “Old McDonald”.

Many will recognize this as the opening song to the movie Juno. Lots of great nature imagery and simple chord progression.

An upbeat version of the original, again with ukulele. Watchers of the TV show Glee will be familiar with this rendition.

What’s more child-friendly than bubbles? This song is an oldie, but a goodie.

A nice laid-back song with a cool, reggae vibe.

Everything you need to know is in the title; this song is about moving and being loud. Both things children love to do.

Repetition is a hallmark of children’s music and this song features it without becoming too much. Also great for music and movement activities.