Listen to this song.

This song, with accompanying lessons, is available from Stephanie Burton's Music Explosion.

Themes addressed in this song:
     Animals
     Farm
     Community Helpers
     Growing Things

Circle Time Math Activity
     Sing the song. Using the flannelboard, chalkboard, Velcro® board or the floor, introduce this song by showing the farm animals. “Where would these animals live?” “What type of sounds do they make?” Add voice balloons next to each animal. Practice making animal sounds. Sing the song adding a picture and voice balloon from left to right. Explain that this is a sequence song because it follows an order. Sing as often as time and interest allows. Add more or less animals as interest warrants.

     Listen to the sounds. Hand out animal picture cards to five children. One child is “Old MacDonald.” Give animal sound clues and have “Old MacDonald” find the person holding the correct animal card. “Old MacDonald” picks up the card and places it on the board. As the children become more proficient, give two or more sound clues at a time. “Old MacDonald” can find the animal cards and put them on the board in the correct order. Sing the song in the new order.

     Animal patterns. Provide animal pictures from the manipulative pages. Have children pick 2 animals that might live on Old MacDonald’s farm. Make a simple A-B pattern on the flannelboard using the chosen animals. Discuss how to extend the pattern. As children become skilled, create more difficult patterns (cow, cow, duck), (cow, duck, horse).
Variation: Color the animals to develop two attribute patterns. Example – red cow, yellow cow, red cow, yellow cow

Movement Math
     Which animal is next? Enlarge animal pictures (included with Music Explosion) to make an
8 ½”X11” size picture. Attach yarn to the top corners so a child can wear the picture. Sing the song having one child pick the animal that would come next in the song. Animals line up in order in front of the group. Sing the appropriate verse.

     Animal groups: Attach cut out pictures of animals to a headband. Each child chooses a headband to wear. When an animal is called out, the children wearing that particular headband stand up and make the sound for their animal.

     Animal count. Select one child to be Old MacDonald. Sing the song adding in the number with each verse. Example – “And on his farm he had 4 cows.” The farmer selects the correct number of animals and those children stand up and make the sounds for that verse.

Touch and Tell Math
     For these activities, each child will be given a zip-top bag with duplicated pictures from the manipulative page of this chapter (included with Music Explosion).

     Sequencing the song: Give the children time to play with the pictures from their bags. Have the children put their pictures in order, left to right, while singing the song.
Variation: Select children to call out various animals. Have children place the animals in order, from left to right. Sing the song in that order.

     Listen for the sound. Play a following directions game. Give sound clues and have children look through their bags to find the correct picture. Have children make a row of animals with their picture cards. Discuss left to right order.

     Pattern Play. As children play with the animal pictures , encourage them to put the pictures in various orders. Encourage children to read the order of their pictures to the class. Remind children to read their pictures from left to right.

     Match the patterns. Have one child make an animal pattern with their cards and read it to the class. Invite the other children copy that pattern with their animal pictures.

This song, with accompanying lessons, is available from Stephanie Burton's Music Explosion.

Many thanks to Stephanie Burton for permission to display these lyrics and extension activites.
© Panda Bear Publications. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

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