This song has potential issues involving religious insults and sexual content. Please consider what you read here and do your own research to determine if it is appropriate for your students. During my first year of teaching, I used Acka Backa as an elimination game with a particularly rowdy group of 3rd grade students. WeContinue reading “Acka Backa”
Category Archives: 2nd Grade
Chicken on a Fencepost (Can’t Dance Josie)
This song has potential issues involving race and racial slurs. Please consider what you read here and do your own research to determine if it is appropriate for your students. Chicken on a Fencepost has been the center of debate for music teachers for quite awhile now. Some believe that it has racist origins, someContinue reading “Chicken on a Fencepost (Can’t Dance Josie)”
Closet Key
I have not used this with my students yet, but have seen and heard the testimony of many music teachers who have. Due to its popularity on Facebook groups and the like, I thought I would dive in and see what the inner workings of this song are about. Suggested Grade Levels: Kindergarten, 1st grade,Continue reading “Closet Key”
Los Machetes
This is a favorite dance with my 3rd and 4th grade students! We actually just used this as an opportunity to learn about and celebrate Cinco de Mayo last week. One 3rd grader even said they wanted to perform this dance for every Cinco de Mayo. This is the first year where I have understoodContinue reading “Los Machetes”
La Raspa
Cinco de Mayo is next week, so many music teachers will be excited to pull out La Raspa and teach it to their students. Please consider why you are doing this with your students. Is it just for a fun folk dance? If that is your only answer, please reconsider. Teaching international folk dance isContinue reading “La Raspa”
Sasha
I love using Sasha as a way to get students moving after a break from school. This allows us to mingle with our classmates in a safe, structured way that also gets us back into the right mindset for music. My students love this dance because of its catchy tune and because they get toContinue reading “Sasha”
Flea Fly Flo
Out of all of my students, I think kindergarten enjoys this song the most. My older kids already know that they can expect some weirdness from me, so this is basically the first big nonsensical jump for my kinderbabies! They love trying to get a grasp on the silly words and end up improvising someContinue reading “Flea Fly Flo”
Seven Jumps (Syvspring)
“Seven Jumps,” or “Syvspring” in Danish, is a fun folk dance from Denmark that my students love. Everyone inevitably catches a fit of the giggles as we struggle to keep our balance! It involves dancers joining in a circle and walking, hop stepping, or sashaying during the chorus. In between each chorus, there are 1-7Continue reading “Seven Jumps (Syvspring)”
Mrs. Hale's Harmonies 