More action songs M-S

Michael row the boat ashore

Miss Mary Mac, Mac, Mac

Mister Green Froggie

Moose, monkey, kangaroo

Move with me

Mr. Jumping Jack Man

My ship sailed from China

My thumbs are starting to wiggle

My dog Rags

‘Neath the spreading chestnut tree

Oh my, fish in the sky

Oh, what shall we do in our garden?

Okki-tokki-unga

Old Miss Sally

Old Missouri had a mule

Oliver Twist twist twist

One finger, one thumb

Last updated: 6/19/2018 4:22 PM

The songs below are part ofAway we go’ Round and about

compiled, adapted and illustrated by Dany Rosevear

Return to the Singing games for children’ home

To listen to music from these songs click on 🔊

To watch the author sing a song click on the title at:

 

© Dany Rosevear 2008 All rights reserved

You are free to copy, distribute, display and perform these works under the following conditions:

·       you must give the original author credit

·       you may not use this work for commercial purposes

·       for any re-use or distribution, you must make clear to others the licence terms of this work

·       any of these can be waived if you get permission from the copyright holder

 

Your fair use and other rights are no way affected by the above.


 

 

 

Michael row the boat ashore O

 

 


A more simple version of an African American spiritual song sung by former slaves and collected in the 1860s by Charles Pickard Ware an abolitionist, see more at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Row_the_Boat_Ashore

 

Gently rock to and fro with a partner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Michael row the boat ashore, Hallelujah!

Michael row the boat ashore, Hallelujah!

 

Sister help to trim the sails, Hallelujah!

Sister help to trim the sails, Hallelujah!

 

The river is deep and the river is wide, Hallelujah!

Milk and honey on the other side, Hallelujah!


 

 

Mister Green Froggie 🔊

 

 


A little scenario to dramatise. Children work with a partner, one takes the role of the frog the other the fly. Second time it can be reversed. Alternately this can be used as a hand play, see the video.

From Materials for nursery school teachers’ 1973 edited by Virginia McCaig. Music by Dany Rosevear.

 

1. First child sits on the floor with hands folded against cheeks and eyes closed.

2. Second child flies over and crouches beside frog. 3. First child raises head and opens eyes. 4. First child claps hands together. 5. Second child flies away. 6. First child rises and hops away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Mister Green Froggie was fast asleep,

On a lily pad where the pool was deep.

He heard some wings go buzzing by,

He opened his eyes and there was a fly!

Snap went the froggie! Away the fly flew,

And Mr. Green Froggie went hopping off, too.


 

 

 

Moose, monkey, kangaroo O

 

 


Played in the same way as Head, shoulders, knees and toes’.

 

First time sing each animal’s name and do the following actions;

moose: put hands to head to make antlers, monkey: scratch underarms, kangaroo: make a riding action with hands, worm: wiggle forefinger, owl: make circles round eyes with thumbs and forefingers, butterfly: link thumbs and flap hands, flea: make forefinger hop on palm of the hand.

Second time omit the word ‘moose’ but do all actions as before. Continue missing out a new animal each time until there is no singing and only actions in the last but one verse.

Finally sing all the words and make each movement as in the first verse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Moose, monkey, kangaroo, kangaroo.

Moose, monkey, kangaroo, kangaroo.

And worm and owl and butterfly and flea,

Moose, monkey, kangaroo, kangaroo.

 

 


 

 

Move with me 🔊

 

 


Keep this a simple movement game for the younger ones but add the last verse to challenge older children.

 

Start clapping in a circle sitting down until the rhythm is familiar then move in and out of each other into spaces around the room.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Oh, you clap and you clap and you clap and you STOP!

And you clap and you clap and you clap and you STOP!

And you clap and you clap and you clap and you STOP!

And you clap and you clap and you STOP!

 

Oh, you walk and you walk and you walk and you STOP!

And you walk and you walk and you walk and you STOP!

And you walk and you walk and you walk and you STOP!

And you walk and you walk and you STOP!

 

Oh, you jump and you jump and you jump and you STOP!

And you jump and you jump and you jump and you STOP!

And you jump and you jump and you jump and you STOP!

And you jump and you jump and you STOP!

 

Oh, you hop and you hop and you hop and you STOP!

And you hop and you hop and you hop and you STOP!

And you hop and you hop and you hop and you STOP!

Stand as still as you can be! Then… SIT!

 


 

 

Mr. Jumping Jack Man O

 

Using a classic wooden Jumping Jack toy pull string to demonstrate how legs and arms move up and down.

 

Verse 1: Jump normally with a partner for the first two lines. Do cross wise jumps. Shake hands with partner.

Verse 2: As before. Last line hold partners hands and jump up and down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Mr. Jumping Jack Man is a funny, funny man,

He jumps and jumps as fast as he can;

His arms go out and his legs go too;

Mr. Jumping Jack Man, I’ll jump with you!

 

Mr. Jumping Jack Man is a funny, funny man,

He jumps and jumps as fast as he can;

His arms go out and his legs go too;

Mr. Jumping Jack Man, How do you do?

 

 

 

Miss Mary Mac, Mac, Mac O

 

A clapping or skipping rhyme well known all over the English speaking world. In England ‘pence’ is replace by ‘cents’.

The version below with elephants and the 4th of July is from the USA. Opie’s ‘The Singing Game’ mentions a Miss Jackson in the 1870s from Shropshire who saw children skipping along in pairs with hands crossed singing: ‘Betsy Blue came all in black, Silver buttons down her back…’

 

You can find two clapping games here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Mack

There are many delightful videos of children clapping watch this one at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rz6gUgRK5So

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Miss Mary Mac, Mac, Mac,

All dressed in black, black, black,

With silver buttons, buttons, buttons,

All down her back, back, back.

 

She asked her mother, mother, mother,

For fifty cents, cents, cents,

To see the elephant, elephant, elephant,

Jump over the fence, fence, fence.

 

He jumped so high, high, high,

He reached the sky, sky, sky,

And never came back, back, back,

Till the fourth of July, -ly, -ly.

 

She went upstairs, stairs, stairs,

And bumped her head, head, head,

And now she’s DEAD!

 


 

My dog Rags O

 

A great syncopated song with a ragtime rhythm.

The music slightly adapted and with chords added is from Beth’sNotes.com:  http://bethsmusicnotes.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/my-dog-rags.html

 

Actions: Verse 1 Line 1 Point to self. 2 Pretend to eat and hands indicate tummy.

 3 .Hands flap alternatively up and down to make floppy ears then move from side to side like a tail wagging. 4 Make two fingers walk, move hips from side to side.

Use same movements for the chorus. Line 4 Point to self and cross hands on heart.

Verse 2 Line 1 Point to self. 2 Roll arms. 3 Whistle and with hands flat move arms across each other – over and under. 4 Make two fingers walk and then thumbs point away in opposite directions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


I have a dog and his name is Rags,

He eats so much that his tummy sags.

His ears flip-flop and his tail wig-wags,

And when he walks, he goes zig-zag.

 

Chorus

He goes flip-flop, wig-wag, zig-zag,

He goes flip-flop, wig-wag, zig-zag,

He goes flip-flop, wig-wag, zig-zag,

I love Rags and he loves me!

 

My dog Rags, he loves to play,

He rolls around in the mud all day,

I whistle, (whistle) he won't obey,

He always runs the other way.

Chorus

 

My dog Rags, he loves to bark,

He wants me to join him in the park,

He barks, (woof, woof) he tries to talk,

He barks to chase the cats away.

Chorus

 


 

 

My ship sailed from China O

 

This is a cumulative action song and great fun as the movements get progressively harder to perform. each time the song is sung.

 

 

 

Directions:

You will need to sit in order to make all the movements.

Fan with one hand the first time the song is sung. Each time the song is sung add a new movement while keeping the others going; two hands, two hands and one foot, two hands and two feet then as before with a nodding head. Finish on the final verse with just one ‘like this’, abruptly fold arms and sit completely still..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


My ship sailed from China with a cargo of tea,

All laden with presents for you and for me.

It bought me a fan, just imagine my bliss,

When I found myself going like this, like this, like this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

My thumbs are starting to wiggle  🔊

 

 


Get rid of all those fidgety feelings, ready to sit down and concentrate. Identify different parts of the body. Begin with small movements and move to larger ones to finish sitting down quietly.

 

Wiggle each body part as it is mentioned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


My thumbs are starting to wiggle,

My thumbs are starting to wiggle,

My thumbs are starting to wiggle,

Around and around and around. x2

 

My hands are starting to wiggle, x3

Around and around and around. x2

 

My arms are starting to wiggle,x3

Around and around and around. x2

 

My legs are starting to wiggle,x3

Around and around and around. x2

 

Now all of me is a wiggling, x3

I think I had better sit down. x2

 


 

 

‘Neath the spreading chestnut tree O

 

 


Words possibly by Hamilton and Jimmy. Kennedy and set to music by Hal Kemp; it was inspired by the first line of the poem ’The village blacksmith’ by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 – 1832).

Find more actions at:  http://jabblog-jabblog.blogspot.co.uk/2010/09/underneath-spreading-chestnut-tree.html

The full version is shown below but to simplify things in order to play the following cumulative action game just sing the first two verses.

Each time the refrain ‘Under the spreading chestnut tree’ is sung:

‘neath – dip down Spreading – stretch out arms

Chestnut – touch chest then head Tree – raise hands

When song is repeated miss the first word and replace by the action. Next time omit the first two words and just mime actions. Continue until only actions are used for the phrase.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Underneath the spreading chestnut tree,

I loved her and she loved me.

There she used to sit upon my knee,

'Neath the spreading chestnut tree.

 

There beneath the boughs we used to meet,

All her kisses were so sweet.

All the little birds went, “Tweet, tweet, tweet!”

'Neath the spreading chestnut tree.

 

I said, “I love you, and there ain't no ifs nor buts.”

She said "I love you", and the blacksmith shouted "Chestnuts!"

 

Underneath the spreading chestnut tree,

There she said she’d marry me.

Now you ought to see our family,

'Neath the spreading chestnut tree.

 


 

 

Oh, my, fish in the sky 🔊

 

 


A great triple meter rhyme, encourage children to make up their own tunes; the melody here is by Dany Rosevear.

 

Mime the actions suggested by the words.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Oh, my, fish in the sky,

Shoes on the ceiling and trees walking by.

Reaching up low, bending down high.

Everything seems to be wrong, right?

Everything seems to be wrong.

 


 

 

 

Oh, what shall we do in our garden? 🔊

 

 


This song comes from ‘More singing games’ by Edith Kay published 1909. The tune is ‘The bluebells of Scotland’ as suggested in ‘This little Puffin’ published 1969.

Dany Rosevear arranged the tune and wrote the second verse.

 

Mime the actions suggested by the words.

Encourage children to suggest other gardening activities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Oh, what shall we do in our garden this fine day?

Oh, what shall we do in our garden this fine day?

We’ll dig and dig and dig well,

With our spades this way.

Oh, we’ll dig and we’ll dig in our garden this fine day.

 

Oh, what shall we do in our garden this fine day?

Oh, what shall we do in our garden this fine day?

We’ll weed and weed and weed well,

With our trowels this way.

Oh, we’ll weed and we’ll weed in our garden this fine day.

 


 

 

Okki-tokki-unga 🔊

 

 


This is the story, so it is said, of an eskimo lad who goes fishing in his canoe. Mark the beat with the actions below.

Find out more at: https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=102109.

 

Chorus: Sit on floor and paddle from side to side with one fist on top of the other.

Verse 1. Put hand to forehead and mime looking around. Verse 2. Cast net to one side then the other.

Chorus last time: Paddle slowly home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Okki-tokki-unga, Okki-tokki-unga,

Hey, Missa Day, Missa Doh, Missa Day.

Okki-tokki-unga, Okki-tokki-unga,

Hey, Missa Day, Missa Doh, Missa Day.

 

Hexa cola misha woni,

Hexa cola misha woni,

Hexa cola misha woni.

 


 

 

Old Miss Sally 🔊

 

 


This song comes from ‘Very favorites of the very young’ published by World Around Songs in 1986. It is also familiar as a fiddle tune.

 

Make a circle with one child in the centre; this named, real or made up, child suggests a movement which the others copy. Finish with a bow from the waist.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Old Miss Sally likes to jumpity jump,

Jumpity jump, jumpity jump,

Old Miss Sally likes to jumpity jump,

And old Miss Sally likes to bow.

 

Old Mr. Bob likes to bobbity bob,

Bobbity bob, bobbity bob,

Old Mr. Bob likes to bobbity bob,

And old Mr. Bob likes to bow.

 

Young Master Ethan likes to hoppity hop…

Young Miss Milly likes to clap her hands…

Young Master Isaac likes to stretch up high…

 


 

 

Old Missouri had a mule 🔊

 

 


This song could well be a precursor of ‘Old MacDonald’. It is recorded in Ozark Folksongs, volume 3 and collected from Mr. H. F. Walker, Missouri, 1927. Find out more at: https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=63612. It can also be found on one of Burl Ives albums.This could easily be played as a cumulative song.

 

With hands to head flop them like ears in all directions. Swish arm every which way for the tail and use elbows for heel. Children sitting on the floor might like to stick their legs in the air!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

And on this mule there were two ears, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

With a flip-flop here, And a flip-flop there,

Here a flop, there a flop, Everywhere a flip-flop,

Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

 

Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

And on this mule there was a tail, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

With a swish-swish here, And a swish-swish there,

Here a swish, there a swish Everywhere a swish-swish,

Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

 

Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

And on this mule there were two heels, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

With a kick-kick here, And a kick-kick there,

Here a kick, there a kick, Everywhere a kick-kick!

Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho!

 


 

Oliver Twist O

 

Learn the name of body parts with this action song for younger children. Ask them to suggest other parts and add more verses.

 

1. Make a twisting motion with hands on hips.

2. Wag forefinger from side to side.

3. Touch named part of body three times. Repeat this for each verse.

Add the last verse if children are ready for more complex movements.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Oliver Twist, twist, twist,

Can’t do this, this, this,

Touch his knees, knees, knees,

Touch his nose, nose, nose,

Touch his hair, hair, hair,

Touch his toes, toes, toes.

 

Oliver Twist, twist, twist,

Can’t do this, this, this,

Touch his ears, ears, ears,

Touch his waist, waist, waist,

Touch his eyes, eyes, eyes,

Touch his face, face, face.

 

Oliver Twist, twist, twist,

Can’t do this, this, this,

Clap his hands, hands, hands,

Touch the ground, ground, ground,

Stamp his feet, feet, feet,

Turn around, round, round!


 

One finger, one thumb O

 

A very energetic action song.

 

Move each part of the body as it is mentioned up and down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


One finger, one thumb keep moving,

One finger, one thumb keep moving,

One finger, one thumb keep moving,

We’ll all be merry and bright.

 

One finger, one thumb, one arm...

 

One finger, one thumb, one arm, one leg...

 

One finger, one thumb, one arm, one leg, one nod of the head...

 

One finger, one thumb, one arm, one leg, one nod of the head...

 

One finger, one thumb, one arm, one leg, one nod of the head, stand up, sit down...

 

One finger, one thumb, one arm, one leg, one nod of the head, stand up, sit down, and turn around keep moving...

We’ll all be merry and bright!


 

 

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