Hay un gran animal
A mi burro a mi burro
Caballito blanco
El
cocodrilo
La
bella naranja
La
danza de la serpiente
La foca Ramona
Mirad, mirad allí
Un elefante se balanceaba
Last updated: 4/26/2021
10:37 AM
The songs below are part of ‘‘La pajara pinta’ The Spanish collection
compiled,
adapted, translated and illustrated by Dany Rosevear
Return to the ‘Singing games for children’ home
page
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.
The
Spanish Collection
It is said that children who are exposed to just 50
words of a second language before to age six begin to develop an
"ear" for the sounds of that language.
It is hoped that where
possible these songs will be sung in their home language. An English version is
provided so children can enjoy the tunes before they have mastered Spanish.
Literal translations do not always make sense to the English ear so these have
been translated freely (very freely in some cases!) to complement the music and
capture the spirit of each song.
You will find more Spanish
songs in the collection ‘Away We Go’.
Spanish
pronunciation
Spoken
Spanish in both Spain and Latin America is quite distinctive from spoken
English. For that reason a few lyrics are accompanied by the sounds of the
Spanish language. The more distinctive sounds of letters in the words of the
songs are provided to aid pronunciation in the guide below. The letters not
listed are pronounced approximately as in English.
a sounds like ah (father) as
in madre
i sounds like ee (feet) as
in mi
e sounds like e (met) at the beginning or within a word as in leche
e sounds like ay at the end of
a word as in leche
o sounds like oa (boat) as
in no
u sounds like oo (boot) as
in una
c sounds like th before
the letters i and e as
in cinco
cc sounds like ks (accident) as in accidente
j and g sounds like ch (loch) as
in juego and girafa
g sounds like h (hallo) before the letters i and e as in gente
ll sounds like y (yard) as
in llamas
ñ sounds like ni (onions) as
in señorita
qu sounds like k as
in ¿qué?
rr sounds
like a Scottish r as
in arroz
v sounds
like b as in vaca
z sounds
like th (thin) as
in arroz
h is always silent unless the word is of foreign origin
u is silent after g
and q as
in ¿qué?
In
Spain ‘d’ is spoken with a lisp,
this is not so in Latin America.
There are many sites on line
that provide help with pronunciation
Spanish
punctuation
Written
Spanish in both Spain and Latin America is also distinctive from written
English; fewer capitals are used at the beginning of each line of verse,
exclamation and question marks are used both at the beginning and end of
sentences. However, for familiarity I have usually conformed to the English
model when writing Spanish verse.
Poor old donkey, he has aches and
pains everywhere. Recognise the Spanish names of body part in this cumulative
song; add more of your own. Watch at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBHRx2PifOg&feature=related March on the spot and touch parts
of the body each time they are mentioned
|
This cradle song, ‘Little white
horse’ has the same tune as ‘Los pollitos dicen’ another nursery favourite. Listen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owwWIEosUt8&feature=related Gallop freely in and out of each
other.
|
El cocodrilo O What was it the crocodile saw when he poked his head out of the cave?
Let your imagination blossom. Listen to Miriam at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSgnqIr_bVc&feature=related
|
La bella
naranja O This traditional children’s nursery rhyme from Argentina can be sung
as a round. Could the lion and the king be symbolic and linked to coins of the
realm? The ‘worm’ however is a creative translation conceit! Watch at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRU7hCiCYXU
|
La danza de la serpiente O Poor old snake, he’s come down from
the mountain to look for his long lost tail. This game is great fun but
requires careful co-operation skills. Watch at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rBlhSs5jXg Make a circle with snake in the
centre.
|
La foca Ramona O We’re off to the circus to make big stretchy
movements. Watch at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0h1lEdQzvE Spread out around the room.
|
Mirad, mirad allí 🔊 ‘It is an elephant!’ Stand in a circle and sing the song through with the actions below.
Second time hum (mmmmmh) words of first phrase then sing and continue actions
as before. Each time the song is repeated replace cumulatively each phrase
with humming until the whole song is being hummed and mimed. Last time sing
all words of the song with the actions. Watch at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDM1-dakTVM
|
Un elefante se balanceaba O Learn Spanish number names with this traditional singing game. Listen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQBX2XMBIFo Practice walking heel to toe in time to the music before attempting
this game as these movements demand a high level of physical control. You
will need plenty of room and a safe surface on which to fall at the end of
the song! Make a large circle with 2 or 3 leaders inside.
|
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