Thankful

This is a great week to sing about thankfulness.  I like to sing "I Am Glad for Many Things," p. 151.  Then we sing it several more times replacing "many things" with something specific: "I am glad for my pet frog . . ." or parents, grandparents, turkey, etc.  The children enjoy coming up with things that don't always fit the music but do your best.  Look in the "Gratitude" section of the index and choose some songs to add to singing time.

Quiet Control

Everyone has had difficulty managing a group of children.  I like to vary the songs that we sing from quiet and slow songs to lively ones.  However, sometimes the children don't move well from one mood to another as smoothly as I'd like.  After a lively or active song, here are some things you can try to help the children settle.

• Talk loudly so they can hear you, "If you can hear me put your hands on your shoulders."
• Softer voice, "If you can hear me clap your hands once."
• Softer voice, "If you can hear me tap your little fingers."
• Even softer, "If you can hear me lace your fingers."

There are a variety of things you can ask the children to do, but the softer your voice the quieter they become.  This works great as we change from singing time to closing exercises.