Join in with some final or repeated words/phrases from songs and rhymes
Model being playful and using a sing-song voice, or making up your own short song (micro songs or fragments).
Children of this age often choose fragments of songs to join in with rather than the whole song.
Some children may prefer to watch rather than join in, which is absolutely fine.
Songs and rhymes support language development, but sometimes using songs in other languages or songs that use vocal sounds rather than words can be a great leveller for children for whom the primary language used in the nursery/school is an additional language.
Sing a variety of songs that have repeated sounds or phrases that might be more accessible for children to join in with than the whole song. For example, in ‘Hickory Dickory Dock’, children can add in the ‘tick tock’ at the end. In ‘If You’re Happy and You Know It’, children can join in with the actions. In ‘Old MacDonald’, children can join in with the animal sounds.
Nursery rhymes such as those suggested above generally cover a larger toneset (number of pitches) than early years children are able to sing, but the intention here is to encourage children to listen to a song/rhyme performed by an adult and join in at specific points with simple sounds, actions, or phrases with a limited range of notes.
It is perfectly fine for male teachers or those with lower voices to sing an octave lower than the children.
Sing songs with actions that children can join in with, e.g. ‘Two Little Blackbirds’. Children can bounce their fists on their knees, raise their thumbs to represent birds, hide them behind their backs for ‘flying away’, then bring them back.
Explore the progression of this Learning Descriptor
Continue exploring the current Age Range
