MacDonald song: Vowel version

To help learn vowel sounds you can try this variation of old Macdonald. I created this one after reading "Logic of English" which gave more clear understanding of the sounds each vowel makes.

The alphabet has five vowels:

A-E-I-O-U

Each vowel makes different sounds:

A-E-I-O-U

With a [long a], [short a], [others, if any];

An [long a], [short a], [others, if any].

Here an  [long a],

There an [short a],

Everywhere a [others, if any].

The alphabet has five vowels:

A-E-I-O-U

--------------------vowel phonics-----------------------------

A: long a, short a, a with dots above

E: long e, short e

I: long I, short I, long e, y

O: long o, short o, or

U: long u, short u, oo, u with dots above

Y: y, long I, short I, long e

Phonics 101: Fun in a Box

I was trying to think of a fun way to teach Ethan how to sound out words where he felt empowered and there was no sense of failure or exactness he had to achieve certain words. Education is very much about not making your kids feel like failures, but helping them find their own potential. So imagination and creation are essential for them. Combine this idea with Dr. Seuss (who is the king of imagination and made up words) and you get a fun phonics "play" time. Kids get to learn to sound out words and may make up their own too.

Three Dr. Seuss Books to read: (because he is famous for making up words)

• Cat in the Hat (fun in a box idea with "thing 1" and "thing 2")
• Cat in the Hat Comes Back (more "things" are actually letters in this book)
• On Beyond Zebra (idea that you can make up your own letters)

Next we play the game with blocks...like dice. (roll both dice and then place thing one first, followed by thing 2--the dice/blocks are kept in  a box: fun-in-a-box)

• Thing 1: Alphabet blocks--consonants (for picture-sides...have them guess what letter it starts with, then rotate that same dice to that letter and use that for first letter to word you sound out.)
• Thing 2: Phonics blocks (5 homemade word family blocks: one block per vowel)

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Further Info/Resources to help...

Beginner Word Families (for each block I use a different color)

• A: at, ag, an, am, ar, ap
• E: ee, en, ed, et, est, ell
• I: it, in, ig, ick, ill, ip
• O: op, oo, ot, ox, ob, og
• U: ug, um, un, ut, unk, up

Teaching Letter Sounds:

• Vowels: 

1. sing "Where is [vowel]..."
2. teach that vowels are open-mouthed and don't stop air flow. Kids should be able to sing and hold out vowels and know if you are saying a vowel by looking at your mouth if it's open. I sing a little song: A-E-I-O-U up and down a scale so they hear it.

• Consonants

1. Starfall.com (letter sounds are free online, or get the full app for great price. It is fantastic and includes classical music snippets so kids get introduced to pieces early)
2. Endless Alphabet App (and Endless Reader): free for basic use is all I needed, but great price to buy full.
3. Logic of English phonograms: they have an app or flash cards you can buy. Or just look up on their website (free, but jot as convenient). This is a smart way to learn English sounds and real rules!

• Combing it all together:

1. Your Example: Read, read, read to your kids and point to letters and sound them out so they can see an example of how they should read. But don't drill them. Just let them see and hear you as you read to them and they will start trying along with you, hopefully.
2. A Favorite Book: Have a simple-worded book or two they love and can read with you regularly, and that they can access and look to practice when mom isn't around.

Jump Rope Rhymes

Numbers
I can do a polka, I can do a split.

I can do a tap dance just like this...

1, 2, 3...

Hickety Pickety pop.

How many times before I stop?

1,2,3...

Letters
Yummy, yummy...Vegetable goop.

What will I find in my alphabet soup?

A, B, C,...

Months of the Year

Windy, windy weather...we all go in together.

January, February, March... (Jump in as birthday month is called)

Windy, windy weather...we all go out together.

January, February, March  (Jump out as birthday month is called)

Movement
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear dressed in blue,

can you do what I tell you to:

teddy bear teddy bear turnaround,

teddy bear teddy bear touch the ground.

teddy bear teddy bear do the splits.

teddy bear teddy bear give a high kick.

teddy bear teddy bear go upstairs, (walk toward one end of rope)

teddy bear teddy bear say your prayers. (Kneel)

teddy bear teddy bear turn out the light,

teddy bear say good night. (Exit the jump rope)

Other...

A, my name is Alice

and my husbands name is Arthur.

we come from Alabama,

where we sell artichokes.

B, my name is Bernie

and my wife's name is Bridget.

we come from Brooklyn.

where we sell bicycles.

C, my name is...

and my husband/wife's name is...

we come from...

where we sell...

Fairy Tales Listed by Age

Basic fairy tales: age 3+

Sweet Porridge (Grimm, 103)
Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Russian)
Little Louse and Little Flea (Spindrift)
The Mitten
Little Madam (Spindrift)
The Gingerbread Man
The Johnny Cake (English)
The Hungry Cat (Norwegian, Plays for Puppets)

Fairy tales: age 4-5

Billy Goats Gruff (Norwegian)
Three Little Pigs (English;
Wolf and Seven Kids (Grimm, 5)
Pancake Mill m
Mashenka and the Bear (Russian, Plays for Puppets)
The Shoemaker and The Elves (Grimm, 39)

Fairy tales: age 5-6

Star Money (Grimm, 153)
Frog Prince (Grimm, 1)
Mother Holle (Grimm, 24)
Little Red Cap (Grimm, 26)
Bremen Town Musicians (Grimm, 27)
Golden Goose (Grimm, 64)
Spindle, Shuttle and Needle (Grimm, 186)
Hut in the Forest (Grimm, 169;
Queen Bee (Grimm, 62)
Snow Maiden (Russian, Plays for Puppets)
The Seven Ravens (Grimm, 25)
Snow-White and Rose Red (Grimm, 161)
Little Briar Rose (Grimm, 50)
Princess in the Flaming Castle
The Donkey (Grimm, 144)
Rumpelsti1tskin (Grimm, 55)
Snow-White and the Seven Dwarves (Grimm, 53)
Hansel and Gretel (Grimm, 15)

Fairy tales: age 6-7

Jorinda and Joringel (Grimm, 69)
Brother and Sister (Grimm, 13)
Cinderella (Grimm, 21)
Rapunzel (Grimm, 12)

Simeli Mountain (Grimm)
The Goose Girl (Grimm)
The Cat & Mouse in Partnership (Grimm)

French 101: Months of the Year

If you know the months of the year in French you can just substitute them into a simple song, stringing them together. I like to see them broken down by season, so I made a song for that using Frere Jacques tune.



Les mois de l'annee... (The months of the year)
Les mois de l'annee...
Dans l'hiver  (in the winter)
Dans l'hiver
Decembre, Janvier  [month 1,2]
et Fevrier  [and month 3]
Saison de l'hiver  (Season of winter)
Saison de l'hiver

Les mois de l'annee...
Les mois de l'annee...
Dans le printemps
Dans le printemps
Mars, Avril
et Mai
Saison de le springtemps
Saison de le springtemps

Les mois de l'annee...
Les mois de l'annee...
Dans l'ete
Dans l'ete
Juin, Juillet,
et aout
Saison de l'ete
Saison de l'ete

Les Mois de L'annee...
Les Mois de L'annee...
Dans l'automne
Dans l'automne
Septembre, Octobre
et Novembre
Saison de l'automne.
Saison de l'automne.


---for pronunciation's sake....

French 101: Days of the Week

This is a good song for learning both the days of the week and the weater vocab. By putting them together in a song story it provides more variety than just memorizing words strung together into a seven word week song. (which is originally how I learned it back in the day and was fine with....but this seems fun, yet more complex)

Quel temps fait-il? Bonjour lundi, quel temps fait-il? Il fait chaud aujourd'hui. Il fait chaud, youpi, youpi! Au revoir lundi! Bonjour mardi, quel temps fait-il? Il fait froid aujourd'hui. Il fait froid, tant pis, tant pis! Au revoir mardi! Bonjour mercredi, quel temps fait-il? Il fait beau aujourd'hui. Il fait beau, youpi, youpi! Au revoir mercredi! Bonjour jeudi, quel temps fait-il? Il fait mauvais aujourd'hui. Il fait mauvais, tant pis, tant pis! Au revoir jeudi! Bonjour vendredi, quel temps fait-il? Il fait soleil aujourd'hui. Il fait soleil, youpi, youpi! Au revoir vendredi! Bonjour samedi, quel temps fait-il? Il pleut, il pleut aujourd'hui. Il pleut, il pleut, tant pis, tant pis! Au revoir samedi! Bonjour dimanche, quel temps fait-il? Il neige, il neige aujourd'hui. Il neige, il neige, youpi, youpi! Au revoir dimanche!

What's the Weather Like? Hello Monday, what's the weather like? It's hot today. It's hot, yipee, yipee! Goodbye Monday! Hello Tuesday, what's the weather like? It's cold today. It's cold, too bad, too bad! Goodbye Tuesday! Hello Wednesday, what's the weather like? It's fine today. It's fine, yipee, yipee! Goodbye Wednesday! Hello Thursday, what's the weather like? It's miserable today. It's miserable, too bad, too bad! Goodbye Thursday! Hello Friday, what's the weather like? It's sunny today. It's sunny, yipee, yipee! Goodbye Friday! Hello Saturday, what's the weather like? It's raining, it's raining today. It's raining, it's raining too bad, too bad! Goodbye Saturday! Hello Sunday, what's the weather like? It's snowing, it's snowing today. It's snowing, its snowing, yipee, yipee! Goodbye Sunday!

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French 101: Frere Jacque Song

Frère Jacques, Frère Jacques,

Dormez vous? Dormez vous?

Sonnez les matines,

Sonnez les matines,

Ding Ding Dong,

Ding Ding Dong.

Are you sleeping, are you sleeping,

Brother John? Brother John?

Morning bells are ringing,

Morning bells are ringing

Ding Ding Dong,

Ding Ding Dong.