HELLO FRIEND!
Well, here we are in November and in almost Thanksgiving in the USA – so ti’s time for November Preschool Songs! But even if you are in another part of the world and don’t celebrate Thanksgiving – or it’s not Autumn where you are – the themes I cover in the songs I’m sharing today can still be applied!
I’ve got 12 November preschool songs below that cover Turkeys (but not Thanksgiving specific), Gratitude, Togetherness, Fall leaves and squirrels, Farm, food and mealtime! I’ve got silly songs, movement songs, sign-language, fingerplays – I mean, I’ve got it all for you today! So let’s start having fun right now:
TURKEY SONGS:
One of my all time favorite Thanksgiving time songs is this one: A Turkey Is A Silly Bird. But it can really be sued ANYTIME of year. We never say Thanksgiving in this song. Simply the fact that it’s about a Turkey is why I tend to sing it in November. But it can be used any time you’re talking about animals, or dong a Farm unit or just need a silly song.
And our second Turkey Song is: Mr. Turkey & Mr. Duck. Likewise – it has nothing to do with Thanksgiving. But it DOES involve a lot of gobbling (and quacking), and making our thumbs have a conversation – and preschool kids LOVE it:
GRATITUDE
Gratitude is not a very easy concept for little ones to understand. Four and Five year olds begin to – and this song is a great way to introduce it to all ages. It’s my song Grateful from my 2013 album Sha Doo Be doop (and you can find it on Spotify, Apple Music or ask Alexa to play it!). In this song I simply say “Thank You” for things I’m grateful for and then the chorus is, “I’m grateful – la la la la la ” that we repeat. In this music video you are treated to a lot of footage of baby/toddler Piper and myself and Mr. Nina from several years ago:
TOGETHERNESS
Another theme I LOVE to start talking about at this time of year is Togetherness and the concepts of Together-Apart. Nearly all celebrations and holidays involve getting together with family and friends. So I love singing and signing The More We Get Together. It’s a great Circle Time song, and it’s also a great song if to use for any sort of holiday school family night or performance. I teach the signs and sing it with you in this video:
In understanding what it means to get together or to be together – we need to understand it’s opposite: to be apart! So here’s a hip-hop dance song and activity for you: Together & Apart. We use our whole body – first our arms, then our feet/legs and then both at the same time – to fully experience in our bodies what together means and what apart means. And also – this is just a whole lot of fun! It’s a great Brain Break and a way to get energy out. This one usually sufficiently tires kids out (at least for a moment) and I always have great success with getting them to sit and relax for a story or book song after it!
AUTUMN!!
It’s funny, here in Minnesota, almost all of the leaves are off of the trees already – Back in late September and all through October is when they were falling. But I do know that in other areas of the country – and world- right now is when the leaves are beginning to Fall – so here’s three fun Autumn songs: two about the leaves and one about squirrels! Here is The Leaves Are Falling Down – a fun song and activity with scarves:
Here’s Autumn Leaves Are Falling Down – this one mainly focusing on Autumn colors:
And the ever-popular and fun: Grey Squirrel:
FARM ANIMALS, HARVEST & FOOD
This time of year brings the harvest and I know a lot of teachers who like to do a Farm Unit. So, here we’ve got the most classic farm song ever: Old MacDonald Had A Farm. In this one I’m joined by some adorable Melissa & Doug puppets!
And on the farm, of course, is a Turkey! But this song, Albuquerque The Turkey, is sort of a fun vegetarian take on Thanksgiving:
And since it’s the Harvest, i thought it would be fun to add my song, Honeydew You Love Me (a Harvest Love Song in homophones) to the list! Although the homophones will go over toddler’s heads, older kids love it! And it’s just a fun song using fruits and vegetables!
And of course, Thanksgiving and harvest time and the upcoming late-Fall and Winter holidays around the world all involve a big meal with family and friends. So it’s a great excuse for this silly song about utensils: I‘m A Knife Fork Spoon Spatula. A great song to help with identification of utensils and also just a hilarious movement song and brain break.
And so there you have it! 12 preschool songs for November and Thanksgiving! Feel free use and and all of them in your classes, homes or wherever you like to sing and dance!
ENJOY! I’ll see you in your inbox again next Tuesday!
XOXO
Miss Nina
