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Theme: Life Science
Transitional Kindergarten: Arts Integration with Dance, Music and ELA
LESSON 2: Piggyback Songs
BIG IDEA: We can recognize a melody. We can write lyrics to a melody we already know.
INTEGRATED OUTCOME: With guidance and support from an adult, students will write their own
lyrics to a familiar melody using TK onsets.
COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
RL K.4
RI K.9
RF K.1
RF K.2c
W K.5
W K.7
SL K.1
SL K.6
Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.
With prompting and support, identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on
the same topic.
With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
Demonstrate understanding of spoken words, syllables, and sounds.
c. Blend and segment onsets and rimes of single-syllable spoken words.
With guidance and support from adults, respond to questions and suggestions form peers and
add details to strengthen writing as needed.
Participate in shared research and writing projects.
Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about kindergarten topics and
texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
Speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly.
SKILLS
Identify similar onsets in a text.
Compare and contrast a variety of onsets.
Clearly pronounce a variety of onsets.
Participate in a collaborative writing process.
VOCABULARY
same
different
beginning sound (onsets)
animals, such as pigs, horses,
kangaroos, hippos, etc.
CALIFORNIA MUSIC AND DANCE STANDARDS
Music
CE 2.2
AV 4.2
HCC 3.2
CRA 5.1
Use the voice to speak, chant, and sing.
Participate freely in musical activities.
Use developmentally appropriate movements in responding to music from various genres and
periods.
Demonstrate an awareness of music as a part of daily life.
Dance
AP 1.1
CE 2.2
CE 2.3
Move in a variety of directed ways.
Respond to visual and sound stimuli.
Respond spontaneously to different types of music and rhythms.
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Theme: Life Science
SKILLS
Identify the difference between singing, speaking and
chanting.
Chant and sing songs.
Move appropriately to music.
Listen and respond appropriately to music.
VOCABULARY
Melody
sing
speak
version
lyric(s)
speak
chant
CREATIVE PROCESS
Songs/Music:
Life Science: Mozart: 12 Variations on “Twinkle, Twinkle” (Ah, vous dirai-je, maman) in C Major
Songs of Our Earth: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”
Canciones De Animalitos Songs of Little Creatures: “The Itsy Bitsy Spider”
Canciones De Animalitos Songs of Little Creatures: “Rain, Rain, Go Away”
Feelin’ Froggy CD: “Hippo Hop” (Piggyback—“Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”)
Feelin’ Froggy CD: “Katy Kangaroo” (Piggyback—“Reuben, Reuben”)
Life Science: Speak “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” (FCOE video)
Life Science: Sing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” (FCOE video)
Life Science: Sing Along “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” with Amelia Bear (FCOE video)
Big Books:
Going Down Frog Street A to Z
Ps and Qs A to Z
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
Itsy Bitsy Spider
Hippo Hop
Other Resources:
Beat Board with Stars
Listening sticks
Helping Hands A to Z from Splash Into Pre-K
Photo Pocket Cards from Splash Into Pre-K
Theme: Life Science
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Strategy #1: Review the difference between singing, speaking, and chanting.
(SL K.1, SL K.6, Music: AP 1.2, CE 2.2, AV 4.2)
Other Resources:
Beat Board with Stars
T says, “We have studied the different ways to use our voices. We can speak, chant, or sing.” Have S
practice the different ways to use their voice. T speaks, “Ta-Ta-Ta-Ta” S echo. T and S practice speaking
“Ta-Ta-Ta-Ta” fast, slow, loud, and soft. T chants “Ta-Ta-Ta-Ta” to a steady beat, S echo. T and S practice
chanting “Ta-Ta-Ta-Ta” fast, slow, loud, and soft to a steady beat. T asks, “What was the same about
speaking and chanting? What was different? T says, “Singing is not yelling. It is the most beautiful sound
your voice can make.” T sings, “Ta-Ta-Ta-Ta” by picking any note and holding it out, S echo. T asks, “What
was the same about chanting and singing? What was different? As a review, T and S practice chanting
“Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” to a steady beat using the beat board.
Strategy #2: Sing a song to learn the melody
(SL K.1, SL K.6, Music: AP 1.2, CE 2.2, AV 4.2)
Songs of Our Earth: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”
Canciones De Animalitos Songs of Little Creatures: “The Itsy Bitsy Spider”
Life Science: Sing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” (FCOE video)
Life Science: Sing Along “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” with Amelia Bear (FCOE video)
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
Itsy Bitsy Spider
T says, “We have been practicing using our voices to chant, now we are going to use our voices to sing.” T
plays, “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” with the lyrics while students silently listen. T and S practice learning the
song. T sings the first verse, S echo. T sings the second verse, S echo. T and S sing the whole song
together. Note: Melody is the organized sounds, notes or pitches; the “tune.” For additional practice, repeat
the process using the “Itsy Bitsy Spider.”
Advanced: S sing the song in groups or on their own without the support of the teacher.
Strategy #3: Listen to other versions of songs with the same melody
(RI K.9, RF K.1, SL K.1, Music: AV 4.2, HCC 3.2, Dance: AP 1.1, CE 2.2, CE 2.3)
Feelin’ Froggy: “Hippo Hop”
T says, “Let’s listen to another song that has the same melody as “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” T plays,
“Hippo Hop” as S improvise movements with whole body or finger puppets.
Have a class discussion. T says, “What did you notice? What was the same as the first song we sang? What
was different?” For additional practice repeat the process using “Roly-Poly Caterpillar” (Piggyback—Itsy Bitsy
Spider).
Theme: Life Science
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Strategy #4: Listen to a classical version of the same melody with listening sticks.
(RI K.9, RF K.1, SL K.1, Music: AV 4.2, HCC 3.2, Dance: AP 1.1, CE 2.2, CE 2.3)
Life Science: Mozart: 12 Variations on “Twinkle, Twinkle” (Ah, vous dirai-je, maman) in C Major
Other Resources:
Listening sticks
T and S sing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” to review. T says, “Let’s listen to classical music that has the same
tune as “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” T plays, “Mozart: 12 Variations on “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” as S
improvise movements using the listening sticks. Have a class discussion. T says, “What did you notice? What
was the same as the first version we heard? What was different? How did this version make you feel?”
Strategy #5: Look at words to a song to find onsets
(RF K.1, RL K.4, RF K.2)
Songs/Music:
Life Science: Mozart: 12 Variations on “Twinkle, Twinkle” (Ah, vous dirai-je, maman) in C Major
Big Books:
Going Down Frog Street A to Z
Ps and Qs A to Z
Hippo Hop
Katy the Kangaroo
Other Resources:
Helping Hands A to Z
Big Book Connection: Ps and Qs A to Z
T and S identify onsets as T reads the big book, Going Down Frog Street A to Z. Now use the lyrics to “Hippo
Hop” to find onsets in a song. T says, “I can see a lot of words that start with the same sound. Will you help
me find all the words that start with ‘h’? What sound does ‘h’ make?” T models and circles the onset ‘h’ in
the title. T has S volunteer and help find the remaining onsets. T plays the song, “Hippo Hop” while S hop
every time they hear a word that starts with ‘h’. Repeat the process with other songs like “Katy the
Kangaroo.”
For additional practice finding onsets, read big book Ps and Qs A to Z, Helping Hands A to Z or listen to songs
from the Feelin’ Froggy CD.
Theme: Life Science
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Strategy #6: Brainstorm an onset letter with an animal
(RF K.1, RL K.4, RF K.2, W K. 2, W K.7, SL K.6)
Other Resources:
Photo Pocket Cards from Splash Into Pre-K
As a class create, a word bank that can be used to create an original song. T says, “Let’s make a song about
an animal that starts with “b”. As a class brainstorm ideas of animals and names that start with “b”, i.e., Billy
the Bear. T says, “What can you do that starts with “b”? What can you eat? Where can you live?” Use the
photo pocket cards to review all the “b” words and practice saying the /b/ sound. Repeat the process with
other onset letters.
Final Performance Task
“Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” without lyrics,
http://makingmusicfun.net/mp3/twinkle-twinkle-little-star-piano-solo.mp3
With guidance and support from an adult, the class uses the word bank from strategy #5 to write a piggyback
song to the tune of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” that uses an onset letter with an animal character. Students
identify the onset letters in the song. T and S practice singing the original song with or without the sing along
track.
*Advanced—S sing the song and improvise playing percussion instruments.
Write to Synthesize
We wrote a song about __________. Our song has lots of words that start with ______.
_____ makes the sound _______. Other words that make the / / sound are _____, _______, and _______.
E.g. We wrote a song about Billy the Bear. Our song has lots of words that start with b. B makes the sound
ASSESSMENT
Can S recognize a familiar melody?
Can S recognize onset sounds?
Can S recognize what is the same or different about a song?
Theme: Life Science
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Songs from Splash into Pre-K for melody
Leaping Literacy: “Lizzie Leaping Lizard” (Strategy #5)
Songs of Learning: “B-B-B-Bubbles” (Strategy #5)
Piggyback to songs for Strategy #2
1) It Starts in the Heart: “Caring Friends” (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star)
2) Nursery Rhymes: The Itsy Bitsy Spider
Feelin’ Froggy: “Roly-Poly Caterpillar” (Piggyback—“Itsy Bitsy Spider”)
3) Songs of Learning: “The Alphabet Song” (stop the song before you sing backwards)
Handwriting Without Tears: “Alphabet Boogie” (another version of the “ABC” song)
4) Songs of You and Me: “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes
Canciones De Animalitos Songs of Little Creatures: “The Insect Song” (piggy back to “Head and
Shoulders”)
5) Songs of Learning Fun: “The Wheels on the Bus”
Canciones De Animalitos Songs of Little Creatures: “All Around My Yard” (piggyback to “Wheels on the
Bus”)
Moving to Math CD: “Zzzz! Zzzzz! Snort! Snort!” (Piggyback—“Wheels on the Bus”)
6) It Starts in the Heart: “Friendship Chant” (piggyback to “1,2,3,4, Chant”)
It Starts in the Heart: “Friendship Chant” (instrumental to sing with piggyback)
7) Moving to Math CD: “Brenda Bear” (Piggyback—“Shortnin Bread”)
Songs of Our Earth: “The Seeds Grow” (piggyback to old Mcdonald)
Songs of You and Me: “The Farmer in The Dell”
Leaping Literacy: “What’s the Weather?” (Piggy back- B-I-N-G-O)
Leaping Literacy: “The Rhyme Family” (piggy back to Adams Family)
Songs of Learning Fun: “Bread and Jelly” (piggyback to “London Bridge Is Falling Down”)
Handwriting Without Tears: “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean”
Canciones De Animalitos Songs of Little Creatures: “The Bear Went Over the Mountain” (piggyback to
“For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow”)
Theme: Life Science
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ADDITIONAL STRATEGIES FOR PIGGYBACK SONGS
1) Title: Melody Relay Race
Materials: Any traditional song students are learning like “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” or “Wheels on the
Bus.”
Directions: Designate two finish lines. Half of the class becomes the “racers” while the other half of the class
becomes the “singers.” The “singers” sing a traditional song such as “The Wheels on the Bus” while “racers”
run back and forth between the two lines as many times as possible until the song is done. Switch roles and
repeat. Children can race different ways- hopping on one foot, walking backwards, etc… Use a visual like a
flag to begin and end the race.
Advanced: “racers” count how many times they run between the lines.
2) Title: Playing It Safe
Materials: Any traditional song students are learning like “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” or “Wheels on the
Bus.”
(Leave safe-zone)
The Wheels on the bus go round and round
Round and round, round and round
(Find a safe-zone)
The wheels on the bus go round and round
All through the town
Directions: Assign corners of the room as “safe zones”. During the first two verses of a rhyme, the children
take a partner and leave the safe zone walking around the room singing the song. When they get to the
second verse they start moving back to a “safe zone”. Have the students save their friends by holding out the
last note until everyone is in a “safe zone”. Repeat the process with new partners and other movements like
skipping, hopping or galloping.
3) Title: Moving to Onsets
Materials: Picture cards of words with similar onsets
Directions: Chose two different onsets, e.g. h and b. Every time T holds up a picture card of a word that
starts with “m” students march three times saying the word three times. Every time T holds up a picture card
of a word that starts with “h” students hop three times saying the word three times. Continue the activity with
new movements and onsets.
4) Title: Move to the Music
Materials: recordings of different versions of the same song
Directions: Listen silently to a song. Ask students to choose a character/animal that would move to that song.
On the second listen improvise movements to the music that their character/animal would make. As students
listen to different versions of the same song encourage them try different ways of moving based on how the
song makes them feel. Encourage having a different character/animal in mind for each different version.
Theme: Life Science
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Theme: Life Science
Hippo Hop
Henrietta Hippo and Harvey too
went to the hop at the Zippity Zoo.
They wiggled their hips and their tummies too,
as they danced the hula hoop at the hullabaloo.
Ho, Ho, Hee, Hee Doodle-e-doo.
Ho, Ho, Hee, Hee Doodle-e-doo.
Ho, Ho, Hee, Heee, Hoochy-koochy-koo.
and they had a happy time at the hullabaloo.
Hobo Harry and Horace Lou
helped that night at the Zippity Zoo.
They served hamburgers and hot dogs too
and they had a happy time at the hullabaloo.
Ho, Ho, Hee, Hee Doodle-e-doo.
Ho, Ho, Hee, Hee Doodle-e-doo.
Ho, Ho, Hee, Heee, Hoochy-koochy-koo.
and they had a happy time at the hullabaloo
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Theme: Life Science
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Katy Kangaroo
Katy the Kangaroo lives down in Kalamazoo
flying her kite with kids all day
She’ll help us learn to say, things that begin
with “K”
Watch and she’ll show us, as we play
Kerby the ghost, ker-plop
Kittens that like to hop
Kelly the kicking kangaroo
Kelsey the kitchen maid, will serve us lemonade
Learning is so much fun to do
Theme: Life Science
Itsy-Bitsy Spider
The itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain
And washed the spider out
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
And the itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the spout again
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