Silly Songs
Aren't So Silly After All!
By Sandy Fleming
Children of all ages adore
them, camp counselors collect them, and most adults cringe when
they hear them. What causes all the fuss? Those silly, goofy songs,
of course. You know the ones: They are loud, repetitive and, at
times, just plain dumb. Kids tend to pick favorites and sing them
over and over and over again. Some seem to have fifty zillion
verses and others are so gross that parents threaten to ban them
permanently. Let's take a closer look, though. These songs, dumb
as they may be, are actually learning opportunities in disguise.
First, let's take a quick
look at why these songs are so funny. Many of them are full of
juxtapositions, like "Down By the Bay." Who would put
together lines like "Did you ever see a moose" and "kissing
a goose" except kids? Put that into a mental picture. Amusing,
isn't it? Kids must master auditory comprehension skills in order
to do that. It can't be funny if you don't understand it. The
song, "Boom, Boom, Ain't It Great to Be Crazy," is full
of puns. Again, comprehension is the key. Kids who learn these
songs practice vital comprehension skills. These skills are foundational
to reading and to later appreciation of literature.
Want to sing
silly kids' songs? Check these out!
The
Fun to Sing Songbook &
Wee Sing Silly Songs/Book and Cassette
Memory is another skill
built by singing goofy songs. Look at how many of these gems have
ten or more verses. "Found a Peanut," "Aiken Drum"
and "Over in the Meadow" are just a few examples. Memory
improves with exercise, and cumulative songs, like "There's
a Hole in the Bottom of the Sea" and "The Green Grass
Grew All Around," give memory quite a workout. In these songs,
each verse adds to those previously sung and verses get longer
and longer.
Silly songs even tap into
phonics skills, believe it or not. "Down By the Bay"
requires sound knowledge of rhyming. "I Like to Eat Apples
and Bananas" runs singers and listeners through common vowel
sounds. Some songs rely on alliteration as well to tickle the
funny bone. Singers need to break words into syllables, too. Generally,
each word part matches up with a note and those parts are usually
consistent with syllabication. Young readers need syllabication
skills to tackle longer, unfamiliar words when reading. Children
also absorb patterns of syllabication. For example, they learn
that syllables ending with vowels have the long vowel sound, digraphs
(like "ch") stay together in syllables, and each vowel
sound has its own syllable.
Poetic forms are rampant
in silly songs. Take away the tunes and you are left with poems,
complete with rhyme and meter. Some songs are based on limericks
and many include similes and metaphors. Understanding this figurative
language becomes important as children grow into studies of literature
in the upper grades. It helps to build mental pictures for both
singers and listeners. And the vivid, descriptive language sets
a fine example for children's own writing.
Many of the silly songs
have motions that challenge coordination and stamina. Kids who
sing them regularly learn better control of their muscles and
improve coordination. "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes"
and "Oh Chester" are two examples.
Songs that allow singers
to make up their own verses unleash creativity! Kids not only
have to come up with ideas for verses, but they also have to use
their knowledge of synonyms and rhyming words to make their ideas
sound like the rest of the song. "Down By the Bay,"
"Boom, Boom, Ain't It Great to Be Crazy" and "Aiken
Drum" are all songs that invite creation of new verses.
And now that you have an
idea about how these songs benefit your youngsters, it's time
to go out and find them, right? If your kids aren't already singing
and collecting them, there are a few online
sources that you can use as resources. Visit these links for more
info!
http://www.erikalin.com/camp/az.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/mi2/campsongs/
http://campsongs.8m.com/
http://www.campdrake.com/songs/
Sandy
Fleming is
Busy Parents Online Magazine's Busy Gradeschoolers section
editor.
