I’ve been hard at work on an unfinished project now that my new blog design is finished. This project (Basics of Do, Re, and Mi) has led me down a rabbit-hole of songs and games that include do, re, and mi. One such song, Long Legged Sailor, has plenty of motions to keep students challenged. This song could be used with a wide variety of grade levels (K-6). The grade level and specific movements you use depends largely on your unique classroom situation. Best of all, it’s one of those songs that will be repeated by students on long bus rides or on the playground at recess.
CLAPPING GAME (2-6) Long Legged Sailor
Here are the directions for playing the clapping game with partners:
- “Have” – pat your legs with both hands
- “you” – clap own hands together
- “ever” – with partner, clap right hands together
- “ever” – clap own hands together
- “ever” – with partner, clap left hands together
- “in your” – clap own hands together
- “long” – spread hands wide apart
- “legged” – clap own hands together
- “life” – with partner, clap right hands together
- “seen a” – clap own hands together
- “long” – spread hands wide apart
- “legged” – clap own hands together
- “sailor” – with partner, clap left hands together
- “with a” – clap own hands together
- “long” – spread hands wide apart
- “legged” – clap own hands together
- “wife” – clap both hands together with your partner’s hands.
You can watch videos of student demonstrations of this clapping game HERE and HERE. For an easier version, substitute the right and left hand clapping motions with students clapping both hands with their partners each time.
SIMPLE MOTIONS (K-1)
- 1st verse: students raise both arms straight up each time they sing the words “long legged”.
- 2nd verse: students bend their arms, placing their fists up near their shoulders as they sing “short legged”.
- 3rd verse: students raise one arm up each time they sing “one legged”.
- 4th verse: students bend their arms and touch their elbows together when they sing “knock kneed”.
You can watch a demonstration of these movements HERE.
PRACTICING DO, RE, AND MI
There are multiple methods for helping students to associate what they hear with what they see. One way you can do this is by showing the melodic contour using the text of the song you’re practicing. For example, notice the placement of text in this visual. It follows the melodic contour of the song, moving up and down just as the pitches do. In your own classroom, you could write a few lines of the text on an interactive whiteboard. Then, have students take turns moving the text around to show the melodic contour of the song.
Later on, you can have them fill in the specific Solfége syllables for each word.