Music For Kiddos Podcast
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This blog post and episode 91 of the Music For Kiddos Podcast is part two of a little Spring program series. On the first episode and on this blog post, I gave you some suggestions for a few songs that you might use in a preschool and elementary Spring music program and now I'm going to share with you my best tips about selecting songs and how you might approach Spring music program planning.
Before I start, I’d like to share this caveat— there's so many ways to do something. And what I’m about to share with you is just how I have approached Spring music program planning over the years. Also, I am somebody who has this weird combination of “I like a plan and I also like a lot of flexibility”, so I wouldn't say I'm the world's best planner but I’ve learned how to keep things simple so that they can be successful (even if they might go ‘wrong”).
5 Things To Consider When Planning A Spring Music Program
1. Choose songs that kids like all year round
Look for songs that make kids' eyes sparkle and that they love to participate in and play. Also, feel free to think out-of-the-box. For example, my song Blowing In The Wind is a song that a lot of kids like, and is technically Fall song. A lot of people use it for Halloween and even change the lyrics to “My ghost is blowing in the wind”, but it could absolutely be used for Spring by changing the lyrics a bit. So ask yourself, if the kids love a specific song, how could that song be adapted for your Spring program?
2. Choose songs that are easy for kids to sing
Make sure that your songs are in the right key, that they're in the right range. Make sure they don't have a lot of syncopation and that they don't have a lot of big musical leaps. Keep it simple rhythmically, melodically and with lots of repetition.
You might also want to read: 3 Spring Music Program Songs For Preschool and Elementary School!
3. Choose songs that are repetitive
This goes hand in hand with simplicity, but we're going to expand on this concept of repetition. Repetition in a song can be a lot of different things. It can be lyrically, it can be musically, but it also can be song form. And speaking of that, make sure that the song form is not confusing for kids and that the song repeats a lot and in a predictable way so that kids understand when they're supposed to come in and what they're supposed to sing next. When the kids have nerves and they have distractions during the actual day of the Spring program or performance, you just don't want to leave any room for confusion.
4. Consider incorporating things like gestures, props, instruments, or costumes in your performance
Kids really, really love it. They feel so proud and so excited when they can be doing something “of out of the ordinary” and special as part of their Spring program.
I worked with a couple of preschool teachers who really liked to work with me on the Spring music program, and I loved this so much. They would really get into costumes and props with the kids and they would even turn them into class projects. They would make headbands, paper flowers, etc. and utilize these during their performance.
As a music teacher, I love gestures as part of songs because it really helps with that full-brain engagement. When kids are incorporating movement along with singing, they are activating larger parts of their brain, which is really good in supporting their development, but also it's really good for keeping them engaged during a Spring program.
5. Involve the teachers however possible
At my most recent school (which was wonderful, by the way!), some of the teachers were really into the Spring program and some of them were not. It was an expectation at our school that all of the teachers would come to the Spring program and help, which was really nice. As their music teacher, I only saw the kids once a week, so it was pretty essential that I had the teachers practicing with the kids.
I'd give them a recording or something to practice with at the end of the day, after lunch or during circle time, and it was incredibly helpful. It took a lot of the pressure off of me and it was also really fun to collaborate in that way with the other teachers. When the actual spring program came, kids were able to make contact with their teacher, who was familiar with the song, and would often stand up in the front and help them sing it while I was on stage with the kids. I know that in elementary music you rarely have that luxury, actually but especially in the preschool age group, that was something that I found very, very helpful.
There are a million ways to plan a Spring program, but my best tip is to keep it pretty simple. It always seemed like the more simple I kept it, the more successful the performances were.
If you need Spring program song ideas, you might want to check out this post! If you're interested in backing tracks, leadsheets, and MP3s of some of my most popular songs (that many kids and teachers love!), you can find them in our songbook, Early Childhood Songs Vol. 1.
Listen to this episode of the Music For Kiddos Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Stitcher or wherever you listen to your favorite shows!
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