We’re squeezing in one more late spring/early summer playgroup cycle before we break until autumn. That completes our third year!
As per usual, most of the handplays and poems come from Betty Jones’ A Child’s Seasonal Treasury plus a song from Elisabeth Lebret’s Pentatonic Songs. The story will be a continuation of The Root Children. The craft will be birthday crowns (with lovely 100% wool felt from purl soho – yes, it costs $56/yard.) Our opening songs and closing songs remain the same and can be found in earlier posts.
The book discussion will be The Happiness Project. I wanted a shorter, lighter book, since in September we are going to tackle Jon Young’s Coyote’s Guide to Connecting with Nature. On our pending bookshelf:Â soule mama’s Handmade Home, Boys Alive!, and another parenting book that-I-will-post-the-name-of-when-I-remember.
Seashell Song by Betty Jones
Can you hear the sea’s song in this little shell? (Cup hands and place in lap.)
Hold it up to your ear and listen, listen well. (Put cupped hands to ear; listen.)
Shish-shoo-ooh.
The seashell’s song is from the silvery sea, (Lower cupped hands, sway them side to side.)
Where the waves roll in, wild and free. (Make rolling wave motion with hands, moving in, then out.)
Shish-shoo-ooh!
There upon the sand, the lovely seashell lies, (Cup hands and place in lap.)
Until a little child finds this seaside prize. (Cup hands to heart.)
Shish-shoo-ooh!
So guard this shell, its life-long song, (Cross hands at heart.)
And remember the home where it belongs
Shish-shoo-ooh! (Cup hands around mouth and voice loudly.)
Fairy Ring
Round about, round about in a fairy ring, (sashaying around circle)
Thus we dance, thus we dance, and thus we sing! (go to center)
Trip and go, to and fro, over the grass we go (sashaying around circle)
All about in and out, for our Flower Queen/King. (go to center)
Numbers
In my head count windows seven,
1,2,3,4,5,6,7.
Point each way, that makes six,
1,2,3,4,5,6.
See my fingers five
1,2,3,4,5.
Limbs I have four,
1,2,3,4.
Head, heart, hands, they are three,
1,2,3.
I, you, are two,
1,2.
One,
Done.
My Horses
My white horses like to step
Peaceful and slow,
Over mountains, through valleys,
So upright they go.
My brown horses merrily
Trot in the sun,
With their silver hoofs beating
The ground as they run.
My black horses gallop
With courage around,
And they throw up their heads
As they hammer the ground.
(Children enact horse movements described, moving in one directon around circle. Repeat in opposite direction.)
At the Beach by Betty Jones
Build a sand castle to the sky, Pat air; move hands upward.
Make a moat so when the waves roll by Make a big circle with arms in front of body.
The castle will stand with its sandy wall Hold arms upright with fingertips touching.
‘Til high tide comes and then it will fall. Fingers flutter at rooftop, and slowly flutter downward to lap.
Children’s Prayer Music by Elisabeth Lebret
The golden sun, so great and bright
Warms the world with all its might.
It makes the dark earth green and fair
And tends each thing with ceaseless care.
It shines on blossom, stone, and tree
On bird and beast, on you and me!
Oh, may each deed throughout the day,
May ev’rything we do and say
Be bright and strong and true,
Oh! Golden sun! Like you!
Sunshine Fairies
We are the sunshine fairies
And with our sparks of light
We shimmer and glimmer in the air
Hugging flowers with colors bright!
Begin standing in a circle; children hold out their arms at their sides and turn in place clockwise as fairies. Stop, and flick fingers as sparks. Hold out arms at sides, flutter fingers, then turn in place counterclockwise; hug self and rub hands up and down over folded arms.