Children’s musicians Erin Lee and Marci bring us the next of their regular posts with thematic recommendations for kid-friendly music, plus activities to make the songs an interactive experience for the whole family.
Look for Erin Lee and Marci here on the first Monday of each month, or visit their homepage, www.gottaplay.org.
I’ve created links to Amazon for the full albums (click the album name), plus links to Amazon MP3 downloads, when available, for those who want only the singles. (Click the song name.) I also have a widget after the jump that will let you preview most of the songs without leaving Mombian.
We’re having a heat wave—at least we are here in New York City. Whenever August rolls around, so does the heat—and the best way to beat the heat is with water! Here are some of our favorite tunes that celebrate sprinklers, swimming, and all-around general splashing. Warning and heat advisory: these are all dance tunes—guaranteed to get you all ready for a run through the sprinkler or a dunk in the water!
“Ridin’ the Big Waves
This infectiously danceable tune will have you up and surfing—even if you’re only in your living room. We’re doing all the moves and we’re not anywhere close to water! The verses are easy to learn and easy to sing, the guitar licks will have you playing face-melting rock guitar riffs on your air guitar, and we bet you’ll be pretending that you’re surfing with Charity just a few notes into this song.
“Waterslide
When it comes to catchy tunes, Mr. Billy never lets us down. Our favorites generally sound reminiscent of the B-52’s, with off-beat vocals and danceable beats, and this certainly fits that description! This ode to waterslides could inspire a new dance craze – get on your feet, dance like crazy and pretend you’re sliding down!
“All Wet
Whether you like rain, or baths, or swimming, or sailing, or fishing, “All Wet” is the water song for you. We love water so much that we chose this tune as our first music video—check it out online for free.
And here’s an activity to get this song off the iPod and into your life:
Do an art project! This song is a celebration of playing in the water-swimming pools, bathtubs, fishing, or just splashing around-the song’s narrator loves them all. Make a collage to match the lyrics of this song, then think about your favorite activities during the other three seasons and make a collage for each of them.
PS: Need more splashing? Tons of libraries have embraced splashing as their summer reading theme as kids “Make a Splash” and read! Lots of great kindie musicians are singing their own favorite water songs at libraries, so call your local branch and find out who is playing near you!