Something musical happened at the library: adding song and dance to children's story programs

170 Pages·2009·2.23 MB·English

by  Rob Reid

Something Musical
Happened
at the Library
Adding Song and Dance to Children’s Story Programs
Rob Reid
American Library Association
Chicago 2007
While extensive effort has gone into ensuring the reliability of information appearing in this
book, the publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, on the accuracy or reliability of
the information, and does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any person for any
loss or damage caused by errors or omissions in this publication.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National
Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials,
ANSI Z39.48-1992. ∞
Printed on 50-pound white offset, a pH-neutral stock, and bound in 10-point coated
cover stock by Victor Graphics.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Reid, Rob.
Something musical happened at the library : adding song and dance to children’s story
programs / Rob Reid.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8389-0942-3 (alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-8389-0942-6
1. Children’s libraries—Activity programs. 2. Children’s songs—Discography. 3. Children—
Books and reading. 4. Children’s literature—Study and teaching (Elementary)—Activity
programs. 5. Storytelling. 6. Dance. I. Title.
Z718.1.R345 2007
027.62'5—dc22 2007008586
Copyright © 2007 by the American Library Association. All rights reserved except those
which may be granted by Sections 107 and 108 of the Copyright Revision Act of 1976.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8389-0942-3
ISBN-10: 0-8389-0942-6
Printed in the United States of America
11 10 09 08 07 5 4 3 2 1
Dedicated to the musical Freij Christiansen family—
Jim, Jenna, Andy, Michael, and Hannah

Contents
Preface  vii
Acknowledgments  ix
Musical Story Program Lesson Plans 1
Animal Fair 1
Bon Appétit 6
Boogie-Woogie Barnyard 11
Family Tree 14
May I Have This Dance? 19
Morning, Noon, and Night 22
School Talent Show 26
Toot! Toot! Beep! Beep!
Stories and Songs about Travel and Vehicles 31
Fun Pairings: Matching Children’s Songs
with Picture Books 36
More Musical Ideas 46
Call-and-Response Songs 61
Cumulatie Songs 70
Songs Sung in Rounds 77

e    e
i    Contents
x
The Best Picture Books Featuring
Music in Your Library 80
Picture Books Based on Song Lyrics 80
Picture Books Featuring Music and Musicians 108
Picture Books Featuring Dance and Dancers 123
Resources  138
Index  143
Preface
Something Musical Happened at the Library is a companion book to Children’s
Jukebox, second edition (ALA Editions, 2007). It was designed to share children’s
music ideas with public and school librarians, elementary school classroom
teachers, music teachers, music therapists, camp counselors, scout leaders,
parents, and anyone else who works and lives with children. It is intended for
both nonmusicians and folks who have different levels of musical skill.
The first edition of Children’s Jukebox (ALA Editions, 1995) was both a
subject index of children’s recorded music and a smorgasbord of children’s music
programming ideas. In the twelve years since that book came out, the children’s
music industry has grown—enough so that there are plenty of songs to index and
a wealth of musical ideas to share in two books.
Children’s musical recordings are often overlooked by librarians and teachers
when developing story programs and classroom activities. I hope that the pro-
gramming ideas found in the first part of the book are practical and inspire you
to discover and develop more ideas to share with children. I hope that the second
part of the book will help you to discover a wonderful assortment of children’s
picture books that deal with music and dance. May the children’s book publishing
industry keep them coming.
And I hope that all libraries and classrooms are filled with young voices
singing and playing musical instruments on a regular basis.
ii
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Acknowledgments
I would like to thank the incredibly supportive staff at ALA Editions, particularly
Laura Pelehach, Patrick Hogan, and Catherine English, for making me feel so
special. We’re close to achieving our “rainbow.”
I would also like to thank the circulation staff at the L. E. Phillips Memorial
Public Library in Eau Claire for handling my daily and weighty interlibrary
loan requests with constant smiles. I also doff my hat to all of the libraries in
the Indianhead Federated Library System (IFLS) as well as the staff at IFLS
headquarters.
I couldn’t have written this book or Children’s Jukebox, second edition,
without the support from all of the children’s artists who generously donated
their recordings and, more important, shared their talents with all of us.
Finally, thanks to my family—Jayne, Julia, Alice, Sam, Laura, and Steven—for
your love, your support, and your nimble dodging of stacks of compact discs
scattered throughout the house.
The author gratefully thanks the following artists for permission to reprint the
lyrics to the following songs:
“Bluebird.” Songwriters—Lisa Matthews and Mikel Gehl. Milkshake website:
www.milkshakemusic.com. Address: P.O. Box 4864, Baltimore, MD 21211.
“Goodbye” by Yosi Levin. Website: www.yosimusic.com; children’s music blog
Indie Kids Rock: http://indiekidsrock.blogspot.com.
“The Hippopotamus Song.” Words and music by Eric Ode from the recording
I Love My Shoes produced by Deep Rooted Music, LLC. Website: www
.ericode.com. Address: P.O. Box 1324, Sumner, WA 98390. Phone: [phone].
ix
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