This song and music video have a wonderful message for Mamá on Mother’s Day. The song is upbeat and fun and you will love Mariana Iranzi! Mariana is originally from Argentina. An accomplished professional musician, she also composes and performs Spanish songs for children. Her personality comes shining through in this video; it is sure to have both kids and adults singing along with smiles on their faces. Looking at language, this song works well [...]
I recently received an email from a reader looking for Spanish songs for preschoolers about trains and other forms of transportation. I shared a few songs with her and thought I would mention them here, too. I do a unit on el transporte with my preschoolers and have used the first two songs below about trains. The third song is longer and has more vocabulary, but works well with students who are a little older. [...]
I think this is a wonderful Spanish song for kids to sing as Mother’s Day approaches. It is called Yo solito Mamá (By myself, Mama) and is by Rossana Conte of Torreon, Mexico. The song has lots of simple verb forms. It also has vocabulary that children hear right away as they start to learn Spanish. The song is about wanting to be independent, a feeling that all children can identify with. Unfortunately, the song [...]
The snow is almost gone here in Wisconsin, and many of us are talking and singing about the change of seasons with our kids. Los pollitos is a traditional song that fits in well if you are talking about spring, hens, eggs and chicks. Los Pollitos Vocabulary I like to sing this song in class because it has lots of useful vocabulary. It describes how a hen takes care of her chicks, and children learn [...]
The traditional folk song De Colores is sung throughout the Spanish-speaking world. The song is often associated with the Catholic church, but it is also taught as a Spanish song for kids to celebrate spring without specific references to religion. De Colores is a song that many teachers sing with classes at this time of year. It is a good way to introduce or reinforce spring vocabulary such as la primavera (spring), las [...]
Old McDonald is a song many English speakers learn when they are very young. The equivalent Spanish song for kids is En la granja de mi tío, and it is a fun way for children to learn animals and animal sounds in Spanish. There are several variations of the song in Spanish with different melodies and lyrics. In Spanish, it can be la granja de Pepito, la granja de Juan or la granja de Miguel. The number of [...]
Antonio Selfa Molina is a performer and composer from Spain. He is also a teacher. Last year, he recorded Spanish poems for children set to his music. These poems are by some of the great poets of Spanish literature, including Lope de Vega, Amado Nervo, and Nicolás Guillen. There are also poems by well-known contemporary writers like Pedro Villar and Floria Jiménez. Several of these Spanish poems for children can be used effectively with language [...]
1, 2, 3 Momia Es is a playground game kids play in South America. In Mexico, the same game is called 1, 2, 3 Calabaza. In Spain, it is 1,2,3 Escondite Inglés and in English it is Red Light, Green Light. Elizabeth Carmona of Chile has written a very fun song called 1, 2, 3 Momia Es that incorporates parts of this familiar game. In the traditional game, one player faces a wall or a [...]
Josefina la gallina is a Spanish song for kids by Elizabeth Carmona of Chile. She creates entertaining and educational programs for Atiempopreescolar, a division of the studio ATiempo dedicated to preschool programing. Her program Juguemos en el campo was awared first place in the contest Juegos musicales para la primera infancia organized by Chile Crece Contigo, Consejo de la Música and Unicef. Josefina la gallina is a very active song. It is an excellent way [...]
Colores is a Spanish song for children written and sung by Patty Shukla. The song gets kids up and moving as they practice their colors in Spanish. Patty Shukla writes and sings fun, educational songs for children. Although most of her music is in English, she has also recorded a CD of Spanish songs for kids called Canta y Baila con Patty. You can find out more about her music on the Patty Shukla website [...]
Los conejos (The rabbits) is a Spanish song for kids with lots of movement. Students learn it in preschool and elementary school in many Spanish-speaking countries. My younger students love to jump and pretending to be a rabbit is the perfect reason to jump around and sing in Spanish. I like to teach this song because the words and the actions correspond so closely. Students move closer as they sing cerquita and farther away as [...]
The San Francisco Public Library has a page with five children’s songs in Spanish. All of the songs are also finger plays or have actions. The page refers to them as cuentos, or stories, and indeed they are the first little stories that many Spanish speakers learn. Three of the songs are very traditional: Cinco lobitos, Pin Pon and Tortillitas para Mamá. La araña pequeñita (The Itsy, Bitsy Spider) and Osito, osito (Teddy Bear, Teddy [...]