Song Spotlights – Things That Go
There are a handful of topics that seem to hold almost universal appeal for the younger set – animals, dinosaurs, and things that go. Today I’m spotlighting two songs that focus on the latter.
One of my favorite things that goes is cars. Fast cars, slow cars, old cars, new cars, I love them all. No matter what kind of car is your favorite, who wouldn’t want a shiny red convertible to cruise around town in just like in Mr. Simon‘s latest song, “Shiny Red Car?” Not only does this track have a jaunty melody, it also features lyrics that encourage listeners to drive, wave, wiggle, jiggle up and down, and spin – among other actions – making it a fantastic addition to storytime.
We’ve all heard the delightful stories about little ones waiting for the garbage truck to arrive. In their song “Rock and Rollin’ with the Garbage Truck,” the duo known as Preschool Rockstar, Kevin and Marty Long, celebrate these special local celebrities. The video features cute, engaging animation, a truly rocking melody and lyrics like, “The garbage truck/we like to watch it do its job/when it comes we’ll wave and nod/there it goes/its the garbage truck.” While the video will be fun for garbage truck fans, it also shows the process of picking up the garbage and taking it to the dump, which would be a good conversation starter about waste and recycling.
Do you have a favorite song about things that go? Share in the comments!
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Stacey Peasley’s fifth album for families, Make It Happen!, is a wonderfully refreshing thirty minutes of music. Backed by popping melodies, each of the ten original songs in this collection tells a story packed with details that children can easily relate to. The first three tracks – “Make It Happen,” “Boo Boo,” and “What Girls Do” – employ lyrics that empower listeners with messages that acknowledge that even though being a kid is hard, they are resilient and are here to do amazing things. With spring and summer sports beginning again, listeners will get all revved up for game day with the anthem “Play the Game,” while “Swimming Pool” will be a good track to share with children who might be nervous about taking swimming lessons for the first time. If you’re looking for new songs to use during storytime, “Choo Choo” is a great fast paced tune to use during a dance break, while “At the Parade” is interactive from beginning to end, inviting listeners to be the instruments, marchers and cheering audience at the parade. Make it Happen! is a joy from beginning to end.
March roared in with the arrival of music from two evergreen children’s performers – Laurie Berkner and The Wiggles. Not one to let something like a pandemic slow her down, on March 5, Laurie released her 14th album, Let’s Go! Filled with her signature style these 16 songs, running a brief 33 minutes total, will not disappoint. Tracks like “When It’s Cold,” “Time to Eat,” and “Jumping Jack” would be welcome additions to storytimes as they encourage children to wiggle, jump, spin, clap, and knock while “Happy New Year” is the perfect way to end this year’s Noon Year’s Eve events. Reminders of the times in which we live are evident in “The Superhero Handwashing Song,” “The Superhero Mask Song,” and the opening track, “Let’s Go!” which celebrates the building excitement as everyone gets ready to go outside. In addition to all of this fun, there are also some quiet moments, times for mindfulness and reflection in “Listen to the Sounds,” and “Beautiful Light.” 
The first album is Moving to the ABCs from Kansas-based Jammin’ Randy. Clocking in at almost 75 minutes, this album features 26 songs – one for each letter of the alphabet – with titles ranging from “Awesome Alphabet Rap” to “Zany Zebra.” Jammin’ Randy performs this collection of all original songs with just his solo voice set against simple melodies that children will find easy to follow along with. Many of the songs encourage participation either through movement or echo/repeat in the lyrics. Clear instructions to perform various actions like stomp, clap, hop, jump and count to four are given on songs such as “Clap Your Hands,” “Penguin Hop,” “Wiggle Wiggle Waggle,” and the “Egg Shaker Dance.” Additional movements include move to the front, the back, the left, and the right. All movements are developmentally appropriate for the target age group and are set at a pace that most preschoolers will be able to follow with little difficulty. Jammin’ Randy, or Randy Sauer as he is known in his every day life, let’s his experience as a K-6 music teacher shine in the lesson plans that he provides for this album. For each song, he provides suggested art, music and physical education activities making the songs easy to incorporate into the storytime planning process. For more information, or to check out the 
The second album is from Chicagoland-based Jeanie B! Jeanie B! & the Jelly Beans released the album I Love Music this year, but it is Jeanie B!’s solo album, Come Together that I would like to highlight. This album is split into two parts. The first part is “Come Together Songs” and the second, “Classroom Transitional Songs.” Thirteen of the fourteen songs in the first part are Jeanie B! originals. It is clear that she knows her audience because the songs all range in length from 1 to 2.5 minutes, making them perfect for storytimes. Several of the tracks are beautiful songs about nature that are just lovely to listen to, including “How Do You Build a Nest” and “I’m a Little Butterfly.” The rest of the tracks in this section of the album are very interactive including “If I Was An Ant” which gets kids snapping, clapping, and stomping, “Marching On My Feet” which highlights various body parts and “5 Little Pieces of Bubble Gum” which gets kids counting down from five to none. Additional songs include “Mary Had a Little Farm” during which children are encouraged to make the sounds of a variety of animals and “Zim Zamma Zoom” a fun call and response tune. The second part of the album would work best in a preschool environment with song breaks averaging around 30 seconds and covering topics from “Time To Wash Hands” to “Snack Time” and “Right Hand On The Rail.” Jeanie B!’s live shows are always a lot of fun and a real hit with the preschool set. If you find her performing in your area, make sure to check it out. For more information about Jeanie B! and all of her music, visit 
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Just in time for planning summer programs comes Dana’s Best Jump & Jam Tunes. This high octane album is filled with songs that would be perfect during library storytimes, summer camp dance breaks or just getting the wiggles out at home. Dana Cohenour’s 20+ years of experience working with children is evident in the way that she crafts each song to engage children from beginning to end. The opening track, “Jump and Jive” is perfect to get kids up and moving while songs like “Jumping Beans,” a fun freeze dance will keep the kids (and you!) jumping to the beat for almost three full minutes. The only song not written by Dana is the traditional, “Five Green and Speckled Frogs” which in this case is set to a rousing bluegrass beat. Also included are the story song “Fish Tale” and the beautiful closing track, “I Love Mommy” which sends love to all members of a child’s family circle.
Out just in time for Earth Day program planning, HomeEarth by Chicago duo Wendy & DB, is a real treat. The album opens with the title song “HomeEarth,” a fun introduction to the planets and the galaxy, then takes listeners to ground level where the importance of living things is explored. “Olly the Orca,” “Bugs That Give Hugs” and the joy of growing a garden and giving to others in “Plant a Seed” are all given their moment to shine in the sun.
Chicago-based