Enhancing Picture Books with Music

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Enhancing Picture Books with Music

• Presented by Beth Jahn

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• Suggestions for using music to enhance picture
  books
• Read/Sing picture books with a known song text.
• Sing the text of a book which is not based on a
  song.
• Use instruments (or found sounds) to create
  sound effects for a story.
• Add instruments for each different
  character/event of a story.
• Use recorded music as a sound track for a
  story.
• Choose a simple song (nursery rhymes or other
  childrens songs) to represent the
  characters/events of a story.
• Create a simple song based on the text of a
  picture book or inspired by the events of the
  book.

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Read/Sing picture books with a known song text.

• A-Hunting We Will Go by John Langstaff
• Miss Mary Mack by Mary Ann Hoberman
• Old Macdonald by Pam Adams
• Give the Dog a Bone by Steven Kellog
• My Favorite Things by Renee Graef
• Mary Wore Her Red Dress by Merle Peek
• Joseph Had A Little Overcoat by Simms Tabak
• Yankee Doodle by Patti Goodnow
• Skip to My Lou by Nadine Bernard Westcott
• What a Wonderful World by Bob Thiele
• Books by Iza Trapini
• The Itsy Bitsy Spider
• Im A Little Teapot
• Row, Row, Row Your Boat

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Sing the text of a book that is not based on a
song.

• Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Eric Carle can be sung
  to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.
• Old Black Fly by Jim Aylesworth can be sung to
  the tune of Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho or
  to the tune of Skip to My Lou.
• Frog in the Kitchen Sing by Jim Post can be sung
  to the tune of Skip to My Lou.
• Barnyard Dance by Susan Boynton can be sung to
  the tune of Turkey in the Straw.
• Is Your Mama a Llama by Deborah Guarino can be
  sung to the tune of The Irish Washerwoman.

Books with rhyming texts will be your best bet
for this type of activity because of the even
phrasing.
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Use instruments (or found sounds) to create sound
effects for a story.
A few examples

• The Little Old Lady Who Wasnt Afraid of
  Anything by
• The Three Billy Goats Gruff
• Baby Rattlesnake by Te Ata
• Listen to the Rain by Bill Martin Jr. and John
  Archambault
• Rattlebone Rock by Silvia Andrews

Dont have instruments in your classroom? Ask
your music specialist ahead of time if he/she
would let you borrow some. You can also use
items around the classroom as found sounds.
Solicit ideas from your students.
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Add instruments for each different
character/event of a story.

• Jump, Frog, Jump by Robert Kalan
• The Napping House by Audrey Wood
• The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of
  Anything by Linda Williams
• This is the House That Jack Built by Simms Tabak
• The Mitten by Jan Brett
• Too Much Noise by Ann McGovern
• Hattie and the Fox by Mem Fox

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The Napping House By Audrey Wood
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• Process for The Napping House
• Read the book.
• Have students choose an instrument to represent
  each of the characters/objects
• napping house
• cozy bed
• snoring granny
• dreaming child
• dozing dog
• snoozing cat
• slumbering mouse
• wakeful flea

• Read the book again adding the instrument sounds
  in the appropriate places.

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Use recorded music as a sound track for a
story. This can be either well-known pieces of
music or lesser known pieces of your choosing
that you feel match the mood of the story.

• Dream Snow by Eric Carle with Debussys Snow is
  Falling
• Little Beaver and the Echo with Cristoforis
  Dream by David Lanz
• The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister with Aquarium
  by Saint-Saens
• Birds of A Feather by Willi Baum with The Aviary
  by Saint-Saens
• The Banshee by Karen Ackerman/David Ray with
  Henry Cowells Banshee
• Autumn Leaves by Ken Robbins with Vivaldis
  Autumn
• Barn Dance by Bill Martin Jr. and John
  Archambault with Hoedown by Aaron Copland

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Use recorded music as a sound track for a
story. This can be either well-known pieces of
music or lesser known pieces of your choosing
that you feel match the mood of the story.

• Grandfather Twilight by Barbara Berger with Au
  Clair de la Lune by Debussy.
• The Dancing Skeleton by Cynthia DeFelice with
  Danse Macabre by Saint-Saens
• I See A Song by Eric Carle with Bydlo (The Ox
  Cart) by Mussorgsky (from Pictures at an
  Exhibition)
• Tuesday by David Weisner with Ride of the
  Valkyries by Wagner
• Arturos Baton by Syd Hoff With Eine Kleine
  Nacht Musik by Mozart
• Earth Dance by Joanne Ryder and Norman Gorbaty
  with Serenade in d Minor by Dvorak
• Tim OToole and the Wee Folk by Gerald McDermott
  with The Irish Washerwoman

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The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein Read with
Simple Gifts from Appalacian Spring by Aaron
Copland
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The Kissing Hand By Audrey Penn Read
with Liebestraum No. 3 in A Flat by Franz Liszt
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Snowmen at Night By Caralyn Bruehner Read
with Eine Kleine Nachtmusik by Mozart
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The Rainbow Fish By Marcus Pfister Read with The
Aquarium (from Carnival of the Animals) By
Saint-Saens
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Choose a simple song (or poem or fingerplay or
movement activity) to represent the
characters/events of a story.

• The First Song Ever Sung by Laura Krauss Melmed
  and Ed Young
• Fathers Song Yankee Doodle
• Brothers Song Clap, Clap, Clap Your Hands
• Sisters Song Ding Dong Ive Got the Rhythm in
  my Head
• Grandmothers Song Sarasponda
• Grandfathers Song Oats, Peas, Beans and Barley
  Grow/Down on Grandpas Farm
• Dogs Song My Little Puppy (My Dog Rags)
• Minnows Song Three Little Fishies
• Birds Song Here Comes a Bluebird
• Mothers Song Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

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• Carnival of the Animals by Barrie C. Turner and
  Sue Williams
• The Lion The Lion Sleeps Tonight/Goin on a
  Lion Hunt (iTunes)
• Hens and Roosters Chicken on a Fencepost/The
  Chicken Dance
• Mules Hold My Mule While I Dance Josey (150
  American Folk Songs)
• Tortoises Miss Suzie Had a Turtle/Lots of
  turtle fingerplays or poems
• The Elephant One Elephant Went Out to Play/
• Kangaroos The Kangaroo Hop (MK8)/Tie Me
  Kangaroo Down, Sport
• Aquarium Three Little Fishies/Ten Little Fish
  (Twin Sisters Productions)
• Donkeys Tingalayo, The Donkey
• Cuckoo in the Woods Cuckoo, Where Are You?
• The Aviary Bluebird, Bluebird/Here Comes a
  Bluebird/Little Bird (Kriske and DeLelles)
• Pianists Scales and Arpeggios (from The
  Aristocats)
• Fossils Rattlin Bones (MK8)/Dem Bones/Skin
  and Bones

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Create a simple song based on the text of a
picture book or inspired by the events of the
book.

• Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type by Doreen
  Cronin
• Mortimer by Robert Munsch
• Many other possibilities

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Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type By Doreen Cronin
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Leroy Anderson 1908-1975
The Typewriter
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• Process for Click Clack Moo Cows That Type
• Look at a picture of a typewriter and discuss
• Listen to The Typewriter by Leroy Anderso
• Read Click, Clack Moo Cows That Type by Doreen
  Cronin.
• Learn melody of Click Clack Moo by solfege and
  hand signs
• Add text to melody
• Transfer melody to alto xylophones
• Pat the beat to prepare bass xylophone part.
  Transfer to BX
• Practice the glockenspiel part by snapping.
  Transfer to glockenspiels.
• Add triangle and ratchet sound effects for
  carriage return
• Read the book with song performance included

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Mortimer By Robert Munsch
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• Process for Mortimer
• Teach Clang Clang by echo imitation.
• Pat half note pulse to prepare the bass
  xylophone part. Transfer to BX.
• Add a stamp every time the word clang is sung.
• Add two pats on the word rattle.
• Add two claps for bing bang.
• Transfer body percussion to cowbell, tambourine,
  and tick-tock block.
• Practice patting the ascending and descending
  patterns for the steps. Transfer to barred
  instruments.
• Read book with song and sound effects.