Sing and Learn with These Fun Songs for Kids

Anyone remember the TV show “Animaniacs”? I was in junior high or high school when it came out, and I had a friend who memorized the states and capitals song just for fun. I don’t know if he remembered any of it for long after that, but it goes to prove that songs make it easier and more fun to learn things. Especially when sung by animated dog/cat/whatever the Warners were.

Nancy Kopman has a nice collection of songs that teach on her website. These songs are perfect for toddlers and young elementary school students when they’re ready to learn things like the continents and oceans, the states and Canadian provinces, days of the week, months of the year, planets and more.

They’re a lot of fun for learning, of course, but you can also put them on to listen to in the background of your day and see what your kids pick up.

Do you have favorite learning songs? I’d love to hear about them.

[Photo via Nancy Kopman.]

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Summer Reading Printables and Tips for Parents

Learning about Hanukkah is important for people of all faiths as a reminder that December isn’t just about Christmas and that their are many other important holidays that happen during this time. Hanukkah unit studies can give you ideas for incorporating the holiday into your holiday studies that happen in December, or to use at home for learning about people of different faiths.

Homeschool Superfreak has a lot of basic ideas for how to build a Hanukkah unit study, as well as FAQs about what Hanukkah is and why it is celebrated. This list is a good stargint point but doesn’t include all the details you’ll need. For example it says you can play the dreidel game but doesn’t explain how to do that or why it’s important. (If you need that information, this post from Mama Smiles is a good source.)

Teachers Pay Teachers has lots of great lesson plans and activities if you’re willing to pay a little bit to get some good content. Two I really like are this Hanukkah PowerPoint presentation from Shelia Melton, which provides a good overview of traditions, food and the history of Hanukkah; and a virtual field trip to Jerusalem from MagiCore, which includes lots of videos showing the city and activities like playing dreidel, drawing a menorah and making latkes. It’s a Google Drive folder and also includes writing activities and more for kids in second to fifth grade.

Kids Activities Blog has some simple printables with facts about Hanukkah and things kids can color in like a Star of David, sufganiyots (jelly doughnuts) and a menorah. These are great for learning the basics.

Homeschool Giveaways has a printable ebook about Hanukkah complete with questions kids can answer after they read. This would be a good one for older kids with good reading comprehension.

NurtureStore’s Hanukkah unit study includes a printable mini book, tons of crafts, as well as math and writing activities. I love the dominoes game that’s part of the unit.

And check out our previous posts for more Hanukkah crafts and learning activities!

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