We’ve had another great October at Bangers & Smash, singing songs from Africa and the Caribbean in celebration of Black History Month!
We’ve started each session with a name song from South Africa, Haya Ma, in which the children say their names and clap four times. It’s been lovely seeing even the youngest babies and toddlers recognise and respond to this simple song.
Moving on, we’ve looked at The Skin You Live In, a beautifully illustrated book which uses sumptuous language and imagery to celebrate skin colour:
your coffee and cream skin, your warm cocoa dream skin, your chocolate chip, double dip, sundae supreme skin
your marshmallow treat skin, your spun sugar sweet skin, your cherry topped, candy dropped, frosting complete skin
your butterscotch gold skin, your lemon tart bold skin, your mountain high, apple pie, cookie dough rolled skin
Children have looked at their own and their friends' skin and Kitty has talked about how lots of people with black and brown skin come from the continent of Africa and live all over the world.
Our main song, Funga Alafia, comes from West Africa. There are many versions of this song but Kitty has chosen one by Iya and the Kuumba Kids with lyrics about Nigeria:
Funga alafia, ashe, ashe
Funga alafia, ashe, ashe
It’s a welcome song from Nigeria
Bringing peace and love to everyone
Grab a welcome if you please
I have nothing up my sleeves!
Children have had fun playing along to Funga Alafia with instruments from Drums for Schools’ fantastic Nursery Rhythm Kit. The kit contains a variety of instruments from around the world, including claves, agogos, shakers, scrapers, chime bars and drums.
Kitty has also asked Black and Brown staff members to share songs from their childhoods and heritages.
Big thanks to the following:
Kemi for Labe Igi Orombo, a Nigerian song in Yoruba about playing under an orange tree
Tolu for Bata Mi A Dun Ko Ko Ka, a Nigerian song in Yoruba about the benefits of study, and Aiku, Ajé, Isegun, Ojo ru, Ojo bo, Eti, Abameta, a song about the days of the week
Juliet for O Kereke, a Nigerian song in Igbo in which the children sit opposite each other in a line with their legs outstretched and bounce a rolled-up cloth from one end to the other
Jane for Kedu Onye Ga Abu Ojim, a Nigerian song in Igbo about finding a friend
Sarah and Trianna for Kye Kye Kule, a West African call and response song
Vinette for Evenin' Time, a song by Jamaican poet, folklorist, writer and educator, Louise Bennett
Israel and Vinette for Go Down Emmanuel Road, a Jamaican song about passing stones around a circle, and Mango Time, a song about eschewing coffee in favour of mango juice
Marcia for Brown Girl In The Ring, a Jamaican song about dancing
In addition, both children and staff have enjoyed singing and dancing to two songs about beans, Jumping Beans and Nzama, Nzama (a Malawian song), before getting on down to Blame It On The Boogie by Michael Jackson.
Earth Story – the beginning of life
At new Bangers & Smash nursery, Under the Willow, we’ve continued our 10-week project, Earth Story, during which we are learning about the origins of the Earth and its inhabitants.
Our next four sessions have been about:
the elements: earth, fire, water, air
simple life forms
fossils, rocks and minerals
volcanoes
Children have enjoyed:
waving scarves and moving to Feux D’Artifice by Debussy and Vltava by Smetana while thinking about fire and water
creating their own bacterium from scrunched-up newspaper and wriggling along the floor to Nautilus by B Bumble & the Stingers
singing Let’s Dig, Dig, Dig, a song about finding fossils, rocks and minerals, and My Roots Go Down, a song by Sarah Pirtle, which Kitty has adapted to be about mountains and volcanoes
There are many versions of this last song but here’s Bangers & Smash’s favourite!
Under the Willow INSET and Project Celebration
Kitty also ran a successful INSET session at Under the Willow on Wednesday 24 October 2018.
With a variety of activities designed to explore teachers’ voices and vocal range, the session looked at:
building confidence in singing and leading songs
finding ways to reinforce songs from music sessions during the rest of the school day
Kitty, staff and children are working towards Under the Willow’s upcoming Earth Story Project Celebration and are looking forward to sharing songs and stories about the earth with parents and carers on Wednesday 28 November 2018.
Carols in the Wildlife Garden
Kitty (guitar/voice) and Sarah (flute/accordion) are delighted to have been invited to sing and play Christmas songs in the Mother Goose Nursery Wildlife Garden from 12-4pm on Saturday 15 December 2018.
As well as mulled drinks and mince pies, there’ll be wreath-making and, of course, the chance to sing your hearts out with Bangers & Smash.
Carols in the Wildlife Garden is a FREE family event so please bring your little ones along and join in the fun!