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I Plant a Little Seed

Teach children the chant and the motions found here. This is a wonderful chant to audiate. The movements are beautiful when done in silence. After the children know the chant well and can audiate it, use the following variations.

1. Sit in a circle. Have each child say one line of the chant and do the motions. (i.e. 1st child says first line, 2nd child says 2nd line, etc.)

2. Add instrumentation to #1. (This activity can be done individually or divide children into groups with like instruments.) Be sure to demonstrate how to say each line and play each instrument before asking younger children to do so. Older children can create the instrument sounds themselves. Ask them, "What instrument shall we use for _______? How should it be played?"

Example:

"I plant a little seed in the" (run fingernails in a circular motion on a hand drum) "cold dark ground" (Tap drum once for each word).

"Up comes the yellow sun, big and round" (shake maracas).

"Down comes the cool rain, soft and slow" (play bars of a glockenspiel in a random descending pattern).

"Up comes the little plant," (shake a tambourine) "grow, grow, grow" (tap tambourine on each "grow."

3. Audiate the chant and play the instruments. What a charming early performance piece!