HOT CROSS BUNS
Who doesn't know this age old rhyme? Today in music class, we revisited this old poem and actually took a look at some REAL hot cross buns (yum), a traditional English sweet roll made with yeast, cinnamon, and sugar...among other things! The tradition of eating the hot cross buns on Easter is connected with the holiday and Jesus' crucifixion, however as an additional interesting tidbit for parents, some scholars believe it dates back even further to the Anglo-Saxon pagan goddess Eostre and the cycles of the moon!
Of course, OUR primary love for this old poem is how wonderfully it expresses the simple rhythms of quarter notes, quarter rests and pairs of eighth notes. The kids enjoyed looking at the rhythms today, along with clapping them and performing them with rhythm sticks!
We also "pretended" to chew bubble gum today in class and sang "Sticky Bubble Gum", "Willoughby Walloughby" (elephant puppet tickle song) and "Jack and Jill" with the bird puppets show below!
One more funny highlight: I threw in an additional "old school" nursery rhyme with my own twist today: we recited "Peas Porridge Hot" and I explained to the children that porridge was a hot cereal like oatmeal. I asked them if they would eat nine day old oatmeal from a cold pot...surprisingly, a few said yes!! Haha! Guess these little ones sure do love their oatmeal! As far as the rest of us are concerned, it is more fitting to end the poem with a resounding, "YUCK!!!"...so that is exactly what we did. ;) Check out the MP3 of the two year old class here!
