Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Slippery Fish

A few weeks ago it was my turn to teach my son's pre-preschool swap that we do with a few other families. Our theme was the ocean. We had a delightful morning, but my two favorite activities were reading Over in The Ocean: In A Coral Reef by Marianne Berkes and singing "Slippery Fish".

First off, Over in The Ocean: In A Coral Reef is an underwater version of Over in the Meadow by Olive A. Wadsworth, one of my all time favorite children's books. (If you haven't read it, or sung it, I'd suggest reserving a copy from the library today!)

In Over in The Ocean: In A Coral Reef each page is a new verse about a different sea creature. The pictures are astounding...illustrations made from clay. We read this book twice during preschool, and my son and I have read it again and again since!


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Slippery Fish is a song I remember from my days in college teaching at a day care center. The repeating pattern makes it easy for children to pick up on. And hand actions make it easy to remember.
You can listen to Slippery Fish by Charlotte Diamond on her website.
Here are a copy of the lyrics, also available on her website.

Slippery fish, slippery fish, sliding through the water,
Slippery fish, slippery fish, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by an …

Octopus, octopus, squiggling in the water
Octopus, octopus, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by a …

Tuna fish, tuna fish, flashing in the water,
Tuna fish, tuna fish, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by a …

Great white shark, great white shark, lurking in the water,
Great white shark, great white shark, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by a …

Humongous whale, humongous whale, spouting in the water,
Humongous whale, humongous whale,
Gulp! … Gulp! … Gulp! … BURP!
Pardon me!

To get ideas for actions, check out this YouTube video (It's taken by a parent of one of the children, and isn't the best quality, but I think it will make you smile). You can get a taste of the excitement preschooler feel when singing this song!



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