Here’s my lesson plan for the Crocodile theme!

This lesson was fun to do for the reason that it is an unusual theme. Feel free to use this plan in whichever way that best suits your class age and needs.

Materials Preparation: Find a picture of a crocodile on a tablet to show the children as part of the introduction. Prepare the songs included in the lesson outline below (you can buy them on iTunes or download them from YouTube). Ensure that you listen to and learn the songs prior to the class so that you don’t look like a dummy if you are not sure how the song goes.

• Hello Song/Warm-up Song:
  • Gather the children together in a circle and greet one another with the Hello Song/Warm-up Song you prefer to use.
• Circle Time Parachute Activity Songs: 
  • Sing two or three songs using the parachute. These songs are the same ones you use every week just to help the children feel familiar and confident. You can rotate through a few different ones as you feel. These are parachute activity songs that you can use the parachute in different ways for each song. The ones I use with the parachute are:
    • Ring a Ring of Roses (Children hold the parachute and walk around in a circle, fall down, jump up, make the “wind” billow the parachute up and down quickly, etc.)
    • Row, Row, Row Your Boat (Children sway from side to side holding the parachute, like rowing a boat, then making big or small waves up and down, and even letting a stuffed teddy bear “float on the water” i.e. on the parachute – children love to make the stuffed animal bounce up and down on the parachute!)
    • The Grand Old Duke of York (children march in place, lift the parachute up then down, and then salute)
    • Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush (children go around in a circle holding the parachute for first verse, and then rub the parachute material together in their hands for the second verse – “this is the way we wash our clothes”)
• Introduction of Theme: THE CROCODILE
  • Introduce the Crocodile theme using a nice picture of a crocodile on a tablet or using a poster. You can speak a little about crocodiles, their habitat and diet.

• Teach the Little Baby Bum Crocodile Song below (it is fairly long, so just the verse sections are similar which is easier to learn)

Can you see the bubbles…?
Popping.. 1, 2, 3
Look out! There’s his snout
Is that…? Could it be?!Yes it’s a crocodile!
Look at his big smile
He’s got lots of teeth
He swims in the water
Just like he ought to
Sometimes hides underneath

Can you see the rushes
Bending…1, 2, 3
Look out! There’s his snout!
Is that…? Could it be?!

Yes! It’s a crocodile!
Look at his big smile
And short little legs
His belly scrapes the floor
As he walks on all four paws
Stomping as he treads!

Can you see the bubbles…?
Popping.. 1, 2, 3
Look out! There’s his snout
Is that…? Could it be?!

Yes it’s a crocodile!
Look at his big smile
He’s got a tail so long
And thick scaly skin
As sharp as pins
He’s (so) very strong

3. Gross Motor Activity: Use your Imagination!

• Act out the Little Baby Bum Crocodile Song. The song will give you cues as to what actions you will do — like looking at the bubbles in the water and then looking through the bulrushes with make-believe binoculars at a crocodile in the water. The song will describe the crocodile’s big snout, teeth, tail, claws, etc. Act like the crocodile as the descriptive words are sung. You can do this song twice with actions to allow the children to get the hang of it.

4. Classical Spot Activity:

• “Never Smile At A Crocodile”
• Ask the children if they would ever smile at a crocodile?
• Explain that this song comes from the Walt Disney Classic, Peter Pan. Ask if anyone has seen the movie.
• Explain what the story is behind the song: Captain Hook is terribly afraid of crocodiles! This is because Peter Pan cut off his hand and threw it to Tick-Tock the crocodile who gobbled it up.

5. Musical Principle Activity:

• Teach the children what a quarter/crotchet note is by showing them what it looks like:

• Explain that we need different symbols of notes to tell us how long the music note should sound.
• Show them a picture of the note and teach them that it gets one count.
• Pretend it is like a crocodile’s big snapping mouth, and clap saying, “One!”

6. Instrument Activity

• Play along with the percussion instruments to “Never Smile At A Crocodile”
• Practice playing just the first beat of every bar in the song.
• Do a variety of different things with the instruments, ie shake instruments fast and slowly, loudly or quietly, shake them up or down, left or right, behind, twirl around in a circle, etc. The children will need to copy what you do.

7. Conclusion:

• Help children to remember that although crocodiles are fun to look at at the zoo, they are dangerous and they should be extremely cautious to avoid them out in the wild.

8. Goodbye/Winding-Down Song:

• In your circle, sing your Goodbye/Winding-Down song.