Parenta Magazine March 2020

geometry; even the order of the planets
had a trick (now a breeze, after I put them
to a familiar song, and created a whacky
“story” using their first letters!).
Georgie Porgie, pudding and pie
Kissed the girls and made them
cry
When the boys came out to play
Georgie Porgie ran away
Some thought it was about
simple bullying – it was actually a
commentary on a rather large king
who could not be with the woman
he loved and hated the woman he
married, making both of them cry. He
then went to watch an illegal bareknuckle
boxing fight, and when one
fighter was killed, the king ran away
to avoid being implicated!
Thinking back, stories were used when
I was in primary school (in the 80s!) to
teach language and humanities skills,
unlike my daughter’s GCSE English
books, which are split by skills.
She will never get to remember to
write and break paragraphs as
we did, based on witch’s spells
written in the form of haikus.
Doctor Foster went to Gloucester
In a shower of rain
He stepped in a puddle right up
to his middle
And never went there again
Another rhyme, another king, this
time around 1100. Being very clever,
he was nicknamed Dr Foster, and he
went to Gloucester because of the
town’s strategic position near Wales.
Riding his horse through a storm, he
rode through what he thought was a
puddle, but both he and the horse fell
into a deep ditch. Embarrassed about
having to be rescued, he vowed never
to return!
Education research shows that we learn
most successfully if we can relate new
knowledge to what we already know,
so singing about stories develops
musical skills in a natural way. Other
recreational activities like music, such
as film, books, theatre, opera, all use
storytelling.
Practitioners continue to debate the
merits of skills-based sessions or
thematic sessions; whether we should
keep the original song words or change
them to suit the game, purpose or
culture. I, however, have made my
peace with storytelling. I have found
that it is powerful when introducing,
exploring and consolidating ideas. I use
themes that are familiar, change song
lyrics if appropriate, and repeat skills
often and in different ways. The next
articles will cover the themes that I have
successfully used in my music sessions,
from babies through to 7-year-olds.
Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down and broke his
crown
And Jill came tumbling after
No kings in this one, as far as we
know, but a sad tale nonetheless!
A young couple often went up a hill
for privacy, and soon Jill became
pregnant. Before the baby was born,
Jack was killed by a rock that fell from
their hill, and as the legend goes, Jill
died in childbirth.
To conclude this article … my whacky
order of the planets rhyme (circa 1990,
before Pluto was recategorized as a
minor/dwarf planet) … think of the tune
to My Fair Lady’s “On The Street Where
You Live”:
Order of the planets by size:
“I have often walked down this street before, but the pavement always stayed be-”
Mexico Pies Make Very Easy Ugly Noticeable Steak Joints
Mercury Pluto Mars Venus Earth Uranus Neptune Saturn Jupiter
Order of the planets from the sun:
“-neath my feet before, all at once am I several stories high, knowing I’m on the street where you live”
Many Very Energetic Mon...keys Jump Scarily Under Neptune’s Planets
Frances Turnbull
Musician, researcher and
author, Frances Turnbull, is
a self-taught guitarist who
has played contemporary
and community music from
the age of 12. She delivers
music sessions to the early
years and KS1. Trained in the
music education techniques
of Kodály (specialist
singing), Dalcroze (specialist
movement) and Orff (specialist
percussion instruments), she
has a Bachelor’s degree in
Psychology (Open University)
and a Master’s degree in
Education (University of
Cambridge). She runs a local
community choir, the Bolton
Warblers, and delivers the
Sound Sense initiative aiming
for “A choir in every care
home” within local care and
residential homes, supporting
health and wellbeing through
her community interest
company.
She has represented the
early years music community
at the House of Commons,
advocating for recognition for
early years music educators,
and her table of progressive
music skills for under 7s
features in her curriculum
books.
Frances is the author of
“Learning with Music:
Games and Activities for the
Early Years“, published by
Routledge, August 2017.
www.musicaliti.co.uk
Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto
References:
www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/More-Nursery-Rhymes
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