Song Games for Kids

Skipping Songs

• Combine songs with jump ropes, where the lyrics often tell the jump roper what to do. Most jump rope songs work for a single jumper or multiple jumpers. For example, the song "Teddy Bear" instructs the jumper to turn around, touch the ground, show your shoe, reach for the sky and other actions, all while jumping rope with two friends. With dozens of skipping songs to choose from, music and play combine to create hours of fun.

Action Songs

• Combining songs and actions creates creative playtime. Go with old classics such as "London Bridge Is Falling Down," where children pass under the raised arms of their friends, hoping to escape the final line of the song when they could be trapped. Other singing action games include "Hokey Pokey," "Oranges and Lemons" and "One Potato, Two Potato." Action songs that require players to choose each other include "Oats and Beans and Barley" and "Poor Mary Sits A-Weeping."

Circle Song Games

• Circle singing and dancing games include classics like "Ring Around the Rosy," "Here We Go 'Round the Mulberry Bush" and "Nuts in May." Usually the players join hands and sing a song, then at a certain point in the song, the players perform an action. For example, in "Ring Around the Rosy," the last line of the song instructs players to collapse on the ground.

Hot and Cold Songs

• Use singing plus the game of hot and cold, where the song is the key part of the game. Decide on the object to be hidden--a bean bag or stuffed animal works well. Allow one child to leave the room, while another child hides the object. When the first child returns, the group sings a simple song. When the child is close to the object, the group sings louder. When he moves away from the object, the singers grow quieter.