Materials:
Something you can tap out a beat on, i.e., a drum, tabletop, a wood block, even hand-clapping
Eager listeners!
Directions: Preschoolers love games that actually help them sharpen their listening skills! And as parents, who wouldn’t like children that were more focused listeners?
I like to introduce the song, B-I-N-G-O to the children to teach them to listen for when to clap. It goes like this,
There was a farmer had a dog
And Bingo was his name-O.
B-I-N-G-O,
B-I-N-G-O,
B-I-N-G-O
And Bingo was his name-O!
You can find the tune for BINGO on YouTube if you’re not familiar with it.
For very young children, we practice clapping for each letter of the word, Bingo. Older children will be much better at spelling B-I-N-G-(clap) the first time they sing it; B-I-N-(clap-clap) the second time through; B-I-(clap-clap-clap) the third time; B-(clap-clap-clap-clap) the fourth time; and (clap-clap-clap-clap-clap) the last time.
After your child is familiar with B-I-N-G-O, try clapping the 5-clap sequence without singing the song. See if your child can clap it back to you. It might take a little practice! Keep practicing that sequence over several days or even weeks with your child. You might want to try a little game. Say “When you hear me go (clap-clap-clap-clap-clap) put your finger on your nose!” Or, “rub your tummy”, or another silly motion. At school, we use that sequence as a signal that means “turn and look at me”!
We also like to mix it up sometimes! Try tapping the sequence on a drum or on the table. Encourage your child to repeat it after you do it. We also use a wood block to tap on at school because it’s small, easy to master for preschoolers, and it’s loud! As your child gets a little older, you can try teaching new rhythmic clapping sequences. With practice, they should be able to come up with a sequence to teach you!