- letter cards “Ii” (one per child)
- plastic letters (“Ii”) (optional)
MA Standards:
Speaking and Listening: SL.PK.MA.1a Observe and use appropriate ways of interacting in a group (e.g., taking turns in talking, listening to peers, waiting to speak until another person is finished talking, asking questions and waiting for an answer, gaining the floor in appropriate ways).
Foundational Skills: RF.PK.MA.1.d Recognize and name some uppercase letters of the alphabet and the lowercase letters in one’s own name.
Head Start Outcomes:
Social Emotional Development/Self-Regulation Follows simple rules, routines, and directions.
Language Development/Receptive Language Attends to language during conversations, songs, stories, or other learning experiences.
Literacy Knowledge/Alphabet Knowledge Recognizes that the letters of the alphabet are a special category of visual graphics that can be individually named.
PreK Learning Guidelines:
English Language Arts/Language 1 Observe and use appropriate ways of interacting in a group (taking turns in talking; listening to peers; waiting until someone is finished; asking questions and waiting for an answer; gaining the floor in appropriate ways).
English Language Arts/Reading and Literature 12 Listen to, recite, sing, and dramatize a variety of age-appropriate literature.
English Language Arts/Reading and Literature 7 Develop familiarity with the forms of alphabet letters, awareness of print, and letter forms.
Sing Together: “Alphabet Hokey Pokey” #1
© Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Department of Early Education and Care (Jennifer Waddell photographer). All rights reserved.
ELA Focus Skills: Letter Recognition, Follow Directions
Gather children in a circle. Demonstrate for children how to sing the song and do the motions to “Alphabet Hokey Pokey” with the letter card.
- Hand each child a letter card “Ii.” (You can also vary, and give some children plastic letters instead.)
- Have children sing the song and act out the motions.
Alphabet Hokey Pokey
Have children hold the letters “Ii” in and out of the circle as the class sings the first verse. Everyone joins in with the motions in the chorus.
You put the “Ii”s in,
You put the “Ii”s out,
You put the “Ii”s in,
And you shake them all about.
Chorus
You do the hokey pokey (hold your hands up, wiggle your fingers, wiggle your hips)
And you turn yourself around. (turn around in place)
And that’s what it’s all about! (clap your hands as you sing the last line)