Thirty Days Has September

Did you use this old mnemonic rhyme when you were a child? It's very handy and helpful whenever you're trying to remember how many days a particular month has. However, it seems that there are a variety of endings to the rhyme after you get past "Thirty days has September, April, June, and November." That's where we thought we might be able to improve on the situation. So we came up with our own rhyming, logical ending: "When short February's done, all the rest have thirty-one." While it doesn't go into the extreme detail of February's uniqueness, it's enough to remind you that it is unique. Plus it's a lot simpler to remember. (You're welcome.)

This charming little ditty is also plain old fun to sing. It repeats enough to stick with you, plus it has some optional, very easy body percussion that you can plug in to make it more lively. If you wish to alter the suggestions we have included on the music, go right ahead.

As if all that wasn't enough, we have also made this song a neat beginning ukulele piece. This is optional, of course. But if you have ukulele students, they'll delight in being able to strum along with just three chords: C, F, and Ami. We've even included the chord diagrams on the music for your/their convenience. (Hint: Be sure they watch out for the one brief pause – a quarter rest – in bar 24. That should keep them on their toes!)

If you have time to share the background instrumental tracks to this tune with your students, please do it. It's quite enjoyable.