There Was An Old Groundhog

This light-hearted tune is in honor of old Punxsutawney Phil (or is that Wauwatosa Will?) and his annual appearance on February 2. But this little guy doesn't care one way or the other whether his shadow is there. He just wants to sing and dance!

Designed for your youngest singers, this short tune is very simple and easy to learn. It is unison and is sung in a rollicking swing style. The lyrics include a few movement suggestions for the old guy which your students may wish to do with him. Illustrated suggestions of the moves are included with the lyrics on page 43. You can imitate them or let your students present their own interpretations of wiggling, shaking, and doing other groundhog stuff.

If you use the Performance/Accompaniment cassette, you will be treated to Paul Jennings' original jazz ensemble arrangement of this little gem. Trumpets, trombones, saxes and horns make it fun and tasty and worth listening to just side two so you can hear everything that goes on. If you are doing a unit of study on any of these instruments (or on jazz), be sure to use the tape as a reference tool. (Each of these subjects is also covered in previous issues of Music K-8. See your index for more information. If you've lost yours, call us toll-free at 1-800-437-0832.)