Bee Bee Bumblebee

Welcome to Episode 6 of the Doremi Teach Podcast, with Helen Russell from Doremi Connect. Today we’re going to share a fun rhyme that helps develop a sense of pulse or steady beat.

Bee Bee Bumblebee

Bee, bee, bumblebee

Stung a man upon his knee

Stung a pig upon his snout

I declare that you are out

Bee Bee Bumblebee is one of the many songs and rhymes that feature in Doremi Teach: Music the membership community for teachers just like you, interested in using the Kodály approach in your classroom. Members can access downloadable lesson plans, video walkthroughs, live support sessions and a vibrant social and support network of like-minded teachers. Check out doremiconnect.co.uk to see what we have to offer.

• The game develops pulse or steady beat kineasthetically
• It’s use of the speaking voice also makes it very attractive for teachers who aren’t yet confident using their own singing voices in the classroom
• The actions change each phrase to help prepare our students for phrase analysis
• The rhythm is really simple, just using ta and titi. However it’s not the best choice for presenting rhythm because the longer words are spread across two beats. Although the first phrase could be isolated for this use
• It’s about a bee, so we get to use a bee puppet and also warm up our voices making buzzing sounds

The Game

Use a different pulse or beat action for each phrase

 “Bee bee bumblebee” flap your hands like wings

“Stung a man upon his knee” tap your knee – you could use your bee puppet to tap your knee

“Stung a pig upon his snout” tap your nose – you will need to explain that a snout is the pig’s nose

“I declare that you are out” point to each student in turn

You can decide what to do with those that are out. Do they sit out the next turn, do they just react but actually stay in, do they become the next counter or sit at the front demonstrating the actions? You choose.

Make sure you let us know what you think of the rhyme, and if you use it in your lessons. You can get in touch with us through our website at doremiconnect.co.uk

Do share us with your colleagues if you’ve found it helpful

For more resources and free webinars on teaching music through singing make sure you visit doremiconnect.co.uk/freetraining for our latest opportunities.

I hope you have a lovely week, filled with music and singing.

You’ve been listening to the Doremi Teach podcast with Helen Russell from Doremi Connect. Helping you achieve your music teaching goals with the Kodály approach.