So this activity is one I did with Cannon while I was on blogging hiatus. Hope you enjoy it and hope it inspires playful fun in your house! <3
Have you ever heard of Raffi? If you haven’t heard of him, don’t worry, neither had I until a couple of months ago when a friend gave us a box of kids books which included a “song to read” book Baby Beluga.
I was super excited to pair the book with these Safari ltd. arctic animals that had also been given to us (we never turn away good toys or books!). When I first read the book to myself I had a hard time with it. The sentence structure was odd and I couldn’t quite figure out how to read it. The book said it was a “song to read” which made me wonder what kind of song it was. I was pretty excited when I found a you tube video of Raffi singing the song (which matched the text perfectly!)
Isn’t that just a sweet kids song?!? It isn’t overly corny or annoying like others I’ve come across. I don’t know about you, but I’m guilty of buying the “bargain” kids music CD’s at the dollar store or Wal-Mart…I regret the decision EVERY TIME. The music somehow seems “fake”. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but the bells and chimes (and even the musicians) all sound cartoony. Raffi’s music doesn’t have that cartoony quality at all. It is real and endearing. (read Raffi’s bio for more information on him and his music here).
Well- Raffi had me hooked on this tune and I quickly shared it with Cannon who seemed to like it just as much! We read through (a.k.a sang) the book a few times, then I decided to offer him a simple invitation to play inspired by Baby Beluga.
A bunch of “arctic colored” pom-poms, an empty First Aid Kit plastic box, and various arctic animals from the book made a great invitation to play!
It was adorable. Cannon mumbled through most of the song, but he was able to say “baby” a couple times! 🙂 This is one of those activities I plan on offering Cannon multiple times. I really enjoy that it combines music, literature, and creative play all in one sitting..and…I just noticed we have another Raffi book on our shelf!!! Needless to say, I will be working on a similar invitation for that book/song as well!
