The 17 Best Animal Songs for Preschoolers (with Lyrics)

Do your children enjoy singing rhymes and songs about animals, or are you looking for songs to complement your animal theme?

Here are some fun animal songs for kids. Some are classic songs and rhymes, while others are newer but already popular favourites.

Singing songs offers numerous educational benefits.

Here are a few areas of development that singing helps to enhance:

• Auditory perception (awareness of sound)
• Listening skills
• Language and vocabulary development
• Gross motor skill development through dance, movement, and action songs
• Fine motor skill development through reciting finger rhymes
• Creativity and emotional well-being
• Concentration
• Rhythm and other foundational musical skills
• Pre-reading skills such as syllable awareness, word patterns, and sounds

Here are 17 fun animal songs with lyrics and links to videos:

1. Old MacDonald Had a Farm

Old MacDonald Had a Farm is a classic song perfect for teaching farm animal sounds and is fun to act out and dress up for.

Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o
And on his farm he had some cows
Ee i ee i oh
With a moo-moo here
And a moo-moo there
Here a moo, there a moo
Everywhere a moo-moo

Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o
And on his farm he had some chicks
Ee i ee i o
With a cluck-cluck here
And a cluck-cluck there
Here a cluck, there a cluck
Everywhere a cluck-cluck
Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o

Repeat with as many animals and sounds as you can think of.

2. Bingo

Teach young children to clap along to the rhythm of B—-I—-N-G-O, helping them recognise short and long sounds, pauses, and rhythmic patterns.

There was a farmer, had a dog,
And Bingo was his name, O.
B-I-N-G-O,
B-I-N-G-O,
B-I-N-G-O,
And Bingo was his name.

3. Who Took the Cookie From the Cookie Jar?

This hand-clapping song is good for developing coordination as the children have to follow the clapping pattern and also keep the beat and rhythm of the song. 

Assign each child an animal role (e.g., panda, rabbit, bear, penguin, or kangaroo) to act out, or encourage them to invent their own animals.

You can also use children’s names for this song.

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Panda took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who, me?
Yes, you!
Not me!
Then who?
Rabbit!

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Rabbit took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who, me?
Yes, you!
Not me!
Then who?
Bear!

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Bear took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who, me?
Yes, you!
Not me!
Then who?
Penguin!

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Penguin took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who, me?
Yes, you!
Not me!
Then who?
Kangaroo!

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Kangaroo took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who, me?
Yes, you!…

4. Teddy Bears’ Picnic

Teddy Bears’ Picnic is adorable and one of my daughter’s favourite songs. The song is also rich in vocabulary and rhymes. Challenge your children to hit those high notes!

If you go down to the woods today,
You’re sure of a big surprise.
If you go down to the woods today,
You’d better go in disguise.
For every bear that ever there was,
Will gather there for certain,
Because today’s the day,
The Teddy Bears have their picnic.

If you go down to the woods today,
You’d better not go alone.
It’s lovely down in the woods today,
But safer to stay at home.
For every bear that ever there was,
Will gather there for certain,
Because today’s the day,
The Teddy Bears have their picnic.

Picnic time for Teddy Bears.
The little Teddy Bears,
Are having a lovely time today.
Watch them, catch them unawares,
And see them picnic on their holiday.
See them gaily gad about,
They love to play and shout,
They never have any cares.
At six o’clock their Mummies and Daddies,
Will take them home to bed,
Because they’re tired little Teddy Bears.

5. Three Blind Mice

Add an interactive element by blindfolding some children while singing.

Three blind mice. 
Three blind mice.
See how they run. 
See how they run.
They all ran after the farmer’s wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,
Did you ever see such a thing in your life,
As three blind mice?

6. Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone?

Young children will delight in this sweet and simple song.

Where, oh where has my little dog gone?
Oh where, oh where can he be?
With his ears cut short,
And his tail cut long,
Oh where, oh where can he be?

Repeat verse

7. One Little Elephant Balancing

This song introduces the concept of counting and increasing by ‘one more’. It is also a nice movement activity.

One little elephant balancing,
Step by step on a piece of string.
Thought it was such tremendous fun,
That he called for another elephant to come.

Repeat the verses, each time increasing the number by one. End with as many elephants as there are children.

Five grey elephants balancing,
Step by step on a piece of string.
All of a sudden the piece of string broke,
And down came all the elephant folk.

8. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt

This is a fun song to sing and act out with your child, and it’s even better with a group of children.

This song is rich in vocabulary and teaches positional language such as over and under, through movements.

Click on the link under the lyrics to watch the actions to “We’re going on a bear hunt”.

We’re goin’ on a bear hunt,
We’re going to catch a big one,
What a beautiful day!
We’re not scared
Uh-uh! Grass!
Long wavy grass
We can’t go over it.
We can’t go under it.
Oh no! We’ve got to go through it!
Swishy swashy! Swishy swashy! Swishy swashy!

Sing along with the author Michael Rosen, as he encounters a river, mud, a forest, a snowstorm and a cave, along the way.

9. Hop Little Bunnies

This song might seem a bit young for preschoolers, but when I was teaching, we had even the 5-year-olds gleefully hopping with delight. If you act it out as a group, it is loads of fun and a good way to get the energy out.

See the bunnies sleeping ’til it’s nearly noon
Shall we wake them with a merry tune?
They’re so still
Are they ill?
Wake up, little bunnies!

Hop, little bunnies
Hop, hop, hop
Hop, little bunnies
Hop, hop, hop
Hop, little bunnies
Hop, hop, hop
Hop, hop, hop, hop, hop

See the bunnies sleeping ’til it’s nearly noon
Shall we wake them with a merry tune?
They’re so still
Are they ill?
Wake up, little bunnies!

Jump, little bunnies
Jump, jump, jump
Jump, little bunnies
Jump, jump, jump
Jump, little bunnies
Jump, jump, jump
Jump, jump, jump, jump, jump

10. Hickory Dickory Dock (With a Twist)

Sing this old favourite song with a twist. Add in your own choice of animals. See if you can get your child to keep going, choosing a new animal each time without repeating the same one.

In group settings, let each child take a turn adding a verse with a new animal. It’ll make a good listening activity.

Hickory dickory dock. The mouse went up the clock.
The clock struck one. The mouse went down.
Hickory dickory dock.
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock.

A snake
Hickory dickory dock. The snake went up the clock.
The clock struck two. The snake went down.
Hickory dickory dock.
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock.

A squirrel
Hickory dickory dock. The squirrel went up the clock.
The clock struck three. The squirrel went down.
Hickory dickory dock.
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock.

A cat
Hickory dickory dock. The cat went up the clock.
The clock struck four. The cat went down.
Hickory dickory dock.
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock.

11. Mary Had a Little Lamb (With a Twist)

Here is another variation of the previous song, this time to the nursery rhyme Mary Had a Little Lamb. Begin with the first verse, then teach the children the additional verses. They’ll love it!

Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb.
Mary had a little lamb whose fleece was white as snow.

Mary had a little lamb, and a big giraffe?!

Mary had a big giraffe, big giraffe, big giraffe. 
Mary had a big giraffe whose neck was very long.
Long, long, long, long.
Long, long, long, long.
Very very very long.

And a rhinoceros. Hmmm?

Mary had a rhinoceros, rhinoceros, rhinoceros. 
Mary had a rhinoceros whose horn was very sharp. 
Sharp, sharp, sharp, sharp.
Sharp, sharp, sharp, sharp.
Very very very sharp. 

A kangaroo, too?

Mary had a kangaroo, kangaroo, kangaroo. 
Mary had a kangaroo whose pouch was very warm. 
Warm, warm, warm, warm.
Warm, warm, warm, warm.
Very very very warm. 

And a camel.

Mary had a camel, camel, camel. 
Mary had a camel. Whose hump was very round.
Round, round, round, round.
Round, round, round, round.
Very very very round.

12. Row, Row, Row Your Boat

This is a fun classic to teach rhyming and introduce verbs. Pair up the children or hold your child’s hands to rock back and forth in a rowing motion.

Row, row, row, your boat,
Gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,
Life is but a dream.

Row, row, row, your boat,
Gently down the stream.
If you see a crocodile,
Don’t forget to scream!

Row, row, row, your boat,
Gently down the river.
If you see a panda bear,
Don’t forget to quiver.

Row, row, row, your boat,
Gently to the shore.
If you see a lion, 
Don’t forget to roar!

13. Incy Wincy Spider

A timeless favourite, Incy Wincy Spider—also called Itsy Bitsy Spider—is a wonderful finger rhyme that supports bilateral integration (coordinating both sides of the body).

Incy, Wincy, Spider,
Climbed up the water spout.
Down came the rain,
And washed the spider out.
Out came the sunshine, 
And dried up all the rain.
So, Incy Wincy Spider,
Went up the spout again.

14. One, Two, Three, Four, Five

This song strengthens finger muscles while introducing early maths concepts.

One, two, three, four, five,
Once I caught a fish alive.
Six, seven, eight, nine, ten,
Then I let him go again.

Why did you let him go?
Because he bit my finger so.
Which finger did he bite?
This little finger on my right.

15. Five Little Speckled Frogs

Use this fun counting song to teach children how to count backwards. This version is by Super Simple Songs:

Five little speckled frogs,
sat on a speckled log.
Eating some most delicious bugs.
Yum Yum.
One jumped into the pool,
where it was nice and cool.
Now there are four green speckled frogs.
Glub Glub.

Four little speckled frogs,
sat on a speckled log.
Eating some most delicious bugs.
Yum Yum.
One jumped into the pool,
where it was nice and cool.
Now there are three green speckled frogs.
Glub Glub.

Repeat until there are no green speckled frogs.

16. Five Little Ducks

Five Little Ducks is another fun action song for practising counting down.

Five little ducks went out one day
Over the hill and far away
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”
But only four little ducks came back
1, 2, 3, 4

Four little ducks went out one day
Over the hill and far away
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”
But only three little ducks came back
1, 2, 3

Continue until none of the five little ducks come back, and then sing the final verses:

Sad mother duck went out one day
Over the hill and far away
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”
And all of the five little ducks came back

Five little ducks went out to play
Over the hill and far away
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”
And all of the five little ducks came back!

17. Baby Shark

The ocean-themed song Baby Shark, by Pinkfong, is immensely popular with children for its catchy tune.

Baby shark, doo doo doo doo doo doo.
Baby shark, doo doo doo doo doo doo.
Baby shark, doo doo doo doo doo doo.
Baby shark!

Repeat the verse, replacing the words baby shark with mommy shark; daddy shark; grandma shark; grandpa shark; let’s go hunt; run away; safe at last; and it’s the end.

I hope you enjoyed this collection of animal songs for kids. Don’t forget to try these animal-themed games too.

Check out this list of preschool themes for more ideas.