12 Great Songs You Should Teach Your Preschoolers

One of the best activities to do with your children every day is to sing songs. Children love singing and they learn a lot through music and songs.

Teach your kids these fun songs for preschoolers and toddlers.

Here are just some of the educational benefits of singing nursery rhymes and songs:

• Develops gross motor skills (action rhymes)
• Develops fine motor skills (finger rhymes)
• Teaches language and increases vocabulary
• Builds auditory perceptual skills (by learning rhythm, rhyme and sounds)
• Develops mathematical skills (counting rhymes)

These 12 songs are all-time favourites and a must for your preschoolers. Some are action songs that you can do the movements to, some are fun fingerplays and some will teach your little ones about numbers.

12 Best Preschool Songs and Rhymes

These 12 songs are all-time favourites and a must for your preschoolers. They are also great songs for toddlers.

Some are action songs that you can do the movements to, some are fun fingerplays and some will teach your little ones about numbers.

ACTION RHYMES:

1. If You’re Happy and You Know It

If you’re happy and you know it
Clap your hands
If you’re happy and you know it
Clap your hands
If you’re happy and you know it
And you really want to show it
If you’re happy and you know it
Clap your hands

Repeat with:

If you’re happy and you know it stomp your feet, shout ‘hurray’, pat your cheeks, do all four.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

2. The Wheels on the Bus

The wheels on the bus go round and round,
(roll forearms over one another in front of the body)
Round and round;
Round and round.
The wheels on the bus go round and round,
All day long.

The lights on the bus go blink, blink, blink,
(open and shut hands)
Blink, blink, blink;
Blink, blink, blink.
The lights on the bus go blink, blink, blink
All day long.

The wipers on the bus go swish, swish, swish,
(make arms like windscreen wipers)
Swish, swish, swish;
Swish, swish, swish.
The wipers on the bus go swish, swish, swish,
All day long.

Make up other actions e.g. the moms go chatter, the horn goes toot, etc.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

3. Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes.
Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes,
And eyes, and ears, and mouth and nose
Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

4. Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush

Here we go round the mulberry bush
The mulberry bush, the mulberry bush
Here we go round the mulberry bush
So early in the morning.

This is the way we wash our face
Wash our face, wash our face
This is the way we wash our face
So early in the morning.

Repeat with:

This is the way we take our bath, wear our clothes, drink our milk, march to school.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

Click here for more action songs.

NUMBER SONGS:

5. Five Green Bottles

Five green bottles hanging on the wall
Five green bottles hanging on the wall
And if one green bottle should accidentally fall
There’ll be four green bottles hanging on the wall

Repeat with four, three, two, one and no green bottles.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

6. Five Little Ducks

Five little ducks went swimming one day
(hold up five fingers)
Over the hills and far away
(hold arm across body and tuck fingers behind shoulder on the opposite side of the body)
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”
(use other hand to make a mother duck beak and open and close hand to quack)
But only four little ducks came back
(bring first hand back to the front with four fingers showing

Continue until no little ducks came back, then;

Old Mother Duck went out one day,
Over the hills and far away,
Mother Duck said “Quack, quack, quack, quack”
And all of those five little ducks came back.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

Here are more fun animal songs for preschoolers.

7. Five Speckled Frogs

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,
Then there were four speckled frogs!
GLUB! GLUB!

Four little speckled frogs…

Three little speckled frogs…

Repeat verses until there is one speckled frog left:

One little speckled frog
Sat on a speckled log
Eating some most delicious bugs.
YUM! YUM!
He jumped into the pool,
Where it was nice and cool,
Then there were no speckled frogs!

Listen to the tune on YouTube

8. The Ants Go Marching

The ants go marching one by one
(hold up one finger)
Hoorah! Hoorah!
The ants go marching one by one,
Hoorah! Hoorah!
The ants go marching one by one,
The little one stops to suck his thumb
(pretend to suck thumb)
And they all go marching down to the ground to get out of the rain.

2
The little one stops to tie his shoe
(pretend to tie shoe)
3
The little one stops to climb a tree
(pretend to climb a tree)
4
The little one stops to shut the door
(pretend to shut a door)
5
The little one stops to take a dive
(pretend to dive)
6
The little one stops to pick up sticks
(pretend to pick up sticks)
7
The little one stops to pray to heaven
(pretend to pray)
8
The little one stops to shut the gate
(pretend to shut a gate)
9
The little one stops to check the time
(pretend to check wristwatch)
10
The little one stops to shout “THE END!!”
(shout out loud)

Listen to the tune on YouTube

Click here for more counting rhymes.

FINGER PLAYS:

9. Two Little Dickey Birds

Two little dickey birds sitting on a wall,
(both index fingers in air, move both of them)
One named Peter, One named Paul
(wiggle one index finger, then the other)
Fly away Peter,
(draw the hand with “the Peter finger” behind your back and hide it)
Fly away Paul
(draw the other hand – “the Paul finger’s hand” – behind your back and hide it)
Come back Peter,
(reverse the last action with “the Peter finger” hand)
Come back Paul.
(reverse the last action with “the Paul finger” hand)

Listen to the tune on YouTube

10. Tommy Thumb Where Are You?

Tommy Thumb,
(hands in air and lift thumbs)
Tommy Thumb,
Where are you?
Here I am,
(wriggle thumb)
Here I am,
(wriggle other thumb)
How do you do?

Repeat verse with Peter Pointer (index finger), Toby Tall (middle finger), Ruby Ring (ring finger), Baby Small (little finger), and Fingers All.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

11. Where Is Thumbkin?

(Start with hands behind back)
Where is Thumbkin? Where is Thumbkin?
Here I am.
(bring right hand to front, with thumb up)
Here I am.
(bring left hand to front, with thumb up)
How are you this morning?
Very well, I thank you.
(Wiggle thumbs as if they’re ‘talking’ together)
Run away.
(hide right hand behind back)
Run away.
(hide left hand behind back)

(Repeat rhyme with each finger: Pointer, Tall Man, Ring Man, and Pinkie)

Listen to the tune on YouTube

12. Ten Fingers

I have ten fingers
(hold up both hands, fingers spread)
And they all belong to me
(point to self)
I can make them do things
Would you like to see?
I can shut them up tight
(make fists)
I can open them wide
(open hands)
I can put them together
(place palms together)
I can make them all hide
(put hands behind back)
I can make them jump high
(hands over head)
I can make them jump low
(touch floor)
I can fold them up quietly
(fold hands in lap)
And hold them just so.

Listen to the tune on YouTube

I hope you enjoyed these songs for preschoolers.

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Need more songs? Here is a big collection of classic preschool songs.