As a preschool teacher, I use a lot of songs in my classroom about a variety of subjects: animals, letters, phonics, planets, etc. That is why when Patrick from Adventures at Weseland, the honorary 4M host for this month, chose this week’s theme of “How Music Educates Us,” I thought to myself: “This is easy!”
Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, I didn’t go with preschool songs for this post (well, I did cheat a little bit and you will see why later). I choose a subject that is very dear to my heart.
The subject I choose was GEOGRAPHY! No, no, I am not crazy! I enjoy history and geography. I think I get it from my mom as she loves these two subjects. Before bed every night, my mom will read a geological book from some town in the Midwestern United States, a newspaper from one of those little towns, or a map. My mom knows a lot of these small towns, but that is also because she archives (abandoned) cemeteries for a non-profit website and the USGS for free.
I try to look up geography videos but could only find three: the World, Japan, and the United States. I couldn’t find any decent videos about other countries. So, if you have a song about the places in your country, let me know in the comments below. I would love to discover new geography-related videos!
Minimoni. – Rock n’ Roll Kenchoushozaichi ~Oboechaina Series!~
I am a huge Hello! Project fan. Hello! Project, or H!P for short, is a mega Japanese idol umbrella group that is fronted by a megapopular idol group Morning Musume. One of the former subgroups of H!P was Minimoni, which was active from 2001 to 2004. Targeted at a younger audience, Minimoni. singing about the prefectural capitals of Japan would be a great single.
“Rock n’ Roll Kenchoushozaichi” was initially sung by Chisato Moritaka, a labelmate with H!P, in the early 90s. It’s an upbeat rock tune that will have you singing about the capitals, the prefectures, and their specialties in no time
You can find the English translation of the song here.
Animaniacs – The Nations of the World
When I was a kid, I would always watch Saturday cartoons like Steven Spielberg’s Animaniacs. A great comedic cartoon about three crazy siblings who had wild adventures in different periods and with various celebrities. There were some educational bits throughout the show too.
One of the most famous songs to come from this show was “The Nations of the World,” which featured all the nations of the world in 1993. It is now a bit outdated (as such countries like Yugoslavia are no more while there newer countries), it is marveled for Rob Paulsen’s talent and for its catchy way of remembering all those nations. Did you know that Paulsen recorded this song in one take?
Wakko’s 50 State Capitols
I knew that there is a traditional “50 States and their capitals” song that I sang in elementary somewhere. But, it has been a long time since I heard that song, so I forgot how it went and the title. Instead, I will post another Animaniacs video. This time, it’s with the Liverpudlian-accented Wakko, portrayed by Jess Harnell, singing about the 50 States and their capitals in a traditional country style. Isn’t this one catchy too?
Bonus: Eight Planets
Ok, ok, ok, you got me! I did sneak in a song I sing in my preschool here on this post. Yes, we talk about the eight planets in my class. But, since I teach 3-4 years old kids, I only teach them the basics like names and some basic information (I do have a kid who is hungry for more details though). February was Space Month, and we sang this song every day during our lesson. The kids love this song! They will always request this song. And it plays, they dance — a dance that I created along this song — and sing with a big voice.
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☆ai love music☆ 
Amy,
Wakko’s 50 State Capitols song was the most fun!! You did a furtastic job and I’m just now learning that you’re a preschool teacher. Thanks for dancing with the 4M crew. Have a boogietastic week, my dear! 😉
The embed on the first one didn’t cut out the annoying beginning or end. I usually use the shortcode to embed videos. If you go to https://en.support.wordpress.com/videos/youtube/ and scroll down a bit to where it says “Embedding with a Shortcode,” it shows you how. I like it because you can also specify where to start and end and how big you want the player to be.
Anyway… I liked these songs. Had no idea what they were singing in the first, but that’s okay, it was a fun video. Loved the Animaniacs and the last one, too, and I could understand them. Nice set!
Thanks for the shortcode tip! I check it out and use it for next time. I posted the translation for the first song as a link but you can check it out here: https://projecthello.com/minimoni/rocknroll.html
Fun way to learn! I wish I had teachers like you.
How fun! Loved the Wakkos 50 states the most. but learning by song is a great way to learn.
oh my gosh i adore this- my little ones def would love to learn more about this so i may be using this for me when they get home today 🙂 YAY!
The Animaniacs! I love it already. Music is what can help tie us all together.
What a great way to learn geography! I remember the song from the Animaniacs cartoon, back when I was a kid! What a throwback.
This is an awesome post! I will sing the eight planets song with my daughter 😀
So fun!! My parents had a cassette tape for me of geography songs when I was little that I used to love!
xoxo A
http://www.southernbelleintraining.com
This is a treasure of a post that I can use at home with my toddler to teach her geography! Thanks for the idea and I hope there is an updated one with even more collected songs some day!
This is great!! Can’t wait to check it out with my kiddo!! Thank you so much
Nice strategy. We also use this kind of way to memorize back those days. Did not knew that it is still being done presently and still that effective. hehe
this is a really effective way of learning. great for kids!
I absolutely love your take on the theme! I agree with Jasmine – it’s a really effective way of learning! Thanks for the introduction – and the education – and the dance! 🙂
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