Lesson Plan #: CC-0019

Kindergarten Lesson 2: Yankee Doodle Dandy


Objectives: The student will be able to:

1. recognize some patriotic music from the time of George Washington.

2. recognize the tradition of parades as a way of celebrating.

Description of lesson/activity:

Activity 1

1. Introduce the lesson by playing a recording of "Yankee Doodle Dandy." Ask the children if they recognize the music. Sing the song with the children. Explain that this is a very old song which was popular during the time of George Washington.

2. Read the book Yankee Doodle , by Richard Schackburg. This is an illustrated version of the song. The illustrations depict pictures of Revolutionary War soldiers. Discuss the illustrations with the children, pointing out the marching, uniforms, flags, and colors.

3. Introduce the discussion about parades by asking how many children have been to a parade. Discuss children's experiences with parades. Ask the children why we have parades. Ask if children know what was being celebrated at the parades they have attended.

Read Thump, Thump, Rat-a-Tat-Tat , by Gene Baer. Discuss what children saw in the parade in the book. Who and what would one see in a parade? Discuss the use of marching and parades at the time of George Washington.

4. Plan a parade to celebrate George Washington's birthday. Children can make hats out of newspaper. The hats can be decorated with paint or markers using red, white, and blue. Children can then have a marching parade wearing their hats and singing "Yankee Doodle Dandy." The children could parade to another classroom.

Enrichment and Extension:

1. Have the children make instruments such as paper towel roll kazoos and drums from recycled materials. These instruments could be used during the parade.

2. Using the illustrations of Lois Elhert in Thump, Thump, Rat-a-Tat-Tat as an example, children could draw pictures of their own parades on long strips of paper. Elhert's illustrations in this book are done with bright colors and basic geometric shapes. Have the children identify the shapes they see in the book. Encourage the children to use these shapes when drawing their parade.

Resources:

Baer, Gene. Thump, Thump, Rat-a-Tat-Tat . (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1994) (ISBN 0440832888).

Crews, Donald. Parade . (New York: Greenwillow Books, 1983) (ISBN 0688019951).

Fischer, Aileen. My First Presidents' Day Book . (Chicago, IL: Children's Press, 1987) (ISBN 051602910x).

Jacobs, Leland B. "February 22," Teaching K-8 , February 1992, p. 93.

Schackburg, Richard. Yankee Doodle . (New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1965).

Woods, Andrew. Young George Washington: America's First President . (Mahwah, NJ: Troll Associates, 1992) (ISBN 0816725403).