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Language focus: "Make a circle", "in/out", "up/down", "round and round", "sit down."

Classroom benefits: Teaches children classroom commands "Make a circle" and "Sit down". Arranges students in a circle for circle-time activities.

Circle time is a great way to start class or to bring everyone back together during class. Our “Make A Circle” song is designed so that when the song finishes, everyone will be seated in a circle and ready for a circle-time activity.

Preparation:

Before singing the song, gather the class in a circle with everyone holding hands. Here you can practice some of the actions in the song and more. Say, "Let's make a BIIIIIG circle!" and then have everyone say "HELLO!". Then say, "Let's make a small circle...smaller...smaller..." Whisper "hello" to everyone. Have some small conversations, whispering the whole time ("What's your name?", "What's your favorite color?", "How old are you?", "How's the weather, today?", etc.) Then say loudly "BIG circle". Alternate between big and small (and bigger and smaller), round and round (faster and slower), up and down, etc. If you like, have one of the children be the circle leader and give the commands. You can alternate circle leaders each week.

The actions for this song are pretty self-explanatory…just make a circle and follow the directions in the song!

Lyrics & Actions:

Time to make a circle. (Everyone rushes to the center of the room and holds hands in a circle.)

Make a circle, big big big. (Make the circle bigger.)
Small small small. (Make the circle smaller.)
Big big big. (Make the circle bigger.)
Make a circle, small small small. (Make the circle smaller.)
Hello hello hello. (Everybody waves to each other. Try to make eye contact with all of the children.)

Make a circle, round and round. (Holding hands, walk around in a big circle.)
Round and round.
Round and round. (If you like, move the circle in the other direction.)
Make a circle, round and round.
Hello hello hello. (Everybody waves to each other. Try to make eye contact with all of the children.)

Make a circle, up up up. (While holding hands, everyone reaches up high!)
Down down down. (Crouch down low.)
Up up up. (Reach high!)
Make a circle, down down down. (Crouch low.)
Now sit down. (Everyone sits down.)

Caution:

When going around in a circle, do not allow running. The children will be holding hands, and if some children run faster than others, hands will slip and children can take a pretty hard fall. No running! However, you should try jumping/hopping/tip-toeing/light skipping/etc.

Activity ideas:

If you are using this in a classroom, use the space between verses to prepare the kids for the next verse. For example, after “Hello, hello, hello,” in the first verse, say, “Now let’s go round and round!” After you have used the song a few times, you can ask your students after each verse, “What’s next?”

The song finishes with everybody sitting down, and now you are ready to begin any circle activity you like. Knock Knock Hello followed by Make a Circle is a great way to start any class. This tune is such an easy one to remember, try singing without the CD. Add some extra verses to keep things interesting. Try “In/Out”, “Touch your nose/ears/toes/etc.”, “jump, jump, jump”, “hop, hop, hop”, etc.

If you have a parachute, have the class make a circle holding the parachute as you sing. You can also use a simple bed sheet.

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