“B” Songs!

Buttons, bows, bubbles, be-bop, Bonnie, ballin’, and boot scootin’!

For Kids

1. Bubbles: I learned this song from my dear friend Ginny Driscoll. It is a great way to motivate the child to attempt to say /b/ in the initial position, as the reward is BUBBLES! Who doesn’t love popping bubbles?! For the words, click HERE.

2. Brown Bear: A CLASSIC children’s book and a wonderful for color recognition! PLUS, the words align perfectly with the beginning melody line of “Daisy Bell”. Want to know how I use it? Click HERE.

3. Charlie Parker Played Be-Bop: This book has a rhythm already embedded into it and it was quite conducive to creating my own melody line. The rhymes are catchy, you can create fun movements to go with it, and there are many opportunities to address a wide range of music therapy goals (articulation, pitch, coordination, recall, sequencing, etc., etc.!). I also mention this book HERE.

For Adults

1. Buttons and Bows: A cute cowboy song that is sure to resonate with the older country fans. I’m a bit partial to the Gene Autry version, but you can find other artists covering this song, as seen HERE and HERE.

2. My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean: I love using this song for relaxation (sung at a slower-than-normal tempo), for an Irish theme (St. Patty’s Day!), or to encourage my clients who have had strokes to work on regaining their speech. The reoccurring B in this song works well for reteaching those with apraxia to close their lips in order to approximate the phoneme /b/.

3. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy: I think this title wins for having the most B’s! This song is a classic, performed by the adorable Andrew Sisters, and appropriate for patriotic holidays…or any occasion, really. The peppy beat is perfect for doing movement.

For Kids AND Adults

1. Ballin’ the Jack: An older tune that has directions for various movements in the lyrics! You can use this with kids, too…OR, you can use “Bendable Stretchable” by Georgiana Stewart, which uses the tune “Ballin’ the Jack” with different, more kid-appropriate movements.

2. Boot Scootin’ Boogie: I have memories of having to learn line-dancing to this song in my 4th grade P.E. class. Be aware that some of the verses may have questionable lyric themes for kids (that, of course, I did not pick up on when I was 9).

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