Swashbucklin' Singing Time

The Sunday has finally come to teach the kids the reverent version of
 The Wise Man and the Foolish Man.

 I love the Terri Hutchings arrangement because it gives the listeners the opportunity to focus on the message of the song and not get distracted by the hand motions.  Also, the composer is the coolest, most beautiful, most talented person in the world.  Also, she's my mother ; )

I decided to go with a pirate theme for Sunday because.... I mean... Do I really need a reason?  It's singing time.

“Welcome to me crew, ye scallywags!  Today we be huntin’ for treasure."

The chalkboard looked a little something like this...

I scattered on the floor a bunch of goofy things one might find at the bottom of the ocean like crabs, fish, scuba gear, and a missing shoe.  Then I covered them with a large blue fabric.  Every time the kids would sing I pulled back the sheet a little further and uncovered more items.

“Look at how high the tide is right now!  As we sing, the water will slowly creep back out the ocean and… Flibber the gibbets!  There be a message in a bottle."

These bottled messages were designed specifically to learn this song arrangement.  So the words and commands might need to be changed up a bit if you're teaching your primary something different. 

BOTTLE ONE:

DIRECTIONS: Hum the melody together
Have the piano play the melody line or you can whip out the melodica if your strange like me and happen to have one lying around.  It even has an accordion/pirate sound to it.  It was glorious.

When kids feel comfortable, try singing the first verse.
Luckily they all have the lyrics memorized already!

BOTTLE TWO

DIRECTIONS: Teach the "boys only" section of the chorus.
I also stuffed the bottle with fake mustaches to help them feel a bit more manly.
The boys in my primary are crazy outnumbered by the girls and usually sing softer.  I asked them if they've ever been in a storm that was so powerful it flooded.  Can you imagine how scary it would be?  I explained to them how they represented the terrifying storm with their voices and it seemed to help give them a little more confidence.

BOTTLE THREE:

DIRECTIONS: Learn the end of chorus where boys and girls sing separate octaves.

BOTTLE FOUR

DIRECTIONS: After reading the assigned scripture we had a quick discussion about how the wise man AND the foolish man were both rained on.  Even when we're choosing the right and doing what Heavenly Father wants us to do, we're still going to have to experience trials.

BOTTLE FIVE

DIRECTIONS:  Sing second verse and learn the end of second chorus.

BOTTLE SIX

DIRECTIONS: Depending on how much time you have still, let one or two kids pick their favorite primary songs to sing and change things up a bit.

BOTTLE SEVEN

DIRECTIONS:  Stand up and sing the entire song like you mean it.

Can I please tell you how much I enjoy speaking pirate?!  It's like my new passion.  I never participated in TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY in the past, but let me tell you, September 19th is marked, highlighted, and circled multiple times on my calendar for this year.

The last item uncovered under the blue fabric was a treasure chest.  I filled mine with candy, but the options are endless.  Have fun!

Best of luck to me fellow sailors!


To download free SHEET MUSIC to the Terri Hutchings Wise Man arrangement click HERE.

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