Nancy Stewart

Children shake their fingers on the chorus to mimic buzzing insects. Encourage children to invent their own bug movements for each verse.

Set up a themed bug party! Children can dress in bug costumes and use flashlights to simulate fireflies. Sing songs and dance as different bugs.

Learn about five bugs through movement: cricket (rub hands together), ant (march in a line), dragonfly (arms out, glide), housefly (buzz and dart), honey bee (waggle dance). Discuss facts about each insect as you go.

Draw or use felt ladybugs with moveable spots. Count spots as you sing. Discuss the historical origin of the nursery rhyme — the "fire" refers to the Great Fire of London!

Create felt insects to place on a flannel board as each is mentioned in the song. Children can take turns placing and removing insects.

Fingerplay version: hold up five fingers and "jump" one off the log on each verse. Movement version: five children sit on a "log" (a bench or tape line) and hop off one at a time.

Children invent silly bug names and draw their imaginary bugs. Share and describe their creations to the group.

Did you know insects existed before dinosaurs? Share fossil facts. Children draw what they imagine prehistoric bugs looked like.

Teach children the Spanish chorus. Everyone sings along and shakes maracas. Discuss that "cucaracha" means cockroach in Spanish.

Fireflies communicate with light patterns. Turn the lights low and use flashlights to create patterns — children copy each other's sequences.

Create a full movement sequence to this song: stomp, wiggle, shake, spin. Children love helping choreograph the silly moves.

Make or use a worm finger puppet that hides and appears on cue during the song.

Make a simple sock worm puppet. Discuss how earthworms help compost and improve soil — a great introduction to gardening and ecology.