Zipper Songs Encourage Contribution

I love ‘zipper’ songs that allow themselves to constantly be re-invented (a zipper song is one in which most of the words stay the same but a few are interchangeable- like Old MacDonald). Before I share this song with any group, I’ll explain that we are about to write a song that has never been before, and that we’ll do it by collecting all the reasons we have to say ‘thank you’ into this song. I’ll explain that everyone is invited to contribute, not no one has to, it is their choice (unless it is a group of 20+, in which case I’ll explain that not every friend gets a turn every time, but they can tell me about their thank-yous at the conclusion of the session if they want).

Arts Engagement Opportunity

I like to create opportunities for learners with all sorts of preferences and proclivities to engage in their preferred media, and this song lends itself nicely to illustration. Print the lyrics with a few lines per page so that there is ample blank space provided for illustration. Sometimes, I “bind” (AKA staple) the pages together to make a book, other times we’ll make a slideshow out of their creations like this: