Looking for great books to help your students get ahead in music class?
Combining literature with music is a great way to create better connections in the brain while still focusing on music creation.
You are reading: Music and movement books for preschoolers
I am often asked by trainee music teachers to name the best children’s book with movement.
Obviously, choosing the best individual moving children’s book is a difficult task. so here is my list of my favorite books for children’s books with movement and music:
- my aunt is back
- foot dance
- barnyard dance
- let’s go bear hunting
- giraffes can’t dance
- the nutcracker
- Move!
- chicken dance
- sing and dance with your polka dot pants
- the jellies and the big dance
- get the nonsense out!
- head, shoulders, knees, and toes
- the wheels of the bus
- the aunts are marching
- the other day I met a bear
Keep reading for a brief breakdown of each book and where you can find it.
Please consider links to be affiliated in nature. This means that I can earn a small commission when you click on a product and purchase it at no additional cost to you. however, these are all books that I have used repeatedly in my classroom.
review of the 15 best children’s books with movement
Here’s a quick breakdown of my book list and why I love them so much for my classroom. I have used every single book in my room.
don’t forget to click the image or “buy now on amazon” for current prices (sometimes they’re on sale!).
#1 my aunt came back
This book is a killer with my PreK-2nd graders. It’s an add-on song, meaning that each repetition of the song adds on more complicated movements.
This book is published from the traditional song. is an echo song that makes it easy to play even for the youngest children.
As a bonus, I’ll pull out a map of the world and my older students will follow Auntie’s travels. hello cross.
It’s also fun to work with students to come up with new items, moves, and places based on where you are. my kids think it’s fun to sing about their hometown.
#2 dance feet
This picture book is perfect for your PreK or Kindergarten classes. The rhythmic chanting fits beat and rhythm perfectly.
As the story progresses, different animals will dance. is a fun movement exploration activity, you can invite students to show you how they would imagine each animal dancing.
To further link this board book to music, after reading it, you can add off-key percussion that you and the students decide to match the animal and its dance. this is a great way to introduce timbre.
#3 barnyard dance
If you don’t already have Sandra Boynton’s classic, you need to get it for your classroom. You get multiple repetitions of this expressive and hilarious book with its fun movements.
Look for ways to connect the “barn dance” to American cultures. barn dances were common events in the midwest, and this book is a great starting point to discuss that.
#4 let’s go bear hunting
I remember reading this book and song with my Grandma as a kid, so this book and song holds a special place in my heart as well as the tradition of oral history.
Not only is this book based on a call and response song, but the motions you can add to it as you share help young learners learn motion words better.
#5 giraffes can’t dance
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As books go, this one has gained a lot of popularity for several reasons. These are the exact reasons I think it’s perfect for your classroom.
First, it’s a cute and fun way to get kids moving. add some music after reading the book, and the kids will have fun. Check out the best elementary music books for ideas.
Second, it teaches a great lesson about the belief that anyone can do anything. don’t listen to what others say.
Finally, it helps you feel comfortable in your own skin. you can’t put a price on this, especially in music.
#6 the nutcracker
If you’re anything like me, you love getting as much distance out of a subject, topic, or learning idea as you can. The Nutcracker is one of the most popular ballets to teach about in the general music classroom, and this book makes the perfect companion to that.
You can use the beautiful and colorful illustrations in this book as a starting point for a nutcracker unit or as a complement to all the great music, dance, and videos out there on the subject.
move #7!
Movement is one of the best ways for students to connect music with expression. But they also need to be aware of their bodies and explore movement space.
This book talks about how animals differ and is a fun launching pad for many lessons using motion exploration.
#8 chicken dance
What’s better than the chicken dance? An Elvis-impersonating rooster doing the chicken dance, of course!
I love this book and the kids find it hilarious. I even reuse this book with my older students when discussing some secondary topics, such as the history of pop music and the form of the pop song.
#9 sings and dances in your polka dot pants
The first time one of my Kindergarten teachers turned me on to this book, I fell in love. This book is adorable and was written to get kids moving.
In addition to this, the book, written by the same author who brought us Pete the cat, also features some calls and responses. this is a great way to engage students in storytelling from the start.
#10 the jelly beans and the big dance
For some reason, this heartwarming story about different kids coming together to make a successful dance recital gets me every time.
My favorite narrative element of this book (beyond the potential for movement) is how each character has different interests outside of movement.
The author does an amazing job of showing how people can overcome their differences, learn to appreciate things they didn’t think they would, and come together to create great memories.
#11 get rid of the nonsense!
For those of you who don’t know this about me already, I’m a huge fan of children’s singer Raffi. I grew up listening to his work, and I find his sincerity and engaging songs to be a ton of fun.
This book is based on one of the songs that he performed regularly. its simple melody and voiced movements make it easy to sing, play and enjoy.
#12 head, shoulders, knees and toes
One thing I notice as time goes on is that students haven’t learned many of the “standard” kid’s songs from home. I never thought to specifically teach this song in music class, but once I started to realize most kids haven’t learned, I felt it was important to add it to my curriculum.
Of course, we all know the fun these books, songs, and moves bring to young learners. as an extension, I like to work with my kids to create a new version based on other body parts (appropriate for school, of course!).
#13 the wheels of the bus
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Along the same lines as the last book, the Wheels On The Bus may seem like a song/book most should know, but many don’t.
the movements are clear and entertaining. there is a lot of potential to add more moves and lyrics to the song.
I prefer this exact version of the book with its beautiful illustrations. you can find hundreds of versions, but this one is beautifully illustrated.
#14 the ants march
Kids have probably read/heard at least one version of this song already. And that’s OK.
One of the cool things about music is all the different variations. so I love to compare and contrast the different versions of the children’s book.
This is also something you could do that your admins would understand and appreciate. comparing and contrasting is a powerful skill that helps everyone in school and the rest of their lives.
of course, besides this, you have a funny song in triple, in minor, with funny movements. win win win!
#15 I met a bear the other day
Many folks know this song, but not everyone knows you can do moves with it. There aren’t any specific ones; you just make up moves based on the lyrics.
As a call-and-response song, you can engage students in music creation right away. this fun song is another one that I feel every student should know.
Although I grew up with other book versions of this song, I love the illustrations of the first steps in the musical version of this detailed picture book.
3 simple strategies for using books in the music classroom
here are 3 quick and easy strategies on where to put “book time” in your lessons. either of these works fine, but hopefully, you’ll find one of these ways useful.
story/ending – this is where I spend most of my song reading time. I end each of my classes with an interesting book or video related to music.
This helps lower students’ energy before they leave and gives them a chance to enjoy the music.
hook: for movement books, like these, I tend to use them as hooks. A hook in a lesson is an activity, question, or book that introduces the ideas of the lesson.
For some of these books, I will read them at the beginning of the movement activity and then continue with the music and movement part.
supplement: This is the opposite of the hook method. in this way, you do the movement and music lesson first, and then you join it with the book.
I don’t use this very often unless the book is connected to a larger unit, like the nutcracker book.
conclusion
I love books and reading just the way they are, and any chance I get to connect this love with music and movement is a win for me.
Hopefully, this list of 15 moving children’s books will help you discover the power of movement in your music room.
You might also enjoy this other blog post I wrote about my favorite books for the music classroom.
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