Ants Go Marching
The Ants Go Marching is a fun countdown song, starting at ants marching one by one and going all the way up to ten by ten. It’s a great song for younger girls who are learning to count as it gives them a chance to get some practice in! Not that in the seventh verse, the action is “pray to heaven” but you can easily change that if you don’t want to use the religious reference. Just make sure the last word rhymes with seven, though I’m having a tough time thinking of alternatives, to be honest! Try www.RhymeZone.com for suggestions!
The ants go marching one by one
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching one by one
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching one by one
The little one stopped to suck his thumb
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching two by two
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching two by two
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching two by two
The little one stopped to tie his shoe
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching three by three
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching three by three
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching three by three
The little one stopped to climb a tre
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching four by four
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching four by four
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching four by four
The little one stopped to slam the door
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching five by five
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching five by five
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching five by five
The little one stopped to talk some Jive
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching six by six
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching six by six
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching six by six
The little one stopped to pick up sticks
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching seven by seven
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching seven by seven
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching seven by seven
The little one stopped to pray to heaven
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching eight by eight
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching eight by eight
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching eight by eight
The little one stopped to close the gate
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching nine by nine
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching nine by nine
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching nine by nine
The little one stopped to pick up a dime
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
The ants go marching ten by ten
Hurah, hurrah
The ants go marching ten by ten
Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching ten by ten
The little one stopped to pluck a hen
And they all go marching
Down
To the ground
To get out of the rain
Bum, bum, bum
Buy the sheet music below 
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Young Voiceworks 32 Songs for Young Singers. Composed by Jo Mcnally. Voiceworks. Classroom Songs. Song book. 120 pages. Published by Oxford University Press (OU.9780193435551). |
‘Neath These Tall Green Trees
I will preface this by saying that I have NO idea if Girl Scouts still sing grace before meals at camp. I’m guessing it depends on the area and the audience, so to speak. Growing up and going to Girl Scout camp in California, we were always told that we could substitute “Earth” for “God” where appropriate. This grace was always one of my favorites because it referenced the trees and didn’t say the word God, however it does make a reference to “thee above”. Consider your girls before using this grace, if you still use grace, and whether or not this might offend anyone (the girls or parents).
‘Neath these tall green trees we stand
Asking blessings from thy hand
Thanks we give to thee above
For thy health and strength and love.
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“G” for Generosity
Most the songs I’ve posted came from my days at Girl Scout camp, but there were songs we sang in our troop meetings as well. This is one of those songs that are great to sing while waiting for people or things (like a bus, or for the last of the girls to show up for a meeting). We generally sang it when we were out & about as a group to let everyone know that we were a Girl Scout troop on the move!
She wears a G for generosity,
She wears a I for interest too,
She wears a R for responsibility,
She wears a L for loyalty, for loyalty
She wears a S for her sincerity,
She wears a C for courtesy,
She wears a O-U-T for outdoor life, outdoor life,
and that Girl Scout is me! (Believe it or not!)
Alice the Camel
This is a fun song. The way we sang it, there was a pause just before the number of humps, and we’d always shake our hips for each “bump”. It’s a simple counting song, as well as involves some movement. I’ve also seen it sung very similarly to My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean where the girls are standing for most of the song, but bend down at the knees during the number. There’s also a variation where the girls hold up one hand with the corresponding fingers showing for the number of humps.
Alice’s camel has five humps
Alice’s camel has five humps
Alice’s camel has five humps
So go, Alice, go!
Bump bump bump bump.
(Repeat the chorus with 1 fewer humps each time until…)
Alice’s camel has no humps
Alice’s camel has no humps
Alice’s camel has no humps
So Alice’s camel is a horse (of course!)
Buy the sheet music below
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The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes and Children’s Songs P/V/G. Composed by Various. Music Sales America. Children’s, Children’s. Softcover. Music Sales #AM981398. Published by Music Sales (HL.14033182). |
Kookaburra
This is a fun song we learned when learning about Australia for an International Day festival one year. I’m told it’s a popular song for children down under. When I was younger, I thought Kookaburra was a name for a Koala Bear, but it’s actually a large (11-17″) bird native to Australia and New Guinea. Kookaburras are known for their loud, unique call which sounds a lot like a human laugh, hence the song lyrics. For more information on kookaburras, check out Wikipedia.
Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree
Merry merry king of the bush is he
Laugh Kookaburra, laugh Kookaburra
Gay your life must be
Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree
Eating all the gumdrops he can see
Stop Kookaburra, stop Kookaburra
Leave some gums for me
Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree
Counting all the monkeys he can see
Stop Kookaburra, stop Kookaburra
That’s no monkey, that’s ME!!!
Buy the sheet music below
 look inside |
The FJH Young Beginner Guitar Method, Performance Book 2 Composed by Philip Groeber. Methods. The FJH Young Beginner Guitar Method. This title is on the 2011-2012-2013 National Federation of Music Clubs list. Guitar. Book. Published by The FJH Music Company Inc (FJ.G1023). |
The Princess Pat
Since it’s been awhile since I was a scout myself, I often do some research to make sure the words I remember for these songs are complete. When doing research, I found two different versions of this song. First is the one I remember, then the second is a revision I found while looking. This is a “repeat after me” song. The girls repeat the lyrics after each line is sung by the song leaders. Whenever we sang it, we also made a crown over our heads with our hands! During the chorus, the song leader would hold the note of the words “made” and “called” during the chorus. This was one of my favorite songs!
The Princess Pat
Lived in a tree
She sailed across
The Barron Sea
She sailed across
The Channel too
And she took with her
a Rickabamboo
(Chorus)
A Rickabamboo?
Now what is that?
It’s something made
By the Princess Pat
It’s red and gold
And purple too
That’s why it’s called
A Rickabamboo
Now Captain Jack
Had a mightily fine crew
They sailed across
The channel too
But his ship sank
And yours will too
If you don’t take
A Rickabamboo
(Chorus)
This revised version is from UltimateCampResource.com and claims to be the original version, as sang by Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry of Canada
The Princess Pat’s Light Infantry
They sailed across the seven seas
They sailed across the channel too
And they took with them, the Rickadandoo.
CHORUS:
The Rickadandoo, now what is that?
It’s something made by the Princess Pat
It’s red and gold, and purple too,
That’s why it’s called, the Rickadandoo.
Now Captain Jack, had a mightily fine crew,
They sailed across the channel too,
But his ship sank, and yours will too,
If you don’t take the Rickadandoo.
The Princess Pat, saw Captain Jack,
She reeled him in, and brought him back,
She saved his life, and his crew’s too,
And do you know how?—with the Rickadandoo.
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