Intro
For many years I worked as a childcare provider and always found myself intrigued with children’s songs. They were so well crafted, in such a way that they would get stuck in your head, and seemed interestingly to focus a lot on car rhymes, plane rhymes, old macdonald lyrics, and train rhymes (which are classic children’s toys of course). So, I wanted to analyze a few examples.
Wheels on the Bus
First, let’s look at the classic car song “Wheels on the Bus”, which we all know go round and round. It’s an American Folk Song that was written in 1939 by Verna Hills, and was actually based off of a traditional British song called “Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush.” The song is cleverly constructed with lots of repetition as each subject is repeated whether it be the wheels going round and round, or people going up and down, up and down, etc… There’s also good use of onomatopoeia with wipers going swish, and horns going beep and honk. There’s no rhyme scheme but it’s remarkably catchy none the less. It also holds a hidden message about how life goes round and round. The music itself has a simple happy melody with a jovial rhythm which is enjoyable.
I’m a Little Airplane
Next, we’ll look at the plane song “I’m a Little Airplane” which became a hit when it eventually made it’s way to debuting on Sesame Street in the late 90s. The song is about how fun it is to move around as if you were an airplane, and surely the fact that it’s a “little” airplane resonates with children who are little themselves. The song is memorable because of the silly words that catch your ear like when the song continually says “Well, I’m a little airplane nyyyow“; with “nyyyow” being a rather funny way to say “now”. There’s also the gibberish word “Wangity-wang”, which is equally fun. We additionally find a section with a basic couplet rhyme scheme, which too helps to get it stuck in your ear. The music is set in a friendly beach-boys-esque rock style that puts a smile on your face.
Freight Train
Last, we’ll look at the train song “Freight Train”. This is another song that makes excellent use of onomatopoeia with the train going “Clickety-clack” and “chugga-chugga;” two words that get repeated dozens of times along with the phrase “What’s that coming down the track?” All of that results in the song being a real ear-worm. The music is set in an upbeat country music style with guitar and harmonica that really makes it lively to sing along to.
Conclusion
Clearly there are some devices that work wonderfully for children’s music and these were some prime examples that had caught my ear and eye. Whether it’s good use of repetition, onomatopoeia, simple rhyme schemes, upbeat music style, or some subtly educational symbolic meaning, these devices are put to good use in getting these children’s songs stuck firmly in the heads of all those that hear them.