About the Song
Traditional songs have been around for a long time! They are one of the main resources used by parents and teachers around the world to help children learn a new language. One of the most loved ones is “Old Macdonald Had a Farm”, an old American folk song that tells a brief story about a farmer who has lots of animals in a farm, and which has lots of sounds and a catchy rhythm.
For young children, learning about the world can be a huge task. Songs help ease this introduction by making it natural and fun. Through songs, children discover the world step by step. For babies and toddlers, songs are helpful for discovering the sounds of language. Thanks to the rhythm of the songs they get to remember words more easily, which in turns help the youngest children develop their communication skills.
This song for children in particular is helpful since its verses are cumulative, meaning that as the song progresses, the next verses keep adding after the previous ones. This characteristic makes “Old Macdonald Had a Farm” the perfect song to develop auditory memory skills.
The lyrics are very simple. In the song, the tale of a farmer called Macdonald is being told. It’s mentioned that this farmer had a farm, and that there lived several farm animals, which are represent with the sounds each make. The animals mentioned are cows, which make a “moo-moo” noise; pigs, that make an “oink” sound. Finally, there’s a horse, that makes a “neigh” sound.
To practice English with your little one using this song, you can start by watching the video and singing along. Learn the lyrics together and repeat the song several times. By doing this, you ensure that your little one connects the sounds of the song to the script, making it easier for him or her to recognize the individual sounds in the different words.
Additionally, while your watching the video, your little one will be expanding his or her vocabulary while learning the names of some animals in English. Also, with this song, your little one will get to practice three of the five vowels in English, “e, i, and o.” Practice their sounds, and be aware of how their written while watching the video.
As your child grows up, you can keep adapting the song to learn more animals. All you’ll need is to make up your own verses by changing the name of the animal and the sound they make. Like this, you can add a duck that makes a “quack” sound, or dog, which makes a “bow-wow” sound. This is a great opportunity to keep building your child’s English skills in a fun way!
“Old Macdonald Had a Farm” Lyrics:
Old Macdonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O
And on his farm he had a cow, E-I-E-I-O
With a “moo-moo” here and a “moo-moo” there
Here a “moo” there a “moo”
Everywhere a “moo-moo”
Old Macdonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O
Old Macdonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O
And on his farm he had a pig, E-I-E-I-O
With a (oink) here and a (oink) there
Here a (oink) there a (oink)
Everywhere a (oink, oink)
With a “moo-moo” here and a “moo-moo” there
Here a “moo” there a “moo”
Everywhere a “moo-moo”
Old Macdonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O
Old Macdonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O
And on his farm he had a horse, E-I-E-I-O
With a “neigh, neigh” here and a “neigh, neigh” there
Here a “neigh” there a “neigh”
Everywhere a “neigh-neigh”
With a (oink) here and a (oink) there
Here a (oink) there a (oink)
Everywhere a (oink, oink)
With a “moo-moo” here and a “moo-moo” there
Here a “moo” there a “moo”
Everywhere a “moo-moo”
Old Macdonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O
