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The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything is one of my favorite autumn and Halloween books to use in kindergarten music class. It is great for the little guys who are looking for a wonderful Halloween thriller without being too scared.

If you’ve never heard of the book The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams, then you definitely need to look it up. It is a music teacher Halloween must-have and is a great children’s literature tie-in for seasonal lessons.

I love using this The Little Old Lady book in my classroom for several reasons. First, it blends fall fun and autumn scarecrows with Halloween mystery to create an entertaining story. Also, this book is just perfect for adding instruments because it has different sounds built into the story. Finally, this cumulative story encourages excellent listening skills from even the youngest students.

 

The Story of The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything

The story of The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything takes the listener on a journey of the little old lady, who remains nameless and really doesn’t look that old. Throughout the book, she encounters many different items. First, she sees a pair of shoes, then pants, shirt, gloves, hat, and finally a pumpkin head. As the little old lady sees each of these items following her, she can also hear them making noises, like clomp clomp. However, she chooses to say, “I’m not afraid of you!” The ending to this adorable book shows a wonderful solution to this “scary” object following the little old lady. When she wakes up the next morning, she sees a scarecrow standing outside in her yard wearing the shoes, pants, etc.

It’s such a great book to use in your kindergarten music class. Here are some activities and tips on how to create this scary sound story that your students will definitely love.

 

First, read the story of The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything.

 

First, I read the whole book to the class. Afterwards, we discuss the story, and I try to get my kindergarteners talking about what they observed. I ask questions like:

• Was the little old lady afraid of anything?
• What was the first item she saw in the woods?
• How many items can you remember?
• What sounds did you hear in this story?
• Do you think this was a real story or pretend?

 

Next, listen to and sing a song about the little old lady.

 

 

Secondly, I have them listen to a song version of The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything. There are a few different versions available, with some on YouTube and other websites. But all-time favorite is by Music with Marr. This version of the song is available on Amazon music here. Here is a video link that I like to use with my students.

 

 

Discuss with the class some of the differences between the book and the song: voices used, words, etc. Depending on your schedule and the time available for this lesson, you could just have them listen to the song while you show them the pictures in the book. I also use a presentation to show with the story. When reading a small story book to 20-25 students, not every student may be able to see the pictures. I like to have some visual to display on the board for all to see if needed.

 

 

Then, play instruments along with the song and story.

 

 

Next, I pass out selected instruments to every student. I explain to them that in the story of The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything, there were a lot of different sounds that she heard on her journey. I tell them that they have a job of playing one of those sounds and items. Also, I explain that sometimes we all play the same instrument together, like rhythm sticks, but today we will be playing lots of different instruments at different times. When I give them their instrument, I tell them what they represent – shirt, shoes, hat, etc.

I use a visual presentation that I created to guide students through the song and book, The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything. They can listen but also watch for their item and instrument to come up in the story. You can find more information on that presentation by clicking here.

 

 

 

Press play, and have fun!

After each student has an instrument and understands their part and role in this Halloween sound story, I press play! Finally, you are ready, and the song begins. However, I like to show the presentation for the students to follow along during the music. The charm of the musical version combined with the instruments creates a wonderful little arrangement. Each year, I never really need to encourage the kids to sing along. They can’t help themselves – they just join in on the catchy tune!

Finally, after our mini-performance of The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything, we discuss how they did on their instrument part, what they liked about it, etc. Then of course, the class asks if they could do it again for their teacher, and we play the last verse as a little performance for her. 

 

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything is one of my favorite Halloween music activities that I use with my kindergarten and 1st grade students. I think it is just the right amount of spooky for kindergarten music class. You can extend this literature and music lesson a lot more with movement activities and theater activities to create your own concert. It would be a wonderful autumn event!

Do you have any other ideas for The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything? I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment down below. Also click here, if you’re interested in my presentation. If you’re looking for more ideas on music lessons for K-1, check out this blog post.