Wee Sing America by Pamela Beall and Susan Hagen Nipp

From the Preamble of the Constitution to the Erie Canal it’s an American experience through song. Of all the great children’s music out there this is my all time favorite to supplement for our homeschool. Wee Sing America!

Wee Sing America is a full hour of American heritage through song. It is lively and energetic with a variety of voices and instruments.  The American folk songs and patriotic speeches give us a sort of survey of history from the Revolution to the Civil Rights Movement. It has made a nice compliment to my family’s American history courses over the years. It’s whimsical and theatrical nature make it particularly enjoyable for the imaginative child.

Recommended for preschool to 3rd grade, the music offers many opportunities for teaching rhythm and even play acting. It is particularly geared for children because many of the songs are sung and performed by children themselves with the occasional adult voice to offer character. The songs are so engaging that you can imagine being there. You’ll find yourself marching with Yankee Doodle, anchoring’ aweigh, eating goober peas, picking a bale o’ cotton, working on the railroad and “getting your doggies along” with the cowboys on the range.

Wee Sing America includes a CD with 52 tracks as well as a song book which includes illustrations, words and music for each song. The CD also includes famous quotes from great Americans such as:

• John F. Kennedy
• Thomas Jefferson
• Abraham Lincoln
• George Washington
• Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Patrick Henry

and also includes:

• The Preamble of the Constitution
• The Star Spangled Banner
• The Pledge of Allegiance
• Statue of Liberty Excerpt
• Battle Hymn of the Republic and many more!

I used this as a supplement with my two oldest children now graduated (one from college) and to this day they can still sing the songs! One of our favorite things to do was to take a break from homeschooling and go out for lunch. On the way, and it was a bit of a drive from a remote German village, we would listen and sing these songs. Some of my best homeschool memories include this CD. This year we are using it to supplement our American Revolution Unit and will be continuing to use it as we proceed into westward expansion.

If you’d like to hear and see some excepts of the songs and book you can listen HERE.  You can also download individual songs from iTunes  or The Official Wee Sing Amazon Store ! Also  be sure to check out the other titles, apps, and more available from Wee Sing.

One of the best things about homeschooling is being able to find those little extras that are fun and add enjoyment to learning. Wee Sing America has been one such supplement that has enhanced our children’s understanding of different times and people in American History. It was nice to have something traditional and prepared for us that we could get familiar with and correlate to our studies.

Stephanie is a military spouse and writes on her personal blog, Harrington Harmonies, where she shares her experiences with homeschooling, faith and military family life. Follow her blogs on Facebook @ Harrington Harmonies and Nature Notebook or follow on  Pinterest , Twitter, and Google+.