Sing along (with lyrics)
Top 19 songs for learning ABCs, counting, days, months and more
Songs stick in memory because of rhythm and rhyme. These are the ones teachers use for the alphabet, counting, the calendar, and early science.
Chosen from early-years teaching lists and checked on Wikipedia; public-domain texts printed, Oct 2026. Checked 2026-10-25. Nobody paid to be here. The buy links are plain search links, not affiliate links, so Peabody earns nothing from them.
The Alphabet Song
Charles Bradlee, 1835 · Ages 2-6
Sung to Twinkle Twinkle; teachers slow the LMNOP section.
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Words
A-B-C-D-E-F-G, H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P, Q-R-S, T-U-V, W, X, Y and Z. Now I know my ABCs, Next time won't you sing with me?
Thirty Days Hath September
Traditional · Ages 6-10
A memory rhyme for the number of days in each month.
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Words
Thirty days hath September, April, June, and November; All the rest have thirty-one, Save February, with twenty-eight days clear, And twenty-nine each leap year.
Monday's Child
Traditional · Ages 3-8
A rhyme for the days of the week, and a fortune for each.
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Words
Monday's child is fair of face, Tuesday's child is full of grace, Wednesday's child is full of woe, Thursday's child has far to go, Friday's child is loving and giving, Saturday's child works hard for a living, But the child that is born on the Sabbath day Is bonny and blithe and good and gay.
One, Two, Buckle My Shoe
Traditional · Ages 2-6
Counts to ten in pairs.
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Words
One, two, buckle my shoe; Three, four, knock at the door; Five, six, pick up sticks; Seven, eight, lay them straight; Nine, ten, a big fat hen.
This Old Man
Traditional · Ages 2-7
Counts to ten with a verse for each number.
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Words
This old man, he played one, He played knick-knack on my thumb; With a knick-knack paddywhack, Give a dog a bone, This old man came rolling home.
Ten in the Bed
Traditional · Ages 2-6
Counting down from ten.
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Over in the Meadow
Olive A. Wadsworth, 1870 · Ages 3-7
Counts from one to ten through animal families.
Watch for: The tune is old; the best-known words (Olive A. Wadsworth, 1870) come in several versions, so they are linked, not printed.
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Five Little Ducks
Traditional · Ages 1-6
Counts down from five.
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Ten Green Bottles
Traditional · Ages 3-8
Counting down by one; a longer ten-verse chain.
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99 Bottles of Beer
Traditional · Ages 6-12
Counts down from 99; children like the long game.
Watch for: The subject is beer, so some families swap in 'bottles of root beer'.
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Solomon Grundy
Traditional · Ages 4-8
The days of the week in one short life.
Watch for: Ends with the character's death.
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Words
Solomon Grundy, Born on a Monday, Christened on Tuesday, Married on Wednesday, Took ill on Thursday, Worse on Friday, Died on Saturday, Buried on Sunday. This is the end Of Solomon Grundy.
The Twelve Days of Christmas
Traditional · Ages 4-12
Counts up to twelve while stacking the gifts.
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Fifty Nifty United States
Ray Charles Singers, 1961 · Ages 6-12
Names all 50 states in the order they joined the Union. Words are copyrighted, so not printed.
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The Planets
Gustav Holst, 1914-1916 · Ages 7-14
A seven-movement orchestra suite, one for each planet known then.
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Why Does the Sun Shine?
They Might Be Giants, 1993 (song by Hy Zaret and Lou Singer, 1959) · Ages 6-12
A rock song about the sun, covering a 1959 science song. Its 'mass of incandescent gas' is not quite right: the sun is plasma, and the band's 2009 song 'Why Does the Sun Really Shine?' corrects it. Words are copyrighted, so not printed.
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Three Is a Magic Number
Bob Dorough, 1973 · Ages 5-12
From Schoolhouse Rock!; a jazz song about multiples of three. Words are copyrighted, so not printed.
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Schoolhouse Rock!
Various, 1973-1985 · Ages 5-12
Short animated songs on grammar, math, civics and science.
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Here Come the 123s
They Might Be Giants, 2008 · Ages 3-8
A whole album of counting songs by an adult band that kids love.
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Apples and Bananas
Traditional · Ages 2-6
Swaps vowel sounds in each verse; good phonics practice.
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