Fun songs for kids to sing around a campfire

When you go camping this year, be sure to prepare for the nightly bonfires. Pick out some fun children’s songs to sing around the campfire. Singing by campfires is not only a fun part of camp, it is a good and healthy social event for everyone, especially children. It is good for them; Not to mention the fun! So here I have some of my own suggestions; fun children’s songs to sing around the campfire.

The bear went through the mountain:

The Bear Went Over the Mountain has all the elements of a good campfire song: movement, easy to learn, and an outdoor theme. As you sing this song, have the children pretend to crawl like bears. When you sing “to see what he can see,” put your hand to your forehead as if you were shielding the sun, searching for something.

Here are the lyrics:

The bear went through the mountain (repeat 2 more times)

To see what he could see. (repeat 2 more times)

The bear went through the mountain (repeat 2 more times)

To see what he could see.

2nd verse:

The other side of the mountain (repeat 2 more times)

It was all he could see. (repeat 2 more times)

The other side of the mountain (repeat 2 more times)

It was all he could see.

Bill Grogan’s goat:

Like the previous song, this one also has movement, an outdoor theme, and is easy to learn. As for action moves, I have seen people do this in a number of ways. It’s easy to figure out the actions on your own for this song. This is also a call and response song. One leader sings the first phrase (four syllables) and everyone else repeats it after him.

Here are the lyrics:

There was a man, now take note. There was a man who had a goat.

He loved that goat, in fact he loved him. He loved that goat like a child.

One day that goat felt well loaded. I ate 3 red shirts, just off the line.

The man grabbed him from behind and tied him to the train track.

Now when the train arrived at the place, that goat turned pale and green with fear.

He sighed as if it hurt; he coughed up those shirts and pointed to the train.

There are no errors in me:

You could spend an hour making up new verses for this song. In that sense, it has a lot in common with the old songs that cowboys and pioneers sang over 100 years ago. They sang around the campfire and made up new verses for songs like ‘Clementine, Cindy, Sweet Betsy From Pike’.

Here are the lyrics:

I have no errors.

Oh, there are no mistakes in me.

There may be errors in some of your cups

but I have no errors.

CHORUS

Mosquito, you fly high.

Mosquito, fly low.

If the old skeeter lands on me

It won’t fly anymore!

To make up new verses, simply replace the underlined words (bugs and cups) with two other rhyming words, such as bees and knees, or frogs and pigs. Children especially like to help with new verses.

The ants are marching one by one:

Sung to the tune, “When Johnny Comes Marching Home,” this song is great for kids. Unlike some of the other songs I’ve mentioned, most kids already know this one.

Here are the lyrics:

The ants are marching one by one, hooray, hooray.

The ants are marching one by one, hooray, hooray.

The ants are marching one by one, the little one stops to suck his thumb,

And they all go marching down on the ground to get out of the rain, boom, boom, boom.

I repeat, but now they are two by two and the little one stops to tie his shoe.

We usually continue to the 10th, but I’m sure you could go as high as you want (or be patient!)

Jenny Jenkins:

This is similar to ‘There are no mistakes in me’, in the sense that you can make up new verses. It is about a groom and his bride arguing about what to wear to the wedding.

Here are the lyrics:

Will you wear white, my dear, my dear?

Will you wear white, Jenny Jenkins?

No, I will not wear white, because the colors are too bright.

I’ll buy myself a foll dee roll dee to the toll of

look for a double use a cause to find me.

Roll, Jenny Jenkins, roll.

Just replace the underlined words (white, because the colors are too bright) with another color and a rhyme to follow. Here is an example:

red is the color of my head; green, it is the color of a bean; yellow, I prefer to swim in jelly.

You can have a lot of fun with these five songs. They could fill an entire night singing over a campfire. Just remember to have fun and help the kids have fun too.