This is a great beat passing game! Whoever has the pumpkin on the last beat of the song is OUT! Continue playing until there is a final winner. As students get out, they can go get sticks and play to the beat as the game progresses.
Game * Orff Arrangement * Student-Created Springtime Version
Pass the Pumpkin Orff Arrangement
Other ideas
I LOVE teaching about minor keys and this has such a great descending line with the last 5 notes-mi, re, do, ti, la. It’s so fun to play in D minor with a simple D bordun on BX and other instruments playing the last five notes on A, G, F, E, and D.
Take a fun poem for a B section and you’ve got a performance piece!
There have been schools where I didn’t talk about Halloween and so my new lyrics were: Pass the pumpkin all around, listen to that pumpkin sound. Ooo, ooo, ooo, ooo, pumpkin time is here!
Written in 2/4
Springtime Version
My mystery song (only the rhythm to go on) today was Pass the Pumpkin. When they figured out that it was Pass the Pumpkin, they were challenged with creating a spring version of this fall song. “Pass the twister all around. Listen to that whirling sound. Oo, oo, oo, oo. Tornado season is here.” Then I drew the tornado on the tennis ball and we played the game.
2 thoughts on “Pass the Pumpkin”