Please Don't Chat to the Bus Driver!

I was looking for a book to accompany the classic song The Wheels on the Bus and this is what I found...

Please Don't Talk to the Bus Driver!

Topic: The bus and animals.

Age: 4-7 (I did it with younger children but I'm not sure they understood it much!)

Vocabulary: Bus, bus driver, Animals: (crocodile, frog, fox, chicken, pig, rabbit) Phrases adapted from the book's original choice of words: "please don't talk to the bus driver!" "missed a stop", "crashed into a tree," "late" "loud" "spinning" "lost" "everybody out!".

Procedure: 

• Start with your hello song. I like to sing it loudly and quietly as this fits with the language of the story.
• Flashcard time: drill those animals.
• Story time: Start with a bit of interest building. Ask for a show of hands who has been on a bus. See if they can name all the animals on the front cover and translate the title of the story into L1. Show them the route of the bus and explain why it's yellow (it's an American bus!).
• As you tell the story elicit the animals as they enter the bus and make sure every animal has their own voice. I don't know why but my fox is posh and my rabbit is squeaky. The kids LOVE a chicken voice.
• Each misadventure needs an action. I like to clap for "crashed into a tree," tap my watch for "late", put my fingers in my ears for "loud", search for "lost" and spin my finger round and round for "spinning." Since 'lost a wheel' is quite complicated I tend to skip that page with the younger children. "Please don't talk to the bus driver" is very repetitive, so just do it in your best teacher voice and wag your finger along with the rythm!
• Finish by asking them in L1 why we mustn't talk to the bus driver and if they think the animals will do it again.
• Now it's worksheet time. My first lesson required the children to draw the animals in the windows of the bus.

•  Back in circle time. Practice your motions for the Wheels on the Bus. I love the Super Simple Songs version as it has all the most teachable verses: round and round, up and down, open and shut, swish swish swish, waa waa waa, and shh shh shh!
• Watch the video, sing and dance.

Extensions:

Here

• Trace the road with the animals page and get them to colour it the right colours.

Here

 Or if you're feeling adventurous... bus driver hats are pretty simple in terms of materials. You need

1 strip of card.
Staples
Square of crepe paper
Semi circle (with tabs) of card for peak
1 bus badge
Glue

Bus Driver Hats Craft