Songs, Skits &Cheers

Created by Barb McLeod (2005) Harford District Wood Badge NE IV – 179

Background and Purpose

When my son was a Wolf, I observed that planning, practicing and performing songs, skits and cheers were disorganized, hurried and lacking in quality. Shortly thereafter, I became one of my son’s Co-Den Leaders. Before den or pack meetings, I would search the internet looking for songs and skits to teach the boys. Over the next several years, through trial and error and many laughs and good memories, I found out some things about the boys in my den and boys in the pack.

The boys liked songs that required them to physically perform actions while singing and also verses that were repetitious, thus easy to learn and remember. As for skits, there needed to be a ‘part’ for each boy to perform and be easy to remember. The boys also preferred anything that described body parts, body functions and included sound effects! Go figure, they’re boys! As for cheers, I gave the boys suggestions on a theme and let them run with it.

In 2005, I decided to participate in Wood Badge so that I could enhance my abilities to work with and help the boys through their scouting experience. This document of songs, skits and cheers was created to complete one of my ticket items for Wood Badge.

Songs

Why did I use different colors?

The title of the song and tune to sing it to (if known), are printed in blue.

The words to be sung are printed in black.

Actions to be performed while singing are in red.

Special directions are in green.

Have fun and sing loud!

ANNOUNCEMENT - this is a great one to sing when an adult says they have announcements to make

Announcements, announcements, announcements!

What a terrible death to die,

A terrible death to die,

A terrible death to be talked to death,

A terrible death to die.

Have you ever seen a wind bag, a wind bag, a wind bag,

Have you ever seen a wind bag, well there’s one right now! (point at the person making announcements)

Goes this way and that way and that way and this way,

Have you ever seen a wind bag, well there’s one right now! (point at the person making announcements)

Here are some other verses that can be sung.

Sing to the tune of London Bridge

Make the Announcements short and sweet,
short and sweet, short and sweet;

Make the Announcements short and sweet
they're so. . .(shout). . .BORING!

Sing to ‘Row, Row, Row Your Boat’

Row Row Row your Boat
Gently down the stream
throw the announcements overboard and listen to them scream.

Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the stream.
Ha Ha! Fooled you
I'm a submarine.

JOE AND THE BUTTON FACTORY

Hi, my name is Joe (boys wave their hand at the audience)

And I work in a button factory.

I’ve got a wife, a dog and a family.

One day, my boss came up to me and said,

Hey Joe, are you busy?

I said no.

He said,

Push the button with your right hand. (use right hand to ‘push’ button)

Repeat the song but change the last line to,

Push the button with your left hand. (use both hands to ‘push’ buttons)

*** Each time, the boys should repeat the song, changing only the last line and add the new action to the actions they are already performing.

Push the button with your right foot. (use right foot to ‘push’ button)

Push the button with your left foot. (use left foot to ‘push’ button)

Push the button with your head. (move head forward and back)

Push the button with your butt. (push butt out)

Push the button with your tongue (stick out tongue as if pushing button with it)

Now, while pushing all the buttons, sing the following verse to end the song:

Hi, my name is Joe.

And I work in a button factory.

I’ve got a wife, a dog and a family.

One day, my boss came up to me and said,

Hey Joe, are you busy?

I said, YES!

CALAMINE LOTION – sung to ‘My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean’

This song is easy enough for the youngest boys to learn.

My body needs calamine lotion, my body is all red you see,

The flowers I picked for my Granny, turned out to be poison ivy!

Don’t touch, don’t touch, you’ll get a rash from i–vy, i-vy.

Don’t touch, don’t touch, you’ll get a rash from i-vy.

TOM THE TOAD – sung to ‘Oh, Tannenbaum’ or ‘Oh, Christmas Tree’

Oh, Tom the toad, oh, Tom the toad, why are you lying in the road?

You didn’t see that car ahead and now you’re lying truly dead.

You used to hop and jump about and now your guts are spilling out.

Oh, Tom the toad, oh, Tom the toad, why are you lying in the road?

COCA COLA SONG – sung to ‘Freres Jacques’

Another easy song to teach.

Coca Cola, Coca Cola, makes you burp, makes you burp.

Have another bottle, have another bottle,

Burp, burp, burp

Burp, burp, burp!

OUT IN THE WOODS – sung to ‘How Dry I Am’

The leader begins by singing one line of each verse and the group repeats it in the same sing-song fashion. Once a verse has been sung one line at a time, everybody sings the whole verse together.

Out in the woods, oh way out there,

Out in the woods, I met a bear.

He looked at me, I looked at him,

He sized up me, I sized up him.

Then said the bear, why don’t you run?

For I can see, you have no gun.

So I turned and ran, fast as can be,

Until I spied a big oak tree.

The nearest branch, was ten feet high,

Least I could do was jump and try.

And so I jumped, into the air,

But I missed that branch, oh way up there.

But don’t you fret, and don’t you frown,

‘Cause I caught that branch, on the way back down.

This is the end, there ain’t no more,

Unless I meet that bear, like I did before.

Well I met that bear, again once more,

Now he’s a rug, on my rec room floor!

SCOUT MARCHING SONG - sung to ‘The Saints Go Marching’

The scouts go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah.

The scouts go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah.

The scouts go marching one by one, the little one stopped to shoot his gun.

CHORUS:

And they all go marching,

In…to the tent….

To get out…of the rain

Boom, boom, boom.

Additional verses:

….Two by two….the little one stops to tie his shoe

….Three by three….the little one stops to climb a tree

….Four by four….the little one stops to close the door

….Five by five….the little one stops to peek in a hive

….Six by six….the little one stops to pick up sticks

….Seven by seven….the little one stops to look at heaven

….Eight by eight….the little one stops to shut the gate

….Nine by nine….the little one stops to tell the time

….Ten by ten…..the little one stops to say THE END!

COMMERCIAL MIXUP – sung to ‘The Farmer in the Dell’

Last night I watched TV, I saw my favorite show.

I heard a strange commercial; I can’t believe it’s so.

Feed your dog Charmin, Comet cures a cold.

Use SOS pads on your face, to keep from looking old.

For headaches take some Certs, use Tide to clean your face.

And do shampoo with Elmer’s glue, it holds your hair in place.

Perhaps I am confused; I might not have it right.

But one thing I am certain of, I’ll watch TV tonight!

ITSY BITSY SCORPION – sung to’ Itsy Bitsy Spider’

The itsy bitsy scorpion crawled up upon my shirt.

I smashed him with my hand, than threw him in the dirt.

When he stopped a squirming, I put him in my stew,

‘Cause itsy bitsy scorpions taste good to me and you!

ROAD KILL STEW – sung to ‘Three Blind Mice’

Road kill stew, road kill stew,

Tastes so good, just like it should.

You go on down to the Interstate

You wait for the critter to meet its fate

You take it home and you make it great!

Road kill stew, road kill stew.

THE GRAND OLD DUKE OF YORK

The Grand Old Duke of York, he had ten thousand men.

He marched them up the hill and he marched them down again.

And when you’re up, you’re up (stand up straight)

And when you’re down, you’re down (squat)

And when you’re only half way up (raise half way up)

You’re neither up (stand up straight) nor down (squat).

SCOUTING SPIRIT

(point at your head)

I’ve got that scouting spirit up in my head (Where?),

Up in my head (Where?), up in my head.

I’ve got that scouting spirit up in my head, up in my head to stay.

(put hands over your heart)

I’ve got that scouting spirit deep in my heart (Where?)

Deep in my heart (Where?), deep in my heart.

I’ve got that scouting spirit deep in my heart, deep in my heart to stay.

(point at your feet)

I’ve got that scouting spirit down in my feet (Where?),

Down in my feet (Where?), down in my feet.

I’ve got that scouting spirit down in my feet, down in my feet to stay.

(wave arms all around and turn around in a circle)

I’ve got that scouting spirit all over me (Where?),

All over me (Where?), all over me.

I’ve got that scouting spirit all over me, all over me to stay.

TRUSTY TOMMY – sung to ‘Yankee Doodle’

This is a great song for Webelos to learn.

TRUSTY Tommy was a Scout

LOYAL to his mother

HELPFUL to the folks about and

FRIENDLY to his brother.

COURTEOUS to the girls he knew

KIND unto his rabbit

OBEDIENT to his father too and

CHEERFUL to his habits.

THIFTY saving for a need

BRAVE but not a faker

CLEAN in thought and word and deed and

REVERENT to his Maker.

ON TOP OF OLD SMOKEY

On top of Old Smokey, all covered with snow,

While I was a walkin’, the wind it did blow.

It blew off the branches and leaves it did shred,

And the next thing I knew was it blew off my head.

I then tried to catch it, which wasn’t too wise.

‘Cause it’s real hard to run when you don’t have your eyes.

So take my advise boys, for one this I know.

Stay off of Old Smokey, when the wind starts to blow!

BUG JUICE – sung to ‘On Top of Old Smoky’

At camp with the Cub Scouts,

They gave us a drink,

We thought it was Kool-Aid

Because it was pink.

But the drink that they gave us

Would have grossed out a moose.

For the good tasting pink drink

Was really bug juice.

It looks fresh and fruity

Like tasty Kool-Aid.

But the bugs that are in it

Were murdered with Raid.

We drank by the gallons

We drank by the tons

But then the next morning

We all had the runs.

Next time you drink bug juice

And a fly drives you mad.

He’s just getting even

‘Cause you swallowed his Dad.

GOD BLESS MY UNDERWEAR – sung to ‘God Bless America’

God Bless my underwear, my only pair.

Stand beside them and guide them

As they sit in a heap by the chair.

From the washer, to the clothesline,

To my camp pack, to my rear!

God Bless my underwear, my only pair.

God Bless my underwear or I’ll go bare!

AKELA’S PACK – sung to ‘Working on the Railroad’

We’re a Pack of happy Cub Scouts

Wolf, Bear and Webelos.

We’ll eventually be Boy Scouts,

As everybody knows.

Don’t you want to come and join us?

Be with all the rest?

Don’t you want to be a Cub Scout?

Come and DO YOUR BEST!

MAKE NEW FRIENDS - this can be sung as a round

Make new friend, but keep the old.

One is silver and the other’s gold.

A circle’s round, it has no end.

That’s how long I want to be your friend.

JAWS – sung to ‘Do Re Mi’

JAWS, a mouth, a great big mouth

TEETH, the things that kinda crunch

BITE the friendly shark’s ‘hello’

US his favorite juicy lunch

CHOMP that means the shark’s been fed

GULP teeth in a double row

BLOOD that turns the ocean red

Please don’t get caught in the

JAWS! JAWS! JAWS! JAWS!

ROLLING OVER THE RIVER

Its cheese, its cheese, its cheese that makes the world go round.

Its cheese, its cheese, its cheese that makes the world go round.

Its cheese, its cheese, its cheese that makes the world go round.

Its cheese that makes the mice go round!

CHORUS

Rolling over the river, rolling over the sea.

Rolling over the river and the deep blue sea, hey!

Rolling over the river, rolling over the sea.

Rolling over the river and the deep blue sea.

Additional verses: sing each of these verses changing mice for cheese and cats for world, cats for mice and dogs for cats and so on. Sing the chorus after each verse.

Its mice, its mice, its mice that make the cats go round.

Its cats, its cats, its cats that make the dogs go round.

Its dogs, its dogs, its dogs that make the boys go round.

Its boys, its boys, its boys that make the scouts go round.

Its scouts, its scouts, its scouts that make the world go round.

HOLE IN THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA

There’s a hole in the bottom of the sea.

There’s a hole in the bottom of the sea.

There’s a hole, there’s a hole,

There’s a hole in the bottom of the sea.

There’s a log in the hole in the bottom of the sea.

There’s a log in the hole in the bottom of the sea.

There’s a hole, there’s a hole,

There’s a hole in the bottom of the sea.

Continue by adding each of the following at the beginning of the verse:

There’s a bump on the log…..

There’s a frog on the bump on the log…..

There’s a leg on the frog on the bump on the log….

There’s a foot on the leg……

There’s a toe on the foot……

There’s a wart on the toe……

There’s a hair on the wart…..

There’s a flea on the hair…..

There’s a mite on the flea…..

There’s a smile on the mite……

ALL WE ET – sung to ‘Alouette’

CHORUS

All we et, uh, think of all we et, uh.

All we et, uh, think of all we et!

Think of all the ham we et, think of all the ham we et.

Ham we et, ham we et, not done yet, not done yet,

Oh, oh, oh ,oh……

CHORUS

Change ‘ham’ to one of the following or make up your own

Think of all the bread we et ...

Think of all the fish we et ...

Think of all the pie we et ...

Think of all the beans we et ...

Think of all the Tums we et ...

SWIMMING, SWIMMING – sung to ‘Sailing, Sailing’

Swimming, swimming, in my swimming pool (use arms for swimming motion)

When days are hot (wipe back of hand across forehead),

When days are cold (wrap arms around body),

In my swimming pool (use both index fingers to draw a rectangle to represent the pools shape)

Breast stroke (use arms to perform breast stroke),

Side stroke (use arms to one side to perform side stroke),

Fancy diving too (put arms together and move to perform a dive),

Don't you wish you had nothing else to do, but (repeat song using arm motions but hum through the first line, then repeat song and hum through first and second line, continue until you are humming through the whole song while performing arm motions)

WORKING ON THE RAILROAD

I've been working on the railroad, all the live long day.

I've been working on the railroad, just to pass the time away.

Can't you hear the whistle blowing; rise up so early in the morn.

Can't you hear the captain shouting, Dinah, blow your horn.

Dinah, won't you blow, Dinah, won't you blow,

Dinah, won't you blow your horn?

Dinah, won't you blow, Dinah, won't you blow,

Dinah, won't you blow your horn?

Someone’s in the kitchen with Dinah,

Someone’s in the kitchen, I know.

Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah,

Strummin' on the old banjo, and singing;

Fee, fie, fiddlee-eye-oh, fee, fie, fiddlee-eye oh-oh-oh-oh

Fee, fie, fiddlee-eye-oh, strummin' on the old banjo!

THE ANIMAL FAIR

I went to the animal fair, the birds and the beasts were there.

The big baboon by the light of the moon, was combing his auburn hair.

The monkey, he got drunk, and stepped on the elephant's trunk.

The elephant sneezed, and fell to his knees,

And that was the end of the monk, the monk, the monk, the monk...

FOR HE'S A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW

For he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow,

For he's a jolly good fellow, which nobody can deny.

Which nobody can deny, which nobody can deny.

For he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow,

For he's a jolly good fellow, which nobody can deny.

We won't go home until morning, we won't go home until morning,

We won't go home until morning, till daylight does appear.

Till daylight does appear, till daylight does appear,

We won't go home until morning, we won't go home until morning,

We won't go home until morning, till daylight does appear.

KOOKABURRA

Kookaburra sits in an old gum tree

Merry, merry king of the bush is he.