Ten Little Turkeys

I've been trying to hold off posting my Thanksgiving-themed songs, but I can no longer resist! My students and I have been singing about Turkey Day for a week now, and I know that lots of teachers and music therapists out there are probably looking for such songs right about now. So the first song I'll share with you is called "Ten Little Turkeys." I found the lyrics over at Preschool Education, though I made a few tweaks, and I set them to my own original melody.



Ten little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey ran away in a line,
And when he was gone, there were nine.

Nine little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey flew out of the gate,
And when he was gone, there were eight.

Eight little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey flew up towards heaven,
And when he was gone, there were seven.

Seven little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey hid with the chicks,
And when he was gone, there were six.

Six little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey took a dive,
And when he was gone, there were five.

Five little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey hopped out of the door,
And when he was gone, there were four.

Four little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey climbed a tree,
And when he was gone, there were three.

Three little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey flapped his wings and flew,
And when he was gone, there were two.

Two little turkeys sat in their pen,
"Hide, turkeys, hide!" said the little red hen.
One little turkey sped off in a run,
And when he was gone, there was one.

One little turkey sat in his pen,
"Hide, turkey, hide!" said the little red hen.
The last little turkey flew up towards the sun,
And when he was gone, there were none!

I like to pause at the end of each verse and let the kids fill in the number - they love to keep track of how many turkeys are left and show me using their fingers. Stay tuned for several more turkey songs before the month is over!