Peaceful Playgrounds has taken the time honored military tradition of cadence calling and turned it into a fun way to instill fitness with younger kids by creating kid friendly cadences with their Songs in Motion Fun Cadences for Running CD.  This single CD disk in jewel case consists of eleven songs that feature adults in the position of the caller while a group of children fill the roll of the responses.   Printed lyrics to each of the eleven cadences are included on the CD insert.

If your unfamiliar with cadences, they are type of song chanted while marching in a group that help keep the group in step with each other as well as on the same pace.  They are typically done in a call and response format; a leader starts by saying one line and the rest of the group responds with a response line. They can be used when marching or walking at a normal pace or when the group is jogging. 

Being that we are a military family, fitness is a priority here, both for military members as well as the members of their families.  It’s not unusual to see parents jogging with a jogging stroller or heading to the gym to get a workout in.  Many parents on base bring their kids to the gym with them to start working on establishing healthy fitness habits early on.   And when the various units are out on group runs, the base kids often here them chanting cadences as they make their way down the road. 

Many of the cadences found on this CD are very similar to each other both in rhythm and lyrics, making it easier for kids to learn the responses. Those familiar with cadences will recognize standards such as Everywhere I Go, Engineer, Engineer Running Down the Road, and When My Granny was 91, although lyrics have been sanitized for children and are centered around running, studying hard in school and general overall fitness.  The children who fill the rolls of the responders in each of the cadences will appeal to younger children, but older children may find it a bit nerve-grinding to listen to multiple times.

My kids got a real kick out of learning these cadences (many which their Dad marched to in Basic Training) and marching and jogging while reciting them.  Their favorite is Everywhere I Go, although the kids did change the lyrics from “We are the fit kids” to “We are the Prince kids.”  Since their Dad already knew many of the cadences, he was able to fill in as an efficient “caller,” although I did have to give him the lyric sheet so that he did the “Songs in Motion” version and not what he learned.

The CD has been a fun activity for the kids to include in our homeschool fitness program.Songs in Motion Fun Cadences for Running is produced by Melinda Bossenmyer, Ed.D  and the lyrics are written by Bossenmyer and Ken Owens.

-Product review by Brenda Prince, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, May, 2018