5 Shiny Conkers : Autumn Songs

5 Shiny Conkers is the last in our Autumn Songs series, and also my own favourite!

In many ways conkers are the jewel in Autumn’s crown. As if the rich carpet of fiery leaves aren’t enough. Nature surprises us with her shiny brown conkers which are cunningly disguised by their green spiky shells.

In America I think they’re just known as chestnuts, but in England conkers have a special place in our affections. If you describe something as conker brown, everyone knows not only the exact shade, but also the texture and patina.

Five Shiny Conkers: Autumn Songs

Five shiny conkers on a  conker tree,

Beautiful and brown, don’t you all agree?

Along came the wind,

And down one fell,

And a squirrel came to find it in it’s green spiky shell.

(repeat verse counting down until they have all gone)

To sing this song you will need 5 shiny conkers, so a conker collecting expedition is required! Arrange your conkers on the edge of a table, so that as you flick them they will fall to the floor. This song works well with a squirrel puppet, who cheekily pops out and helps himself to the conkers one by one until they are all gone.

In the absence of a puppet, you can substitute a child’s name each time, and they can take turns to collect them as they fall down. This is great for counting practice and teaching the concept of subtraction, by counting down from 5 -0.

If you have plenty of conkers, you can thread them with a sharp, thick needle onto long strings, and make caterpillars and snakes or necklaces. Older children can use the conkers for more advanced counting by arranging them into groups of numbers to introduce times tables.

Print 5 shiny conker sheet music here.

Check out our Autumn Lesson Plan for lots more seasonal and musical activities combined into a structured 30 min lesson.