How To Teach Super Simple Songs

How To Teach Pat-A-Cake

Join Caitie and learn how to teach the “Pat-A-Cake” song (also known as Patty Cake) from Super Simple Songs! Watch Caitie as she shares some of her activity ideas on how to teach this playful song from Super Simple Songs. This song is perfect for ESL, EFL, preschool, and kindergarten classes!

Try some of these ideas in the classroom or at home!

  • Use this song to explore sweets when teaching a food theme.
  • This is a great song to help celebrate a birthday. Sing the song using the birthday child’s name! Tell them it’s a special birthday cake then pretend to blow out the candles.
  • You can use any name when you are singing this song to spell any word! Pick a word to spell and make the cakes, marking them with the different letters to spell the word. You can use your student’s names to mark each cake. For an added challenge, pause before you say the name and have your students jump in with someone’s name that starts with the correct letter. For example, ‘roll it, and pat it, and mark it with an M…’ Whose name starts with M? Margret! Yes, Marget’s name starts with the letter M! ‘Put it in the oven for Margret and me!’
  • Use our ABC flashcards to place the letters on the board as you sing the song, then ask your students what word it spells. For older students, have them write down the letters on a piece of paper to find out what word it spells.
  • This song also has great clapping movements you can do on your own or with a partner. Students can sing the song using their own names as they do the clapping gestures.
  • Bring out some play bowls and spoons and pretend to make a cake! Ask your students what ingredients belong in the cake. They can watch the video for some clues, or you can ask them about specific ingredients. Try being silly and suggesting wrong ingredients, like broccoli, for some giggles.
  • Try making a cake craft, or drawing! Each student can mark their cake with the first letter of their name. Then use all of the class’s cakes to spell different words!

More resources for this song (1)