Challenger Phonics Fun Music

Lyrics for the Challenger CD (ISBN 1-57812-053-5)
Copyright © 2000, the Learning Crew

1.  The Challenger Way
2.  Challenger Alphabet Song
3.  Alligator or Crocodile
4.  Sissy Snake
5.  What is orange?
6.  Action packed
7.  Five Power Letters
8.  Blending Polka
9.  One-Vowel Family Ride
10. Ba Be Bi Bo Bu
11. Vowel Mystery
12. Two-Vowel Rag
13. Dear Mr. Martian
14. The Alphabet Tap-in-Time
15. Challenger One-Vowel Song
16. Challenger Two-Vowel Song
17. Irregular Vowel Families Song
18. Bric and Brac
19. Hook and Loop, the double-o spooks!
20. So Hello!
21. AttenTION!
22. O-U-G-H!
23. Y at the End
24. Irregular Vowel Chant


1. The Challenger Way

Everyday is a happier day,
When we're learning The Challenger Way.
Finding adventure wherever we go,
It's the way to have fun while we grow!

Give me some time, I can do it !
Soon I will find there is nothing to it.
Give me a problem, I'll figure it out.
Doing my best is what I'm about.

So,
What do you think that I really can do?
It's whatever I set my mind to.
Something exciting to see everyday,
Laughing and living and learning
The Challenger Way!

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2. Challenger Alphabet Song

What does the A say?     a and a
What does the B say?     buh buh buh
What does the C say?     c c c
What does the D say?     duh duh duh
What does the E say?     e and e
What does the F say?     fff
What does the G say?     guh guh guh
What does the H say?     h h h
What does the I say?     i and i
What does the J say?     juh juh juh
What does the K say?     k k k
What does the L say?     lll
What does the M say?     mmm
What does the N say?     nnn
What does the O say?     o and o
What does the P say?     p p p
What does the Q say?     quh quh quh
What does the R say?     ruh ruh ruh
What does the S say?     s s s
What does the T say?     t t t
What does the U say?     u and u
What does the V say?     v v v
What does the W say?     wuh wuh wuh
What does the X say?     xs xs xs
What does the Y say?     yuh yuh yuh
What does the Z say?     zzz
What do we call these phonemes and sounds?
English Alphabet Letters.
Yeah!

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3. Alligator or Crocodile

Alligator, crocodile,
Can you tell the difference between the two?
Alligator, crocodile,
Listen as we name a few for you.

Some crocodiles like to swim in salty water,
While the alligators like fresh water.
The crocodile's teeth stick out on either side,
While the alligator's teeth are inside.
The crocodile's nose is long and rather skinny,
While the alligator's nose is stubby.

Ooh . . . Alligator, crocodile,
When you take a trip to the hometown zoo,
Alligator, crocodile,
You will know the difference between the two.

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4. Sissy Snake

Sss ... ! Sss... !

Sissy Snake,
Sissy Snake,
Slithering, slippery
Sissy Snake,

Sissy Snake,
She hisses and slides,
Just like letter S.

Sssssss...
Sssssss...
Says Sissy Snake.
Ssss!

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5. What is orange?

What is red?
A cherry is red.

What is yellow?
The sun.

What is blue?
The sky is blue.

What is green?
The grass.

What is brown?
Chocolate cake is brown.

What is purple?
A plum.

What is black?
A bat is black.

What is white?
The moon.

What is orange?
Only an orange,
Just an orange orange!

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6. Action packed

I stand up straight and tall,
And stretch my arms up, too.

Hands on my waist,
And then my knees,
Bend down to my shoes.

Now I am a rocket ship,
I shoot up to the sky.

Now I'm marching, marching,
1, 2, 3, 4! Then I turn around!

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7. Five Power Letters

One day as I was reading,
   with letters and their sounds,
Five of them jumped out at me,
   and began to dance around.

"We are the Five Power Letters!
A-E-I-O-U!
We say, not one, but two sounds,
   long and short for you!"

I said, "I have a problem.
In a syllable or word,
A-E-I-O-U! a-e-i-o-u,
which sound should be heard?"

"When there's only one vowel
   in a syllable or word,
We usually say the short sound,
a-e-i-o-u ... as in
cat     pen     kiss     fox     hug!

In little words with two vowels,
   the first vowel says its name.
Its name is called 'the long sound,'
   and you say it just the same . . . as in
cake     seal     bike     boat     flute!

The second vowel helps the first to speak.
It cannot make one peep.
The second vowel helps the first to say its name,
   and then it falls asleep!

We are the Five Power Letters,
A-E-I-O-U!
We say, not one, but two sounds.
   long and short for you.

We are the Five Power Letters!
A-E-I-O-U!
That's A-a, E-e, I-i, O-o, U... uh!"

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8. Blending Polka

Just... take a little vowel like a.
Add a consonant like m.
Blend them both together and ...
what do they say?
am, am, a-m says "am!"
Am! am! Let's make a word.

Just... take a syllable like am.
Add a consonant like s.
Blend them both together and ...
what do they say?
Sam, Sam, S-a-m says "Sam!"
Sam! Sam! Do it again!

Just... take a little vowel like e.
Add a consonant like t.
Blend them both together and ...
what do they say?
et, et, e-t says "et!"
Et! et! Let's make a word.

Just... take a syllable like et.
Add a consonant like j.
Blend them both together and ...
what do they say?
Jet, jet, j-e-t says "jet!"
Jet! jet! Read with "the Blending Polka!"

[ sing with other words ]

Just... take a little vowel like i. 
Add a consonant like n.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
In, in, i-n says "in!"
In! in! Let's make a word.

Just... take a syllable like in. 
Add a consonant like p.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
Pin, pin, p-i-n says "pin!"
Pin! pin! Do it again!

Just... take a little vowel like a. 
Add a consonant like t.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
At, at, a-t says "at!"
At! at! Let's make a word.

Just... take a syllable like at. 
Add a consonant like c.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
Cat, cat, c-a-t says "cat!"
Cat! cat! Do it again!

Just... take a little vowel like o. 
Add a consonant like p.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
op, op, o-p says "op!"
op! op! Let's make a word.

Just... take a syllable like op. 
Add a consonant like h.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
hop, hop, h-o-p says "hop!"
hop! hop! Do it again!

Just... take a little vowel like u. 
Add a consonant like n.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
un, un, u-u says "un!"
un! un! Let's make a word.

Just... take a syllable like un. 
Add a consonant like s.
Blend them both together and ... 
what do they say?
sun, sun, h-o-p says "sun!"
sun! sun! Read with "the Blending Polka!"

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9. One-Vowel Family Ride

Yip-ee-ki-yay! Yip-ee-ki-yo!
As I ride around the country,
I take my one-vowel family along,
and I sing the one-vowel song.

ab   ack   ad   af   ag   al   am...
an   ap   as   at   av   ax   az!

eb   eck   ed   ef   eg   el   em...
en   ep   es   et   ev   ex   ez!

ib   ick   id   if   ig   il   im...
in   ip   is   it   iv   ix   iz!

...

ob   ock   od   of   og   ol   om...
on   op   os   ot   ov   ox   oz!

ub   uck   ud   uf   ug   ul   um...
un   up   us   ut   uv   ux   uz!

One-Vowel Family Ride!

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10. Ba Be Bi Bo Bu

Ba   be   bi   bo   bu
Ta   te   ti   to   tu
With the ba   be   bi   bo   bu,
We can read with speed!

ba   be   bi   bo   bu
ca   ke   ki   co   cu
da   de   di   do   du
fa   fe   fi   fo   fu

ga   ge   gi   go   gu
ha   he   hi   ho   hu
ja   je   ji   jo   ju
la   le   li   lo   lu

ma   me   mi   mo   mu
na   ne   ni   no   nu
pa   pe   pi   po   pu
ra   re   ri   ro   ru

sa   se   si   so   su
ta   te   ti   to   tu
va   ve   vi   vo   vu
wa   we   wi   wo   wu

bad   bed   bid   bod   bud
cat   ket   kit   cot   cut
daf   def   dif   dof   duf
fan   fen   fin   fon   fun!

gap   gep   gip   gop   gup
hag   heg   hig   hog   hug
jan   jen   jin   jon   jun
lam   lem   lim   lom   lum!

mat   met   mit   mot   mut
nab   neb   nib   nob   nub
paf   pef   pif   pof   puf
rab   reb   rib   rob   rub!

sal   sel   sil   sol   sul
tap   tep   tip   tap   tup
van   ven   vin   von   vun
wat   wet   wit   wot   wut!

With zam   zem   zim   zom   zun
We'll read with speed!

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11. Vowel Mystery

There's a mystery
In every syllable and word.
Find and name the vowels,
That's the clue --
Which can be heard?

Count the power vowels,
To see if there are two.
Just follow the rules and
we'll know what to do!

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12. Two-Vowel Rag

If you want to be a reader,
'cause you know it makes a leader,
Come along with me and my two-vowel family!

abe   ace   ade   afe
ake   ale   ame   ane
ape   ate   ave
That's a two-vowel family!

ebe   ece   ede   eef
eek   eel   eme   ene
eep   eet   eve
That's a two-vowel family!

ibe   ice   ide   ife
ike   ile   ime   ine
ipe   ite   ive
That's a two-vowel family!

obe   oce   ode   oaf
oke   ole   ome   one
oap   oat   ove
That's a two-vowel family!

ube   uce   ude   ufe
uke   ule   ume   une
upe   ute   uve
That's a two-vowel family!

That's a two-vowel, that's a two-vowel,
That's a two-vowel family!

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13. Dear Mr. Martian

Dear Mr. Martian,
I'm writing this to you.
I hope that you will write me back
And tell me what you do,
Up there in Mars.

Now, so you'll find my home,
I'll send you my address.
I'll put it on the envelope.
Professor said that would be best.

I live in a house, on a street,
In a neighborhood, in a city,
In a county, in a state,
In a country, on a continent.
But you need to know more, wait.

My city is _________.
My county is _________.
My state is called ________.

If you were an earthling,
That's all you'd need to know.
But because you're a Martian,
You need more information.
So listen 'cause we have some more to go.

I live in ________ (country),
A grand and noble country,
On the continent of _________,
On the planet Earth.

Now, Mr. Martian,
That's all you need to know,
For your letter to find its way to me.
Please write me soon,
And tell me lots of news.
I'll be waiting anxiously.

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14. The Alphabet Tap-in-Time

A says a and a
B says buh
C says c
D says duh
E says e and e
F says fff
G says guh
H says hhh
I says i and i
J says juh
K says k
L says lll
M says mmm
N says nnn
O says o and o
P says p
Q says quh
R says ruh
S says sss
T says t
U says u and u
V says vvv
W says wuh
X says xs
Y says yuh
Z says zzz

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15. Challenger One-Vowel Song

When there's one vowel
in a word or syllable,
the vowel is usually short!
(repeat)

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16. Challenger Two-Vowel Song

When two vowels go walking,
the first one does the talking.
It makes a sound just like its name.
The second one goes to sleep.
(repeat)
Good-night!

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17. Irregular Vowel Families Song

I-G-H   igh!
high   light   night   sight

I-N-G   ing!
king   ring   spring   wing-ding

I-N-D   ind!
find   kind   mind   behind

I-L-D   ild!
mild   or   wild child

A-R   ar!
car   far   star

O-R   or!
born   for   corn

O-I   oi!
moist   oil   boil

O-Y   oy!
boy   toy   joy

A-L-T   alt!
halt   malt   salt   waltz

A-L-K   alk!
chalk   talk   walk

O-S-T   ost!
most   post   almost

O-L-D   old!
cold   sold   gold

E-R   er!
her   jerk   clerk

I-R   ir!
bird   first   girl

U-R   ur!
purple   turkey   nurse

E-W   ew!
few   new   mew

S-I-O-N   sion!
passion   mission   decision

T-I-O-N   tion!
fiction   auction   direction

E-I-G-H   eigh!
freight   weight   eight

A-L-L   all!
tall   mall   ball   wall   fall

O-W   ow!
blow   low   slow

O-W   ow!
How   now   brown   cow?

O-U   ou!
shout   out   loud

A-Y   ay!
may   play   day

O-U-S   ous!
nervous   famous   gorgeous

E-D   says   "ed!"
patted   landed   lifted

E-D   says   "t!"
walked   hopped   skipped   stopped

E-D   says   "d!"
played   chewed   cried   hugged

A-W   aw!
hawk   saw   paw

A-U   au!
taught   fault   haul

O-O   oo!
zoo   boo   hoo

O-O   oo!
look at a book

Irregular vowels,
Exceptions to the rules.
Aren't they jewels?
Irregular vowels.

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18. Bric and Brac

Bric and Brac, green and blue
Out for an adventure.

They clippety climb with
Creepy, crawly crab,
And meet a dreadful dragon.

Unafraid, Bric and Brac
Flip and fly to safety.

Frowny frog caught in globby glue --
A very grouchy Grump!

"Bric and Brac,
Please play with me,"
Says Prissy Prickly Prune.

They slip and slide with Sneezy Snake
And very scary scorpion.

Quiet Queen with Bric and Brac --
Sparkle and spin when spring has sprung.

Swiftly swing on a striped string,
As they climb the skinny skyscraper.

Two consonants,
Together, Bric and Brac,
Blending their adventure!

Twisty, twirly, tricky trip --
They streak to a screechy stop!

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19. Hook and Loop, the double-o spooks!

We're Hook and Loop,
The double - O spooks,
We're here to give you the scoop.

Double O says "oo" and "oo"
Two O's together say "oo" --
Two O's together say "oo."

Noodle,   poodle,   boost   and   roost;
Toot,   boot,   bloom   and   broom.

Moon,   spoon,   soon,   balloon.
Tool,   school,   room   and   BOOM!

Our favorite game is Looby -Loo;
Our favorite word is BOO!

We're Hook and Loop,
The double - O spooks,
We're here to give you a look.

Double O says "oo" and "oo"
Two O's together say "oo" --
Two O's together say "oo."

Cookie,   rookie,   brook   and   crook.
Hook,   took,   nook,   and   cook.
Rook,   shook,   look at a book.

Two O's say "oo,"
But most say "oo."
It's been a hoot,
But we must scoot.

Toodle - OO.
BOO!

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20. So Hello!

When there's a one-vowel
Syllable or word,
And the vowel is on the end,
That vowel is usually long,
Usually long, usually long.

Words like me,   he,
She,   we,   be   --
No,   go,   so,
Hi,   ho,   hello!

Dinosaur,   duplicate,
Siren,   fable   and   hibernate!

Remember this rule,
And you'll never go wrong!
Never go wrong!

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21. AttenTION!

When I see a "shun"
at the end of a word ...
T-I-O-N!
S-I-O-N!

Give me those "shun" words,
as in "attention"
T-I-O-N!
T-I-O-N!

Did I ever mention
The calculation question?
Multiplication, addition, subtraction,

For an education,
It takes action and exertion.
But, I can tell you it is fun.

When I see a "shun"
at the end of a word ...
S-I-O-N!
S-I-O-N!

Give me those "shun" words,
as in "television"
S-I-O-N!
S-I-O-N!

Do you want admission
To see the collision?
Then the explosion brings
Confusion and division!

In conclusion, remember this expression,
"Pay them attention!"
T-I-O-N! and S-I-O-N!

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22. O-U-G-H!

O-U-G-H! m-m-m...
O-U-G-H! m-m-m...
You can say O-U-G-H in six different ways.

Although, my friend, we've never fought,
you said you had the horse I sought;
to meet me in Poughkeepsie
and you'd sell him to me.

I bought the horse that you brought,
because I thought that I ought.
I met you at the trough;
At the price I had to cough.
Although a lot, I paid the dough.

I chased my horse to the slough.
I found him up on a tree bough.
Though I'm really tough,
My horse is just too rough.
I think, I think I've had enough.

O-U-G-H! m-m-m...
O-U-G-H! m-m-m...
O-U-G-H! m-m-m...
O-U-G-H! I'm through!

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23. Y at the End

When you have a one-syllable word,
And Y comes at the end
(there's no other vowel),

The Y says "i",
let's give it a try,
And see what words we can blend
(we can blend).

My - try to fly
(don't you cry),
A fox is sly, tell me why
(tell me why).

My - pry and ply
(that's my guy).
Buy to fry, by and by
(by and by).

When two or more syllables form a word,
And Y comes at the end
(at the end),

The Y says "e",
so try it with me,
And see what words we can blend
(we can blend).

Mommy's and daddy's
tiny, happy baby,
Creepy, crawly,
not weepy or sleepy.

Doggy and kitty
sing a silly ditty,
Merry, jazzy, and a
teeny bit noisy.

Y says "e" at the end.
That's Y at the end.

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24. Irregular Vowel Chant

I-G-H says   igh, as in sigh
I-N-G says   ing, as in king
I-N-D says   ind, behind
I-L-D says   ild, as in child
A-R says   ar, as in car
O-R says   or, this or that
O-I says   oi, as in oil
O-Y says   oy, as in boy
A-L-T says   alt, as in salt
A-L-K says   alk, as in walk
O-S-T says   ost, as in ghost
O-L-D says   old, as in gold
E-R says   er, as in jerk
I-R says   ir, as in girl
U-R says   ur, as in fur
E-W says   ew, as in chew
S-I-O-N   sion, explosion
T-I-O-N   tion, attention
E-I-G-H says   eigh, as in weigh
A-L-L says   all, as in ball
O-W says   ow, as in blow
O-W says   ow, as in cow
O-U says   ou, as in ouch
A-Y says   ay, hooray
O-U-S says   ous, as in gorgeous
E-D says   ed, patted
E-D says   t, clapped
E-D says   d, hugged
A-W says   aw, paw
A-U says   au, caught
O-O says   oo, boo hoo
O-O says   oo, as in shook

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Alphabet Chant

Apple, apple, a, a, A
Ball and bat, ball and bat, buh, buh, B
Kitty cat, kitty cat, c, c, C

Door knob, door knob, duh, duh, D
Eskimo, eskimo, e, e, E
Fishy, fishy, fff, F

Granny goat, granny goat, guh, guh, G
Happy hat, happy hat, h, h, H
Igloo, Igloo, i, i, I

Jellyfish, jellyfish, juh, juh, J
Kangaroo, kangaroo, k, k, K
Lollipop, lollipop, lll, L

Monkey, monkey, mmm, M
Nippy nose, nippy nose, nnn, N
Octopus, octopus, u, u, O

Pumpkin, pumpkin, p, p, P
Queen, queeny, quh, quh, Q
Rabbit, rabbit, ruh, ruh, R

Sissy Snake, Sissy Snake, sss, S
Telephone pole, telephone pole, t, t, T
Umpire, umpire, u, u, U

Valentin, valentine, vvv, V
Walrus, walrus, wuh, wuh, W
ks, ks, X marks the spot!

Yawny boy, yawny girl, yuh, yuh, Y
Zippery zipper, zippery zipper, zzz, Z!

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