Step 1: Welcome to the Wild West
2 minutes
Introduce the cowgirl, horses and mountain adventure. Ask children what they might see on a journey through the Wild West. Invite them to imagine holding the reins and getting ready to ride.
She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain
Join the cowgirl on a Wild West adventure as she rides around the mountain with six white horses! Children sing, clap, stomp, pretend to ride and greet friends, while exploring counting, patterns, matching and early writing through a themed printable activity.
Learning objectives
- Join in with repeated song lyrics and rhythmic phrases.
- Practise listening and responding to action cues such as clap, stomp, wave and ride.
- Develop gross motor coordination through simple movements.
- Count objects and recognise quantities, including six white horses.
- Develop visual discrimination by matching pictures, sounds, actions and patterns.
- Strengthen fine-motor control through tracing, drawing and colouring.
- Use imagination to take part in a pretend Wild West adventure.
What you'll need
- She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain video
- She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain Activity Pack
- Crayons or colouring pencils
- Pencils for tracing, counting and drawing
Watch and sing
Watch the song together, then follow the activities below.
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Lesson activities
Step 2: Sing, Clap and Stomp
4 minutes
Play the video and encourage children to join in with the repeated lyrics and 'aye aye yippee yippee aye' refrain. Follow the actions by clapping hands, stomping feet, pretending to ride, waving to greet friends and shouting 'Yee-haw!' together. Children can join in with whichever actions feel comfortable.
Step 3: Count the Horses and Meet the Friends
3 minutes
Pause after the song or revisit the relevant scenes. Count the six white horses together, pointing to each horse as you count. Talk about the friends who come out to greet the cowgirl, and count them together using the activity pack's counting prompt.
Step 4: Explore the Activity Pack
4 minutes
Choose one suitable activity from the pack. Children could trace the letter M and mountain peaks, follow the winding road, match song characters to sounds and actions, find hidden cowboy hats and pajamas, or continue a repeating picture pattern. Adapt the task to each child's age and ability.
Step 5: Yee-haw! Movement Recap
2 minutes
Finish with a short action recap. Call out 'clap', 'stomp', 'ride' or 'wave' and let children respond with the matching movement. Ask what they remember about the horses and the cowgirl, then celebrate with a final group 'Yee-haw!'
Questions to ask
- How many white horses are pulling the wagon?
- What can we do when we hear 'clap clap, stomp stomp'?
- What do the friends say when the cowgirl arrives?
- Can you remember what the cowgirl wears in one of the verses?
- Which sound or action did you enjoy joining in with most?
Finish together
Children have explored rhythm, repeated lyrics and movement through a lively Wild West sing-along. Counting the horses and greeting friends supported early number skills, while the printable activities offered opportunities to practise matching, pattern recognition, tracing and drawing.
Free printable activity pack
Continue the lesson with the matching activity sheets.
Download activity pack (pdf) Explore all activity packs