American Folk Song · Elementary Music · Grades K–6
Full lyrics, longways set folk dance, improvisation on barred instruments, and a complete teaching guide for this beloved American folk song. Do-based pentatonic, low sol, and phrase — all in one song.
Complete lyrics
About this song
Alabama Gal is an American folk song with a rich set of musical teaching possibilities packed into a short, memorable melody. It's entirely do-based pentatonic, which makes it an ideal vehicle for teaching that scale — and for introducing low sol, approached from low la. The rhythms (eighth, quarter, eighth) and the clear phrase structure make it excellent for musical analysis at every level from K–6.
For grades K–2, children enjoy learning the song from the poster and performing the skipping and dance activities. The longways set dance format — two lines of kids facing each other — is a classic American social dance tradition that students find immediately engaging. The bunny animations help younger students visualize and follow the movements.
For grades 2–6, the song opens into a rich improvisation activity on barred instruments. Set up barred instruments in F pentatonic and have one student improvise a melody on the pentatonic scale for 8 bars while the class sings. The class then sings the second verse while the student continues playing. This pattern continues until all children have had a turn to improvise — a beautiful way to build musical confidence and creativity alongside song knowledge.
Teaching guide
Alabama Gal has three distinct teaching layers depending on grade level — the skipping and glockenspiel activities for K–2, the intermediate longways set dance for grades 2–4, and the improvisation activity on barred instruments for grades 2–6. Each layer builds on the one before it, and the same song carries real musical weight at every grade.
Deborah's full teaching video walks you through all three layers, step by step. You'll see the exact glockenspiel setup, how the longways set unfolds verse by verse, and how the improvisation activity is structured so that even the most reluctant soloist ends up proud of what they played.
Start Your Free Trial7-day free trial · Cancel anytime
By grade level
Learn the song from the poster, use the bunny animations for the skipping game, and introduce glockenspiels with the simplified longways set. Focus on phrase awareness and the do-based pentatonic melody.
Introduce the full intermediate longways set dance (sashay, swing arms, peel the banana, arch). Begin the improvisation activity on barred instruments in F pentatonic — one student solos while the class accompanies.
Tackle the advanced longways set version (requires four couples). Analyze low sol, phrase structure, and the repeat sign. Use two-color pinnies to manage the longways set formation. Deep improvisation rounds with the full class.
More songs for elementary music
Each of these songs includes a complete teaching guide and step-by-step video demonstration inside The Singing Classroom.
Full lyrics, partner clapping game, and a complete teaching guide for this Irish folk song — great for do-based pentatonic and low sol.
See teaching guide →Lyrics, what the words mean, and how to teach the full clapping pattern step by step.
See teaching guide →Full lyrics and how to use this counting out chant to teach tiri-ti and ti-ri — one of the easiest and most effective chants in the repertoire.
See teaching guide →Common questions
Alabama Gal is listed for K–6th grade. For K–2, the focus is on learning the song from the poster and the skipping activity with glockenspiels in a longways set. For grades 2–6, the intermediate and advanced longways set dances and the improvisation activity on barred instruments provide rich musical work that challenges older students.
A longways set is a folk dance formation where two lines of dancers face each other. It's a classic American social dance format — the same used in contra dancing and many traditional New England dances. For Alabama Gal, the intermediate version works well with a large group, while the advanced version requires at least four couples. Two colors of pinnies (like those used in PE) are great for separating the two groups into distinct lines.
The improvisation activity uses barred instruments set up in a specific pentatonic scale. Students solo in turn over a class accompaniment. The full setup — which scale, how many bars, how to manage the rotation, and what to do when the accompaniment is too loud — is all demonstrated in the teaching video.
The main materials are the poster (downloadable from The Singing Classroom — watch the video for tips on putting posters together) and, optionally, glockenspiels. The printable resources include a score, a score for improvisation, a one-page poster, and a nine-page poster. Glockenspiels are needed for Activities 2 and 3 — the improvisation activity requires barred instruments set up in F pentatonic.
The real problem
Every teacher knows this feeling. You find a song, try it on Monday, and something goes sideways — the kids don't engage, you're not sure how to introduce it, the lesson loses momentum. It's not that the song was wrong. You just didn't have a clear picture of how it actually goes.
That's what makes The Singing Classroom different. Every song in the library, including this one, is demonstrated on video, either by Deborah walking you through how to teach it or by the bunnies animation of the game, and many songs have both. You don't have to guess how to introduce it, how to structure the activity, or how to handle the tricky moments. You watch it. Then you teach it.
150+ songs. Every one demonstrated. No more hoping it works — you already know it will.
Start a 7-day free trial to access 150+ folk songs and singing games for elementary music.
7-day free trial · Cancel anytime