Little Words

Chant K and G sounds (back of the mouth)

Cat and Goat

Move the back of the tongue up for /k/ and /g/ instead of fronting them.

9 lines7 turns for your child92 beats a minute4 tappable picture words

All the words

Print this, or read it yourself. The blank lines are the point: that is where you stop and wait.

  1. Buddy saysThese sounds live way at the back. Feel them with me!
  2. Buddy chantsKuh. Kuh. Cat says kuh.
  3. your childSay cat — four beats of quiet
  4. Buddy chantsGuh. Guh. Goat says guh.
  5. your childSay goat — four beats of quiet
  6. Buddy chantsKuh. Kuh. Cat says kuh.
  7. your childYour turn — four beats of quiet
  8. Buddy chantsKey. Key. A tiny key, kuh.
  9. your childSay key — four beats of quiet
  10. Buddy chantsGuh. Guh. Goat says guh.
  11. your childYour turn — four beats of quiet
  12. Buddy chantsGate. Gate. Open the gate, guh.
  13. your childSay gate — four beats of quiet
  14. Buddy chantsKuh and guh. Cat and goat.
  15. your childOne more time — four beats of quiet
  16. Buddy saysYou found the sounds at the back. That is tricky and you did it!

Why a chant and not a song

Buddy’s voice here is her real recorded voice — the same one she uses everywhere else in Little Words. She chants rather than sings, on a steady beat, over a music-box tune. That is a deliberate choice: a rhythmic, slowed, highly predictable pattern is what lets a child anticipate what is coming and arrive on it, and a synthetic singing voice would have cost us the one thing that makes Buddy feel like a friend.

This one works on K/G. Move the back of the tongue up for /k/ and /g/ instead of fronting them.

  • The gap is the work. Buddy chants a line, then stops for four beats. In “Buddy and me” that gap stays silent — no filler, no rush — so the turn genuinely belongs to your child.
  • Repetition is the feature. Repeat is on by default. Most children need many passes before they join in, and the second or third time round is usually when it happens.
  • Slower on request. The turtle button drops the tempo and swaps in a bed recorded at that slower tempo, so the beat is still a real beat to move to.
  • Nothing is marked right or wrong. Buddy reacts warmly to anything she hears and says nothing at all about a quiet turn. Listening is taking part.