A story and a song: musical stories for children

Send us Fan Mail On the teams epic recent trip to Australia Tanya and Pete were invited to Mintara in South Australia to tell stories for a grown up audience on the theme of community and the links we all share with those around us. This was one of the stories told... a well known traditional story called Soup from a stone, about a traveller who comes to a town and proceeds to cook soup with a sto...

Send us Fan Mail Tanya, Pete and Batt lamb have just got back from a month touring and performing in Australia.  They start off with a spring song to celebrate spring arriving here in New Zealand, and then tell an old English story about a girl Beth who stays up one night and meets a Faery. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or...

Send us Fan Mail It's the middle of winter in New Zealand and it's the best time to plants trees... Tanya and Pete have just planted thirty plus trees and wanted to celebrate the wonder of trees in the Batt Cave this week.  They start off with a song about trees in the garden, then they sing a traditional English tune used to Wassail (Celebrate) the apple trees that comes from the West C...

Send us Fan Mail Tanya and Pete share more Matariki songs about some of the stars in the Matariki Cluster and then tell a very poignant story from the Māori tradition about Tāwhirimātea, the God of te hau/ the wind and how Matariki came to be in the sky. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave story...

Send us Fan Mail Mānawatia a  Matariki. In the Batt cave today we are celebrating Matariki, the Māori new year. We start by sharing a fantastic Matariki waiata by our friends Loopy Tunes in Ōtautahi/Christchurch. The star cluster, Matariki is important to many different cultures all over the world and has many names. In English it's called the Pleiades, in Japan Subaru and in China Mao. We sh...

Send us Fan Mail For the third in our trio of fox stories ... this story comes from the Inuit and is about a woman who longs for and digs deep to find herself a child. A fox helps realise  her dream. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi.com/tanyabatt0027/tiers O...

Send us Fan Mail Tanya tells an energetic and fun version of this popular tale, about Chicken Licken who gets hit on the head by a falling acorn and thinks the sky is falling... then sets off to tell the King Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi.com/tanyabatt002...

Send us Fan Mail Tanya and Pete have dressed up to go to a party, and as Tanya is dressed as a fox , they have decided to tell a traditional English story about a certain Mr Fox and his sack.... I wonder what is in the sack?? Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi...

Send us Fan Mail This story (and catchy song) from the Batt Cave is from West Africa  and is all about Anansi....the trickster spider man.  Anansi was a very smart but troublesome god who was changed into a spider by his father Nyame for not giving up his mischievous ways, and there are many traditional stories about Anansi - this is one of them. Support the show You can find our audios and books...

Send us Fan Mail The Batt Cave kicks off tonight with a song about air and then Tanya and Pete share a  Gluscabi story that comes from the Abenaki first nations of America people. In this story Gluscabi's curiosity and frustration with the wind lead him to meet Wouchowsen, the mighty wind eagle where he learns that what often frustrates us, can also make us strong. Support the show You can fi...

Send us Fan Mail Another of the Batt Caves's harvest stories: Tanya tells a story from Russia about a farmer and his struggles to harvest a Giant Turnip from his land.  Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi.com/tanyabatt0027/tiers Or if you are an educator f...

Send us Fan Mail Still on the theme of Harvest time: Tanya tells an English story about a Farmer and his dealings with the boggart... an old mischievous spirit set on causing trouble. Then they follow up with another old harvest song... Oats, peas, beans and barley grow... except Tanya substitutes produce thats ready to harvest in our garden... Apples, Feijoas and Kumara. Support the show You can...

Send us Fan Mail Its Easter in the Batt Cave and in New Zealand that means Harvest time in the garden. Tanya, Batt Lamb and Pete have fun with the Batt cave participants identifying produce fresh from the garden and singing a Harvest song... Hip Hip Hip the harvest home!! Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live month...

Send us Fan Mail Tanya tells this story from Andalusia in Spain to the Batt Cave about a young girl who looses her necklace. Be warned that it is a bit of a scary story with a mean Ogre with a bad attitude in it!! Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi.com/tanyaba...

Send us Fan Mail Aesop is credited with several hundred fables: hot from the Batt Cave comes this tale of the ant who is industrious and hard working, and the grasshopper who takes a more laid back approach. In a first for Pete he not only plays the music but also plays the part of the grasshopper! Tanya takes on the role of the ant with her usual mastery of unusual voices. A twist to the story is...

Send us Fan Mail Its still hot and summery here in NewZealand and the Cicadas are in full song. Here is a story from the Andaman Islands about the Cicada who loves to play his drum; and how this affects the whole balance of nature! Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https:/...

Send us Fan Mail Another story from the Batt Cave celebrating the Chinese New Year. This is the story of a boy called Chi Yu and how he uses a magic bead he finds to help out his village during a drought. His kindness is punished by a greedy farmer and Chi Yu finds himself transformed. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join...

Send us Fan Mail It's the time of the Chinese New Year , so Tanya and Pete share a story about the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac and how decided the order they appear in. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi.com/tanyabatt0027/tiers Or if you are an e...

Send us Fan Mail With the start of a new year and it being Australia Day Tanya tells a story from the indigenous Peoples of South East Australia about Tiddalik the frog who is a very thirsty frog indeed! Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi.com/tanyabatt0027/tie...

Send us Fan Mail Tanya and Pete share a story about a king who is looking for a successor to rule his kingdom and comes up with a novel way of selecting the new King. Of course there is a boy called.... (What else!) Jack who thinks he will throw his hat in the ring. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Bat...

Send us Fan Mail Members of the Batt Cave audience take part in the telling of this story about two children who discover a mermaid on the beach.  Treasure is involved, so sit back and enjoy this fun tale told by Tanya and Pete. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko...

Send us Fan Mail It's that special time of year again!!  Tanya, Pete and Batt lamb are here with two new Christmas songs they have written to celebrate the Southern Hemisphere Christmas and New Year in New Zealand with all that means... Hot summer days, fresh plums and strawberries, swimming at the beach. It's also a time for family, remembering those we love and those who have passed an...

Send us Fan Mail To celebrate Pete's Birthday, Tanya and Bat Lamb decide to tell a 'Peter ' story, of which there are many to choose from.  They settle on the classic tale of the boy who cried wolf, with Peter in the main role. Of course  Bat lamb uses her super hero powers to deal with the wolf! Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worl...

Send us Fan Mail The time of your life is a story by Tanya Batt and it is her latest picture book published. It tells the story of a boy and his curiosity about the nature of time... can his new watch help him save up time? Support the show You can find our audios and books to purchase at https://imagined-worlds.net/story-shop Or join the live monthly Batt Cave storytelling club at https://ko-fi.c...

Send us Fan Mail It's a new Batt Cave session, and it's a new year for Pete.... It's his Birthday!! Tanya , Bat Lamb and Pete celebrate with the story of Issun-bōshi : A boy who is only the small size of a thumb, but he has very big courage as he journeys out into the world to pursue his dream of becoming a Samurai Warrior. Support the show You can find our audios and books to purch...