Today, as millions of teachers all around the world adapt to the virtual classroom, and the complexities that it presents, they try to find ways in which to adapt their tried and tested methods of teaching into their new reality.
They say that music soothes the savage beast, and for many teachers, this can sometimes be the primary purpose for playing music during their classes, especially now as students live with the emotional turmoil of living and studying in quarantine conditions. Today though, whilst that expression may still bare some relevance of reality, music has developed over time into one of the primary methodological tools for language teaching, and is easily adapted to the virtual classroom.
One of the biggest problems that teachers encounter in their virtual classes, no matter whether they are teaching children or adults, is being able to keep their students interested in what they have to teach them. Students are savvier to the world, through technology they are constantly being challenged and entertained in increasingly differing ways and they demand that everything that they do provides them with a high degree of mental stimulation in order to fire up their imagination and enthusiasm. This fact requires teachers to become very creative in the methodology that they employ. The primary reason why music is such a successful teaching tool is its wide-ranging appeal to virtually every student, its ability to connect people with different personalities, cultures, languages, and ages. Music stimulates and motivates students often in a way that is unmatched by any other form of methodology.
Choosing the correct song is one of the most difficult aspects of using music in your classes. Below are some of the things that you should be considering when searching for the right song to teach with.
1. What do you want to achieve in the class?
2. What are the ages of your students?
3. Is the song suitable for the students, especially regarding cultural issues, ages, vocabulary use, and topic.
4. What is the English level of your students?
5. What is technology like in your students homes? Is there internet, and if there is, is it suitable to play a youtube video, or, do you need to download it?
Always make sure that you evaluate the song fully before you choose it. Read the lyrics, listen to the clarity of the audio to determine the quality and the level of comprehension, and make sure that it does not go against the rules of the institute where you are teaching. Sometimes even the most popular of songs contains language and context that is better left outside of the classroom, regardless of how enthusiastically our students like to listen to them.
If you choose the right songs, and then expand them effectively through appropriately selected, planned, and executed activities, then they will always reap the máximum benefits.
Below are some of the music-based activities that I enjoy doing in my classes. I hope that you find them useful for your classes as well.
1. Discussing important social issues.
Certain songs can be used as a way to lead into a specific subject that you are interested in teaching. This type of activity would be appropriate for intermediate to advanced learners. For this activity, you can use a song such as Another Day in Paradise by Phil Collins as it tackles the common social issue of homelessness and societal complacency. Start the activity by having students listen to the song and then complete a fill in the blank exercise. Listening to the lyrics of the song 3 or 4 times would be appropriate, but once you have checked the answers, have the students read the lyrics to themselves as a way to try to understand the meaning of the song. Next, you can ask general questions to test your student's comprehension. Questions such as “Is this a happy song?” and when students say “No” ask them why not? This can lead to a discussion about people’s complacency, homelessness, or something similar. This style of song, and activity, make a great foundation for projects that relate to important social issues.
There are literally hundreds of songs that are suitable for the study of social issues. Here are a few to consider.
(a) Michael Jackson ‘Earth Song’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAi3VTSdTxU
(b) Cat Stevens ‘Father and Son´
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-7c4VNGOgU
(c) Harry Chaplin ´Cats in the Cradle’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUwjNBjqR-c
(d) Joni Mitchell ‘Yellow Taxi’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94bdMSCdw20
(e) Lady Gaga ‘Born this way’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wV1FrqwZyKw
(f) Black Eyed Peas ‘Where is the love’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpYeekQkAdc
(g) Gewn Stefani ‘Long Way To Go’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ih22197ufU
(h) Janelle Monae ‘Hell No Talmbout’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MebL6VpxYTo
(i) Nena ’99 Red Balloons’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2zxHuze_Gw
(j) Michael Jackson ‘Man In The Mirror’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PivWY9wn5ps
(k) USA For Africa ‘We Are The World’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9BNoNFKCBI
2. Celebrating special events through song.
Using songs in your holiday lessons, such as for Christmas, birthdays, etc can be a lot of fun! Songs such as White Christmas or Happy Birthday are both easy for students to sing along to, and for the teacher to explain. This activity can be expanded through various activities such as filling in the gaps, coloring in pictures or even creating posters.
10 Tips For Improving Your Pronunciation in English.
3. Listen and draw/paint
Music can create a very effective listening for details activity. Using songs that have very specific and detailed lyrics such as “It’s a Wonderful World” for older students, or “Humpty Dumpty” for young learners, teachers are able to créate a situation where the students can listen to the lyrics of a song, and then transfer their interpretation of what they heard into something artistic, be it a drawing, or even a painting. This activity creates enormous enthusiasm within students, and if you are able to teach them the lyrics as well, then they can sing along as they paint making it a great multi-faceted activity.
4. Using music to teach grammar
There are many songs that could be used for the effective teaching of grammar. As an example, Celine Dion's “Because You Loved Me”, is perfect to help basic level students to learn the Simple Past Tense.
First, ask the students to listen to the song. Next, give them the lyrics, either printed or on a Powerpoint presentation with some of the vocabularies removed so that the students have to fill in the blanks with the correct Simple Past verb forms. Whilst doing this activity, play the song for them a few times so as they have ample opportunity to discover the missing vocabulary. Once all of the students have finished, check the work together. This activity gives students a better knowledge of the particular grammar structure being reviewed in the song, and the reasons why we use that structure.
5. Rewrite the lyrics
Search for a suitable song, and then go to youtube and try to find an instrumental cover versión. Next, get students to write their own lyrics based upon how the song makes them feel, and what it means to them. This is a very popular activity for intermediate and advanced level students.
3. Listen and draw/paint
Music can create a very effective listening for details activity. Using songs that have very specific and detailed lyrics such as “It’s a Wonderful World” for older students, or “Humpty Dumpty” for young learners, teachers are able to créate a situation where the students can listen to the lyrics of a song, and then transfer their interpretation of what they heard into something artistic, be it a drawing, or even a painting. This activity creates enormous enthusiasm within students, and if you are able to teach them the lyrics as well, then they can sing along as they paint making it a great multi-faceted activity.
4. Using music to teach grammar
There are many songs that could be used for the effective teaching of grammar. As an example, Celine Dion's “Because You Loved Me”, is perfect to help basic level students to learn the Simple Past Tense.
First, ask the students to listen to the song. Next, give them the lyrics, either printed or on a Powerpoint presentation with some of the vocabularies removed so that the students have to fill in the blanks with the correct Simple Past verb forms. Whilst doing this activity, play the song for them a few times so as they have ample opportunity to discover the missing vocabulary. Once all of the students have finished, check the work together. This activity gives students a better knowledge of the particular grammar structure being reviewed in the song, and the reasons why we use that structure.
5. Rewrite the lyrics
Search for a suitable song, and then go to youtube and try to find an instrumental cover versión. Next, get students to write their own lyrics based upon how the song makes them feel, and what it means to them. This is a very popular activity for intermediate and advanced level students.
Take the lyrics of a song and rewrite them so that they can keep the same character but with different words. A great example would be the classic Beatles song "Yellow Submarine". You can do this activity with any song that you like.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2uTFF_3MaA
In the house where I was born
Lived a woman who sailed to sea
And she told us of his life
In the land of submarines
So we sailed up to the moon
Till we found a sea of green
And we lived within the waves
In our yellow submarine
We all live in a hollow submarine
yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a hollow submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
And our family are all aboard
almost none of them live next door
And the band begins to play
We all live in a yellow submarine
Bellows submarine, Bellows submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
(Full look ahead Mr. Boatswain, full look ahead
Full speed ahead it is, Captain.
Cut the string, drop the cable
Aye, Sir, aye
Captain, captain)
As we live a life of peace
Every one of us has all we see
Sky of pink and sea of green
In our yellow submarine
We all live in a Kellogs submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a Kellogs submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
Make copies of this. Type it up using large font size and give them to the students. Firstly, let your students stand up and move and sway to the rhythm of the music, let them feel the music, and then get them up and sing the song as a group employing the style of choral repeat. Next, in groups of either two or three, tell the students that you have made changes to some of the words in the song and that they must now listen for the right words and make corrections. Once they have achieved this, get the students to change groups and then compare their answers.
To complete the activity, you could give them a copy of the correct lyrics for them to sing along to.
The choice of the song and the number of words that are changed will, of course, depend on the level of your students.
7. Drawing to music.
This is a very successful warm-up exercise for a conversation activity. Unlike the activity ‘Listen and draw/paint’ which used songs with detail-rich lyrics, start the class by playing an appropriate piece of instrumental music. Give each student a blank piece of paper, telling them to use their imagination to draw whatever comes to their mind. Let them do this for a couple of minutes until they have created a good base for their drawings, and then grab each paper and give it to another student. Whilst the music continues playing, tell them to continue drawing on the new picture. Stop and change the papers two or three times during the activity. With the music still playing, take all of the pictures and lay them out on the floor. Have all of the students come to the front of the classroom and choose the drawing that they like the best. Then, in pairs, instruct the students to tell the story of their pictures to each other.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2uTFF_3MaA
In the house where I was born
Lived a woman who sailed to sea
And she told us of his life
In the land of submarines
So we sailed up to the moon
Till we found a sea of green
And we lived within the waves
In our yellow submarine
We all live in a hollow submarine
yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a hollow submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
And our family are all aboard
almost none of them live next door
And the band begins to play
We all live in a yellow submarine
Bellows submarine, Bellows submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
(Full look ahead Mr. Boatswain, full look ahead
Full speed ahead it is, Captain.
Cut the string, drop the cable
Aye, Sir, aye
Captain, captain)
As we live a life of peace
Every one of us has all we see
Sky of pink and sea of green
In our yellow submarine
We all live in a Kellogs submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a Kellogs submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
Make copies of this. Type it up using large font size and give them to the students. Firstly, let your students stand up and move and sway to the rhythm of the music, let them feel the music, and then get them up and sing the song as a group employing the style of choral repeat. Next, in groups of either two or three, tell the students that you have made changes to some of the words in the song and that they must now listen for the right words and make corrections. Once they have achieved this, get the students to change groups and then compare their answers.
To complete the activity, you could give them a copy of the correct lyrics for them to sing along to.
The choice of the song and the number of words that are changed will, of course, depend on the level of your students.
7. Drawing to music.
This is a very successful warm-up exercise for a conversation activity. Unlike the activity ‘Listen and draw/paint’ which used songs with detail-rich lyrics, start the class by playing an appropriate piece of instrumental music. Give each student a blank piece of paper, telling them to use their imagination to draw whatever comes to their mind. Let them do this for a couple of minutes until they have created a good base for their drawings, and then grab each paper and give it to another student. Whilst the music continues playing, tell them to continue drawing on the new picture. Stop and change the papers two or three times during the activity. With the music still playing, take all of the pictures and lay them out on the floor. Have all of the students come to the front of the classroom and choose the drawing that they like the best. Then, in pairs, instruct the students to tell the story of their pictures to each other.
Teaching The Verb To Be To True Beginners. Starting From The Basics.
8. Musical bingo
Bingo is a fun, engaging activity that can be used with songs and raise your learners' awareness of language points.
(a). Any song with lyrics with suitable lyrics will do for playing bingo. You don't even need to use a complete song. Sometimes a few verses are enough. You can choose a song that contains a language focus that meets the needs of your class. It's also nice to find a song that is appropriate for your learners' interests.
(b). How big should the bingo cards be? The best bingo cards for an achievable activity are 4 boxes by 4 boxes on an A4 piece of paper (ie, 16 boxes altogether). This way there is enough challenge, but it doesn't take too long for the learners to have a chance to win.
(c). What can go in the boxes? Fill the boxes with whatever language focus your class needs. Some possibilities are:
individual vocabulary words, multi-word chunks, grammar structures, phonemes, consonant clusters,...or anything else you can think of!
(d). How many winning cards should be made? It's nice if there is a winning combination on all the cards so each student has a chance to win. Also, you can have multiple winners that way.
(e). When can bingo be played in the lesson? Anytime, really. It can be a great warming up activity or back up. It can also be used to help practice or clarify the language during the primary lesson. It could even be used to help set the scene for the rest of the lesson. Flexibility!
9. Let’s run with it!
The idea for this activity is very simple and the only preparation you need to have done is enough copies of the lyrics for one song for every two students. Put the students in pairs. One is the secretary and one is the runner. Line all the secretaries up so that they are seated facing a wall. On the opposite wall, pin-up copies of the lyrics. The runner's job is to race to the lyric sheet, memorize the first line, run back to their secretary and repeat the line. They continue this way until all the lyrics are completed.
This game is usually quite rowdy and, if you have competitive students, can be hilarious. It enables the students to have reading writing, listening, and speaking practice all at the same time. I try to vary the game by having runners and secretaries swap roles every five lines. It's a lot of fun and I'm sure it's been around for ages...Enjoy.
10. A song a week
Teaching a new stong each week is a great way to give your students a repertoire of songs that will be permanently planted in their subconscious memory for life. Singing as a complete class brings the benefit of total participation from all learners, especially if taught through TPR. The total physical response (TPR) approach is particularly suited to younger learners. Each week, decide on a new song to introduce to your students, and each day, use this as the opening activity for your class. Each week, on the first day of class, introduce the students to the lyrics of the new song through some form of creative activity. Then, each following day, get the students to continue singing the song, but through the completion of a different activity each day. The idea behind this is that by Friday, there will be a new song that is permanently embedded in their memories after being introduced through a combination of repetition and 5 different creative activities. Activities can include visual recognition of vocabulary through either a PowerPoint presentation or flashcards, listen and draw activities, fill in the gaps, miming or even just singing, and dancing along to the songs.
11. Teaching vocabulary of a specific lexical set
When trying to teach a specific lexical set to young learners, research into child language acquisition has shown that the chosen vocabulary may need to be repeated many times before they are permanently incorporated into the memory of the child. Songs provide an excellent means of repeating and strengthening the long term build-up of vocabulary and are suitable for children of all ages and abilities. For example, songs such as ‘Pizza and chips' or the ‘ ABC’ song follow a very simple repetitive format and teaches lexical sets such as days of the week or the alphabet. These songs could be used with young students for reinforcing different vocabulary and as a basis for further work:
PIZZA AND CHIPS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZZqcT1joaA
THE ABC SONG
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75p-N9YKqNo
12. Student Input
Give your students the opportunity to suggest, or even create some music-based activities for the classroom. Students like being given responsibility, especially when their ideas are respected, and utilized. Give them some guidelines and maybe use this activity as some form of a student project, or even as a part of the regular assessment process. The great thing about this activity is that it gives the teacher a library of musical activities that they can then utilize for future classes without the necessity of having to create them themselves.
Well, as all teachers know, there are many different activities available to use as a way to improve the learning experience of our students. I hope that you find these music-based activities interesting and of use for your future classes.
Good luck, and good teaching.
8. Musical bingo
Bingo is a fun, engaging activity that can be used with songs and raise your learners' awareness of language points.
(a). Any song with lyrics with suitable lyrics will do for playing bingo. You don't even need to use a complete song. Sometimes a few verses are enough. You can choose a song that contains a language focus that meets the needs of your class. It's also nice to find a song that is appropriate for your learners' interests.
(b). How big should the bingo cards be? The best bingo cards for an achievable activity are 4 boxes by 4 boxes on an A4 piece of paper (ie, 16 boxes altogether). This way there is enough challenge, but it doesn't take too long for the learners to have a chance to win.
(c). What can go in the boxes? Fill the boxes with whatever language focus your class needs. Some possibilities are:
individual vocabulary words, multi-word chunks, grammar structures, phonemes, consonant clusters,...or anything else you can think of!
(d). How many winning cards should be made? It's nice if there is a winning combination on all the cards so each student has a chance to win. Also, you can have multiple winners that way.
(e). When can bingo be played in the lesson? Anytime, really. It can be a great warming up activity or back up. It can also be used to help practice or clarify the language during the primary lesson. It could even be used to help set the scene for the rest of the lesson. Flexibility!
9. Let’s run with it!
The idea for this activity is very simple and the only preparation you need to have done is enough copies of the lyrics for one song for every two students. Put the students in pairs. One is the secretary and one is the runner. Line all the secretaries up so that they are seated facing a wall. On the opposite wall, pin-up copies of the lyrics. The runner's job is to race to the lyric sheet, memorize the first line, run back to their secretary and repeat the line. They continue this way until all the lyrics are completed.
This game is usually quite rowdy and, if you have competitive students, can be hilarious. It enables the students to have reading writing, listening, and speaking practice all at the same time. I try to vary the game by having runners and secretaries swap roles every five lines. It's a lot of fun and I'm sure it's been around for ages...Enjoy.
10. A song a week
Teaching a new stong each week is a great way to give your students a repertoire of songs that will be permanently planted in their subconscious memory for life. Singing as a complete class brings the benefit of total participation from all learners, especially if taught through TPR. The total physical response (TPR) approach is particularly suited to younger learners. Each week, decide on a new song to introduce to your students, and each day, use this as the opening activity for your class. Each week, on the first day of class, introduce the students to the lyrics of the new song through some form of creative activity. Then, each following day, get the students to continue singing the song, but through the completion of a different activity each day. The idea behind this is that by Friday, there will be a new song that is permanently embedded in their memories after being introduced through a combination of repetition and 5 different creative activities. Activities can include visual recognition of vocabulary through either a PowerPoint presentation or flashcards, listen and draw activities, fill in the gaps, miming or even just singing, and dancing along to the songs.
11. Teaching vocabulary of a specific lexical set
When trying to teach a specific lexical set to young learners, research into child language acquisition has shown that the chosen vocabulary may need to be repeated many times before they are permanently incorporated into the memory of the child. Songs provide an excellent means of repeating and strengthening the long term build-up of vocabulary and are suitable for children of all ages and abilities. For example, songs such as ‘Pizza and chips' or the ‘ ABC’ song follow a very simple repetitive format and teaches lexical sets such as days of the week or the alphabet. These songs could be used with young students for reinforcing different vocabulary and as a basis for further work:
PIZZA AND CHIPS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZZqcT1joaA
THE ABC SONG
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75p-N9YKqNo
12. Student Input
Give your students the opportunity to suggest, or even create some music-based activities for the classroom. Students like being given responsibility, especially when their ideas are respected, and utilized. Give them some guidelines and maybe use this activity as some form of a student project, or even as a part of the regular assessment process. The great thing about this activity is that it gives the teacher a library of musical activities that they can then utilize for future classes without the necessity of having to create them themselves.
Well, as all teachers know, there are many different activities available to use as a way to improve the learning experience of our students. I hope that you find these music-based activities interesting and of use for your future classes.
Good luck, and good teaching.
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