TEACHING USING SONGS

Teaching Oral English through songs

·         Use of songs in the classroom:

·         Positive statements regarding the efficacy of music as a vehicle for first and second language acquisition.

Songs in the classroom

Advantages:

·         Songs are a pleasurable, enjoyable experience which aids relaxation and group dynamics and increases attentiveness and receptiveness in the language classroom.

·         They bring variety to the lesson.

·         They are highly memorable and help internalize quite long chunks of language.

·         They are part of everyday life and constitute a natural opportunity for meaningful repetition.

·         They are personal and thus allow identification with the lyrics.

·         They provide authentic examples of everyday language.

·         They allow the target vocabulary, grammar, and patterns to be modelled in context.

·         They foster the development of grammatical, lexical, and sociocultural competence, as well as of the linguistic skills of speaking and listening.

·         They contribute to the improvement of pronunciation, of speed, and of fluency.

Pedagogical recommendations for the exploitation of songs.

·         Performing actions in line with the lyrics of the songs.

·         According to the trace theory (TPR). “Memory is increased if stimulated by motor activity”.

·         Dramatizing the song’s lyrics can also contribute to make their meaning clear to the learner.

·         This technique is especially effective with such songs as “Head, shoulders, knees, and toes”. “This is the way we wash our hands”, “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands” “old McDonald had a farm”.

Exploitation

·         The students are provided with a gapped version of the song, which they must complete (either with words/chunks or pictures). The items may be omitted randomly or, on the contrary, may be specific parts of speech, or grammatical or lexical elements which we seek to emphasize. Alternatively, the students can delete the words themselves to create a gap-fill task for others.

·         The students are provided with scrambled words or lines of the song, which they must then reorder. Photographs, pictures, or cartoons illustrating the different parts of the song can also be jumbled for the children to reorganize.

·         The learners answer questions (be they multiple choice or comprehension ones) about the text of the song or create their own for other classmates to answer.

·         Other comprehension-checking activities involve the creation or completion of charts and diagrams about the text, or the invention of titles for each verse and for the overall song.

·         The students are asked to identify deliberately introduced (and plausible) mistakes in terms of vocabulary, grammar, or pronunciation.

·         The children can also be encouraged to manipulate the text of a song, modifying grammatical elements within it (e.g. tenses or parts of speech), changing the final words of some lines with others that rhyme, or partially inventing the song and subsequently comparing it to the original version.

·         At slightly higher levels, the stylistic features and sociocultural aspects reflected by the song’s background can also be made explicit in order to foster further appreciation of the song and of the country’s history and culture.

·         A lip syncing talent show can be held, either individually or in teams, with several students being appointed as judges.

·         And of course, the students should be urged to sing the song. Recording it and playing it to improve pronunciation can also prove a good idea.

Songs in the classroom

The students are provided with a gapped version of the song, which they must complete (either with words/chunks or pictures). The items may be omitted randomly or, on the contrary, may be specific parts of speech, or grammatical or lexical elements which we seek to emphasize. Alternatively, the students can delete the words themselves to create a gap-fill task for others.

The students are provided with scrambled words or lines of the song, which they must then reorder. Photographs, pictures, or cartoons illustrating the different parts of the song can also be jumbled for the children to reorganize.

The learners answer questions (be they multiple choice or comprehension ones) about the text of the song or create their own for other classmates to answer.

Other comprehension-checking activities involve the creation or completion of charts and diagrams about the text, or the invention of titles for each verse and for the overall song.

The students are asked to identify deliberately introduced (and plausible) mistakes in terms of vocabulary, grammar, or pronunciation.

The children can also be encouraged to manipulate the text of a song, modifying grammatical elements within it (e.g. tenses or parts of speech), changing the final words of some lines with others that rhyme, or partially inventing the song and subsequently comparing it to the original version.