The advantages of songs and rhymes

Songs and games

Songs and games have always held a unique place in children's learning. Why is this so and what value do they have for young learners' development? Are games just for fun or is there a more focused reason to include them in our lessons?

In this unit you will discuss these questions and look at how to set up and manage songs and games.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this unit you will be able to:

· state how songs and games can enhance children's learning

· discuss to what extent songs and games play a central role or a supporting role in class

· identify different techniques for adapting and exploiting songs and games

· design or adapt a song or game and try it out in your lesson

· reflect with your colleagues and give feedback on your learning so far.

Why songs and games?

This exercise will take around 20 - 30 minutes.

1.1 Why songs and games?

It is a widely accepted fact that young children learn better through play. In fact, play plays a fundamental role in the lives of children!

If learning English feels like fun and if the children think they are discovering an exciting new world through English then learning and adoption of the language should follow naturally.

But is this really true? Read the Why songs and games? resource to find out more.

1.1 Why songs and games?

It is a widely accepted fact that young children learn better through play. In fact, playplays a fundamental role in the lives of children!

If learning English feels like fun and if the children think they are discovering an exciting new world through English, then learning and adoption of the language should follow naturally. But, whilst we might be happy to see children participating in play or fun in our classrooms, we must not automatically believe that something meaningful is always going on.

We need to be very careful as to why we are using a song or a game in our lesson. In short, as with all activities, we need to be precise about our aims and objectives and certain that what we are doing in the class is contributing to those goals.

In a more traditional classroom, songs and games are considered to be an activity for the end of a lesson or a reward for working hard in class. They are thought of as 'light relief' and not where the real learning takes place.

When an exam is approaching, or a unit of a course book has to be finished, it is the songs and games that are often discarded. There is a common belief that learning without having fun is a more efficient use of classroom time.

In recent years however, the use of songs and games in the EFL classroom has been taken much more seriously. Apart from being lively and fun they can provide a link between school and home life.

Brewster, Ellis and Girard (1992: 174) suggest that:

"Their usefulness is recognised by their adoption as common language learning activities which frequently form an integral part of language programs and published ELT materials for children."

1.2 To sing or not to sing?

What songs do you sing in class? Do you enjoy singing? Why/Why not? Do your students enjoy singing? What kind of songs do they like to sing? Do your students sing songs outside class? What are they?

The advantages of songs and rhymes

We recognise that young learners of all ages enjoy songs and rhymes, but how useful are they for learning?

Decide what you think are the main reasons for including songs and rhymes in lessons. Then read the Advantages of songs and rhymes resource below and check to see if your ideas are mentioned.

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 1126