This is the way we ...

Of course, as you'll see in the Syllabus and lesson planning unit, you can always adapt a song to fit a specific language teaching purpose. So with the above, you could introduce time into the rhyme instead of 'warm and sunny morning'. The teacher could stand with a clock at the front of the class and change the hands to different times while the students sing the song with the correct time as follows:

This is the way we wash our face,
Wash our face, wash our face,
This is the way we wash our face,
At seven o'clock in the morning.

In the next video, This is the way we say hello, Raymond uses an another adaptation ofThis is the way we ....

As you watch, notice the 'speeding up' technique he uses. Children love this challenge and it makes the repetition of songs more interesting.

This is the way we say hello

In the next task you will move on to consider contemporary and traditional songs.

Traditional versus contemporary songs

Traditional songs are very popular with Young Learners. However, those children at the older end of the age range - in other words, the pre-teens and especially the teenagers that you identified in the First steps unit - may find them a little childish or boring.

It is very important to find out what kinds of songs or rhymes your children enjoy. Open the Traditional versus contemporary songs resource below to read more.

Traditional versus contemporary songs

It is very important to find out what kind of songs or rhymes your children enjoy. There's nothing worse than forcing your class to listen to something that they can't relate to.

In this respect, be very careful that you are choosing something according to their tastes and not your own! The most important thing is to try and introduce songs that the children would enjoy outside of the classroom.

If you hear your students singing something from class in the playground at break time, you know you've cracked it!

Open the Pizza and chips song below. This is a good example of a contemporary song with a 'catchy' chorus which will probably make it out of the classroom. How would you use it with your students?

Pizza and chips

The first time you use a song like this in the class, it a good idea to pre-teach some of the vocabulary.

Watch the following video where Raymond teaches the children about the different characters in the story. Notice the pronunciation practice involved, i.e. Thelma and Thursday, Freddie and Friday etc.

The next video shows the children and Raymond singing the song together. It's important to note that this is the first time they have heard the song and it contains many new and difficult words for children of this age, for example, 'licking his lips' and 'rubbing his tummy'. Raymond mimes the words to aid understanding.

As you watch the video, think about the following:

· Are the students enjoying the song?

· Which parts do they enjoy the most?

The most enjoyable parts for the students are clearly the actions, i.e. 'fright' and the chorus. In this class there are stronger and weaker students, but even the weakest are able to join in with the chorus and then listen to the other verses. Children (fortunately!) love repetition, and once you have taught a song like this you would be able to use it again and again, and each time the children will get better at singing it.

Whether you choose a traditional or a modern song, you'll still need to consider carefully the impact of a song on your immediate school environment. Are you disturbing other classrooms with an increase in noise levels?

Also, if you use a physically active song you need to think about the type of classroom you teach in - see the Classroom management unit - and the expectations of the school, something discussed in the First steps unit. You also need to take into consideration that some action songs may threaten or frighten quieter children, and encourage others to only react and not think.

Effective learning is an emotional experience. When a child sees a new word or structure for the first time, it is important that they feel an emotional need for this new language. In other words, if they are singing something they really enjoy and suddenly come across a word or structure that they do not know, but which they feel they need in order to sing successfully, they will feel an emotional need to learn.

As teachers our most important role is to put our young learners in these kind of situations. We choose the language targets or purpose, but we do not teach them.

The more we teach, the less our children will learn, because we lessen their need and desire to learn. We should use or adapt songs so that the children will discover these targets as they are singing.

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 1013