We all love songs - and so they usually make a great resource in the language classroom.
There are lots of things in songs for the English learner:
Jay Doubleyou: conditionals in songs
Jay Doubleyou: singing songs to learn english
Jay Doubleyou: listening to song lyrics will help your pronunciation
Jay Doubleyou: modal verbs in song
And for the English teacher:
Jay Doubleyou: every song has its lesson plan
Jay Doubleyou: every song has its lesson plan - part two
The British Council has got some ideas:
How to use songs in the English language classroom | British Council
Using music and songs | TeachingEnglish | British Council
There are some good videos out there with more ideas:
5 ways to use songs to teach English - YouTube
12 fun activities you can do with pop songs in the ESL classroom - YouTube
Going beyond the conventional 'gap fill' exercise, here are some more activities suggested by Eleanor Spicer-Lundholm of the International Teacher Training Institute, Hastings, UK:
> Song in Strips: cut up the song into strips which the students need to put back together.
> Creative writing to Song: put some of the key words from the song on the board and ask the students to make them into a poem/email/short story in pairs; then share and share the 'original song'.
> Word partnerships to Song: put some of the key phrases on the board, but cut in half and in two columns, which the students have to put together in pairs; then play the song, with the students shouting out 'bingo' when they hear their collocation.
> Word order to Song: put all the words of a sentence, but mixed up, from a song on the board, which the students have to order in teams; then compare each team's sentences before playing the part of the song.
> Whoops! Find the mistakes: put up a 'wrong' version of sentences from the song where the students have to identify the 'mistakes' before listening and correcting.
> Mime to Song: standing in a circle, first the students listen to a line and copy the teacher's mime; then the students suggest mimes to further lines which the class agree to copy.
Here's a lesson plan from Fiona Aish at the Itafel - looking at teaching connected speech through songs:
> Play the first 2/3 lines from the song 2/3 times and get the students to write what they hear; confirm the correct version.
> Elicit from the students the stressed words and then the connected words; the students should try this in pairs with the following lines.
> Play the song's lines again, getting the students to tap the beat/rhythm; the students should then speak out... and sing the song (if they want!)
Finally, here's a list from OnTesol:
- put the verse in the right order;
- put the verbs in brackets in the correct tense/or, form of the verb (for example, gerund or infinitive);
- identify the past tenses in the song (or, any other tense or grammar topic, for example, conditionals, modal verbs, reported speech…);
- reorder the verses;
- reorder the letters;
- correct the words/mistake;
- question on the theme, the message or meaning of the song to encourage discussion;
- write to the protagonist and (give advice, or tell him what you think);
- write the story in the song.
- put the underlined words under the right column according to … (pronunciation, vocabulary related to any specific category, or a grammatical pattern);
- complete the blanks with the words in the box;
- choose the right word;
- answer the questions;
- match the verses;
- check the words that you hear
Using Songs with Adult ESL Students
Have fun!
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