Children's Lessons | Jason's Playlist 🎶🎼🎵

We're back 🎆! The first post of 2021 will be on teaching children English through music and song. This is for both teachers and ESL learners with children. 

Teaching children is FUN! I also had a great time teaching teenagers while working at LSI Education in Vancouver, Canada. What I've found from these experiences is that music and song really help in the learning process by making it enjoyable. 

Now, let us present...

Jason's Playlist🎼

One of the first things children are taught is how to count. Sesame Street's classic Pinball #12 is perfect. Combined with flashcards, and a lot of running around, this short song makes it that much easier for kids to take in the numbers they've learned. The song has incredible sticking power: once heard, it's never forgotten.

And who could forget Grover and little John John counting backwards from 10? 

The Electric Company was a spin-off from Sesame Street. It featured material for older children (pre-teens to roughly thirteen or fourteen). T-I-O-N (shun-shun-shun-shun) enabled the seven-year old me (inflicted with dyslexia) learn some important pronunciation😄.

Sesame Street has a lot of practical, fun resources for both parents and teachers working with small children on it's website (here). 

There are number of songs I've used from....

School House Rock used to run between episodes of Saturday morning cartoons (January 1973 to March 2009). It taught English grammar and vocabulary through catchy rock, pop, and disco songs. So, children can learn:

Conjunctions

Adjectives

Nouns

Pronouns

Adverbs

Interjections

As you readers know, I spent many years teaching English in Japan (which is fantastic). A colleague of a friend of mine, has a YouTube channel called David Desu (I am David). It hasn't been updated since 2010, but it has a lot of songs that can be used in children's ESL lessons.

A good number of David's work is set to the melody or beat of pop rock or movie theme songs. The Bon Jovi "Living On A Prayer" Goodbye song is my personal favourite.

David uses both catchy tunes and hand gestures to reinforce the language and vocabulary. The more "recent" videos use animated stick figures and clip-art. 

Are You Hungry?

Michael Jackson & The Jackson 5's  "A-B-C" was a big hit with my young learners. Anytime you have kids getting up and dancing in class, you're doing fantastic as a teacher.

Another good alphabet song is The Village People's YMCA.

The  Fluency MC / Jason Levine (check out his website here) teaches English through his own, original rap and hip-hop songs. The age range for his material is five and up. 

Phrasal Verb Rap! Turn It On!

The fluency is also on social media. I recommend the Fluency MC Instagram feed if you'd like to see shorter, beat-box videos and photos from France and around the world.

Finally, there's Cake's Short Skirt/Long Jacket. Obviously, this is more suitable for teenagers and young adults (although the lyrics and visuals are safe-for-work). Cake combines jazz, college rock, country, and other genres. 

I've used this song for a gap-fill activity. John McCrea (lead singer) has a slow, clear voice. So, learners are reasonably challenged but not overwhelmed.

"I want a girl with a mind like a ____

I want a girl who _____ what's best

I want a girl with _____ that cut

And eyes that burn like _____."

This song got a university student grooving. After the gap fill, you can play the hilarious, official Short Skirt/Long Jacket music video (which can also be used to teach adjectives, modals of speculation, giving opinions, storytelling, etc).

To make music and song work, keep it simple, clear, and fun, for yourselves and your children.