Songs are a vital part of any kindergarten lesson. But WHICH songs you sing and HOW you sing them in a EFL classroom are important. Let’s go through some song basics.
#1. Why do you sing songs in kindergarten lessons?
A. Songs liven and re-focus the class. In general, we will do an activity, then sing a song. In a 60 minute class, we will sing 7 or so songs.
B. Students learn new words and pick up correct pronunciation as they sing.
# 2. What songs?
A. Simple songs that students can REMEMBER and SING. Songs like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star are FINE for the NATIVE classroom, but in an EFL classroom, they are a waste of time. There are too many words that are not useful for the EFL student.
B. A GOOD song can be used AGAIN and AGAIN. Just change the vocabulary. Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes can be adjusted to Head, Shoulders, Knees and Fingers….. We have a core of 15 - 20 songs. That we CHANGE the vocabulary to as the students level up.
# 3 How should we sing?
A. Normal speed or Slowly. So the teacher can listen and check the pronunciation. Fast can be fun—-and once or twice is OK——but if you really want songs to be effective in the EFL classroom, you need to make sure the students are singing the right words correctly.
# 4 With a CD? No! Why?
A. Many teachers say they use a CD because they can’t remember the words BUT songs should be SO SIMPLE that ALL students (and the teacher of course) CAN sing and remember.
B. A CD always has the same song, same vocabulary EVERY TIME. It gets boring. We want to adapt the songs. Change the vocabulary, the speed, the tone of voice…. We can do all that IF we SING.
C. We DO have CDs on as background music as kids do LOTTOS, BINGOS…. but for actual singing with the kids, we use our own voices.
# 5 What if the students AREN’T singing?
A. The whole point of songs is students SING. So, it’s NOT OK not to sing.
B. We find that setting high expectations from the beginning—ALL students sing in our lessons and also NOTICING who is NOT singing (and saying to the NON SINGING student—-Maya, let’s sing) is ENOUGH to get everyone singing.
Did we miss anything? What do you do in your classroom?
Write a comment
Julian (Monday, 05 February 2018 19:12)
Most points are good, but not everyone is a great singer. I REALLY need the CD on, with at least the tune, otherwise my timing/tune etc is going to be abysmal. If you can do it without the CD, that's great, but some people do need it. Even though I use Super Simple Songs and have sung the songs lots of times, I still often can't remember what's coming next and mix parts of the songs up. I still try to adapt the songs a little with new vocabulary if possible.
Amy (Monday, 05 February 2018 20:38)
Hi Julian: I too have a terrible voice. I am with you there. Most of the time, I try NOT to sing---just prompting with a word or two and let the kids sing (to save everyone's ears)
Roxanne (Wednesday, 07 February 2018 11:07)
I use CDs too but one of my colleagues opt not to use any because he is a good singer and wants to change the vocabulary most times. The homeroom teachers ask us to use CDs because the kids will get used to the rhythm and tempo.
Amy (Wednesday, 07 February 2018 11:18)
Hi Roxanne--- I think we all have different styles---which is good. Students can get used to a variety of ways. (see the blog about rotating teachers)
It's interesting about the homeroom teacher though----without a CD, there is also rhythm and tempo. And you can CHANGE the rhythm and tempo---mixing it up for the kids.