Lyrics and language
Avantika Thakur
It was by accident that I learnt to use music as a teaching tool. I am passionate about music, and so between art and group activities, my students were often treated to calming music. I mostly played instrumental tracks introducing a new instrument or natural sounds of rivers and oceans in the background when they engaged in independent work. To my surprise, music, especially different kinds of music, had an immense impact on them. They became more energetic and alert.
To further my little experiment, I tried to imbibe songs into my English curriculum. I discovered that there was a lot a song could achieve, which reading a passage could not. Often, my students would approach a reading passage as mere exercise, where they had to find the answers within the lines, and somehow fill up the blanks to prove that they had understood the passage. Listening to a song and comprehending its lyrics was much more than merely filling the blanks.
The first song, I chose was Imagine by John Lennon. It is a classic and also has a message of peace and non-violence. Choosing a song with a message or lesson also emphasizes values, which is beneficial for the culture that you aim to bring about in the classroom. Some other interesting song choices for comprehension could be the national anthem or popular songs in regional languages. These could encourage students to express the meaning by translating it into English. While teaching a new skill or objective, the control and responsibility of the lesson, has to gradually evolve from the teacher to the students gaining complete and independent control. Therefore, at Teach for India, I was encouraged to strategize my lesson in the following manner:
• Introduction to new material: Teacher introduces the class to the song and hands out the lyrics.
• Guided discussion: Discuss the guiding questions within groups of students and then with the class.
• Independent work: Each student answers specific questions applying what he or she has understood from the lesson.
The students were attentive and extremely curious about the song and its lyrics. After reading the lyrics, we had a group discussion based on the guiding questions, which were – What is the message or the central idea of this song and why? What is the problem that the singer is trying to solve? How does he suggest solving this problem? The guiding questions assess whether or not the students have acquired a basic understanding of the given song. During the discussion, I observed that students were participative and involved. Finally, during their independent work, I pushed them to apply what they had observed and understood by giving them situation-based questions. Example: Two of your friends are fighting during the lunch break. Would you stop them? Why and how?
While planning for such a lesson, it is essential for the teacher to introduce any new vocabulary used in the song, either before or at the beginning of the lesson. Becoming acquainted with the vocabulary, be it in math or science, ensures that every student has a chance to be self-reliant and capable.
Such an exercise familiarizes our students with the idea of creatively expressing one’s emotions and ideas. As a teacher, I looked forward to teaching these lessons every week, and also introducing them to some of the best musicians of our times.
More activities!
Following are some activities that you can try out in the class with music:
- Behaviour Management: Choose a popular song or jingle as an energizer for your kids. Coordinate hand gestures and actions that make them move around, which will leave them energized for the lesson. If you have a time limit for an activity, for example – wrap up your English worksheets and be ready with your math notebooks in 30 seconds. Play a song for thirty seconds, and let the students know that they have until the end of the song to finish the task.
- Grammar: Make students exercise their grammar power by asking them to identify adjectives, verbs, nouns, or pronouns from different songs. A great song to try this on would be – Israel Kamakawiwo’ole’s Some where over the rainbow.
- Rhyming words: Introduce students to the concept of rhyming words with the help of a song. This can be a good build-up before they start writing their own poems and songs. An interesting song choice would be – When you wish upon a star from the Disney film, Pinnochio.
- Theme and feelings: Give examples from different songs, to teach students how to write on a central theme or main idea. For instance – Tears in heaven by Eric Clapton, which was dedicated by the singer to his son, who passed away. The song can be used to show that the main idea and the feeling is that of sadness. Ask students to point out phrases which suggest that the main idea is about something sad and unhappy.
- Find the mistakes: After the students have become familiar with a song, you can change a few words in the lyrics and ask them to find the mistakes in it. You can test them on simple spellings by asking them to correct the mis-spelt words in the lyrics worksheet.
The author is a graduate in law from National Law School, Bangalore. She taught second and third graders during the Teach for India fellowship in Delhi in a low-income private school. She can be reached at avantika.thakur@gmail.com.
