How effective is using a popular song text as the basis of a story that the students will tell?
For example, with my students, we went through the words of The House of the Rising Sun together to find new words. Next, I asked them to describe the protagonist as they imagine him/her to be; age, appearance, personality [e.g. would you invite this person home to dinner? why/why not?]. The result was that we had a lot of fun while having a most productive session.
6 answers from our tutors
Best answer
Songs and music can certainly be considered as one of the useful language learning tools that aid second language teaching without putting a lot of academic pressure on the learners. Moreover, songs and music can be proven to be an effective listening activity that has multiple benefits to offer.
I would like to thank all of you who have answered my questions and given the most valuable input. I thank you once more for the inspiration you have given me.
If student has a song that left impression for any reason, dive in into lyrics can be helpful to learn new words, phrases, artistic expressions and so on.
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Very very effective, they will remember the lesson for a long time to come. Sometimes conventional teaching/learning is not the right choice, working and thinking outside the box creates interest, learning and full engagement.
Songs can also help to improve listening skills because they provide students with practice listening to different forms of intonation and rhythm.
- Nahir M.Certified ESL teacher Interactive Activities and Real-Life Scenarios Student-centred lessons
According to my experience, most students love working with songs or anything that is meaningful for them. Young children love music and are great at predicting what's next, in primary school students are so engaged that they always do their best, and even in secondary school students will give it a try if it is something that has some meaning for them. I not only use songs to introduce a story, but also to work on tenses, and to perfection skills as a whole.
Other student questions
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Hi My first advice is watching TV series and listening podcasts. In addition buying favourite books in English Best regards
- Which phrases do you find useful when making small talk in English?
Describe a specific situation where you will need to make small talk.
Best answer
I like to check in with my students about how they’ve been since our last class. This not only gives us a chance to practice small talk but also allows me to tailor the session to their individual experiences. E.g. Before we jump into today’s lesson, how was your weekend?
Best answer
"The dark side of the light chasers" By Debbie Ford. Simple and easy to understand for an intermediate-level student. (Self-growth)
