Even if you can’t carry a tune in a bucket, don’t play an instrument, or teach only upper-level students you need to be using music in your online classroom. While both of my college degrees are in music education and this comes naturally to me, today I want to share 9 tips to help you get started using music in your classroom. Make sure you grab the FREE DOWNLOAD at the end – it includes all 9 tips as well as video examples that are not available publicly on my YouTube channel.
DO NOT use an instrument in your classroom without testing the sound first
If you do choose to use an instrument in class, please test the volume balance carefully in advance. Your microphone needs to clearly pick up both your voice in addition to the instrument. Remember that the student needs to be able to clearly hear the modeling of the Native English speaker as that is a key feature that parents are paying for.
We don’t want a deafening level of the instrument and an impossible to hear vocal track. We also don’t want to see a teacher who is enjoying a rich musical experience, while not realizing that the headset they are wearing is not really picking up the instrument at all for the student’s experience.
If your platform offers a test classroom, take the time to explore how your microphone will balance these two elements. Consider recording your screen, logged in as the student on another device to hear what your future student will hear.
If your platform does not offer a test classroom, use the instrument for a short segment at the end of a class and watch the class recording later to reflect on the audio balance.
DO NOT sing along to a recording
Audio lag is something you will adjust to as an online teacher. You will increase student wait time and learn how not to be prompting with the next instruction while the student is answering.
That same audio lag means that if you sing along to a provided musical track, while it will sound wonderful to you, the student will not benefit as the music they will hear will not line up with your singing. This will be less helpful for them, as they miss out on your modeling and it can also be confusing or even end in negative parent feedback.
Try using the whole-part-whole strategy (see below) or start singing but then drop out to let the student continue on their own. You also may want to try listening to the music with the student (who may or may not decide to try to sing along). As the teacher, you can reinforce the song with your body motions or with props related to the lyrics.
DO NOT get fancy
This is not the time to show-off and give a concert. Even if your student seems like they are doing well, please don’t attempt rounds, canons, or two-part harmony.
Always keep the main objective of the lesson in mind and choose musical strategies that support that objective.
RHYTHMIC CHANTING
A rhythmic chant can spice up a dry verb conjugation chart and help students remember those S endings with a simple musical reminder on any slide.
Pairing a difficult sentence or phrase with a rhythm and keeping it consistent for the whole unit can help the extra practice seem like a fun activity rather than a frustrating correction.
Sometimes a lesson may include a song but your student does not want to sing. Chanting rhythmically can still take advantage of the musical benefits in their learning sequence, without creating an unneeded power struggle.
I have provided a video demonstration of this technique in your FREE DOWNLOAD today.
BEHAVIOR CUE
Our very young students can be overwhelmed easily. When we use too much incidental language trying to correct a behavior, it often increases the undesirable behavior.
If the student is not responding to your gestures, they may respond to an auditory cue. Any time you can limit the amount of teacher talk in the classroom, you are winning in my book.
I might sing “Eyes, Please” and soon I can use that same cue gently, without the words, to bring the student’s attention back to the learning task.
Remember, when a student’s language is limited, a familiar cue can bring great comfort and help them feel ready to learn.
As a teacher, sometimes we are speaking to explain a concept while other times we are speaking to give instructions. Singing the vocabulary which I want them to repeat can help students understand when they should actively participate by repeating (versus passively listening).
Changing your inflection as the activity types change can increase your students’ confidence quite a bit.
I have provided a video demonstration of this technique in your FREE DOWNLOAD today.
MEMORY LINK
When you pair a tune with a new vocabulary word or phrase a link is created. Later, I can prompt a student, remind a student, and boost their confidence using this musical tune.
Using a piggyback song is a common strategy. Take a familiar tune that the student already knows and change the words, linking the new content with something already in the student’s memory.
I have provided a video demonstration of this technique in your FREE DOWNLOAD today.
CLASSROOM COMMAND COMFORT
Early on in the curriculum, when students are learning letters, I use a simple tune ‘____ is for ____’
If I use this tune consistently, with the same hand gestures, every time we learn a new letter, I remove the need for wordy teacher directions and help the student’s brain store all of that information together in one place.
I can also use this song with a shy student because the musical tension will give the student the bravery to fill-in-the-blank.
When you have a student who needs frequent reminders of using a full sentence, a familiar tune can save the day again.
If your student needs to practice using a full sentence many times to build a great habit, varying the pitches each time can make it easier to keep the lesson interesting with plenty of student practice opportunities.
I have provided a video demonstration of this technique in your FREE DOWNLOAD today.
WHOLE-PART-WHOLE
When your lesson begins with a song, you may want to use a whole-part-whole strategy to teach it to the student.
First, listen to the full song.
Next, practice small parts, while underlining the text.
Put the small parts together into larger parts.
Finally, listen to the full song and invite the student to try to sing the parts they think they know well.
Breaking the song into small bites that are the right size for that student will give them reps at a slow speed and build their confidence. Roem wasn’t built in a day and it is okay if the student doesn’t perfect the song in one lesson, but taking one small part and helping them improve it will help them build and build during the unit.
I have provided a video demonstration of this technique in your FREE DOWNLOAD today.
SONGWRITING
Upper-level students might be able to give you ideas for a variation on a verse. For example, Mary Wore A Red Dress has plenty of repetition so students can join in with confidence. The predictable structure also allows students to insert their own names, the names of their toys, and practice clothing and color vocabulary.
I have provided a video demonstration of this technique in your FREE DOWNLOAD today.
Adding music to your classes isn’t an additional burden – it is a tool to make the learning journey go smoothly. If you think back to your early childhood learning memories in your native tongue, they were likely filled with songs. The tunes you learned as a child stuck with you in your memory for decades. You were exposed to many vocabulary words and grammar rules long before you were able to speak at that level. Music is a powerful tool and I hope you will try something new in your classroom this week. Let me know in the comments below how you use music in your classroom and make sure you grab the FREE DOWNLOAD below.
