Neither you nor I own one word in any language that we did not personally select, drawn from the crucible of situation and problem-solving. Selection of vocabulary requires opportunity to do so, and plenty of it. The following personal anecdote should clearly illustrate the concept of linguistic self-selection. 

I was seated at a corner table in a New Jersey Italian restaurant, away from windows, with  my back to the wall; a custom born of viewing The Godfather Trilogy too many times. 

At the neighboring table, seven adults and one three year old boy were seated. I use ‘seated’ as a relative term with reference to the three year old as little boys of that age rarely do what we refer to as ‘sitting’.  More precisely, he was twitching, sliding, swinging and generally trying to find as many uses for the chair as possible during the meal. I lost track at use number 17…

By the time that the adults had ordered their respective meals, I had already finished my antipasto and was now contentedly awaiting my main course. Everyone at the neighboring table had ordered substantial meals, with the exception of the little boy, who was to dine upon the obligatory burger, accompanied by fries, soda and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Watching this child was like watching Mount St. Helen. The question I pondered was not whether there would be an eruption, but rather when that eruption would occur. After two bites of his burger, a few nibbles of his fries, downing the entire soda and devouring the ice cream, he was now done! Unfortunately, his adult dinner mates were just beginning. He was not pleased by the prospects of having to endure this much longer.

At precisely the hour and fifteen minute mark, the eruption occurred. Unable to control himself any longer, the three year old threw his hands up in the air, brought them back down on his chubby little knees and, in a little pipe organ voice, intoned the following phrase: “Let’s get the h­_ _l outta’ here!”

The restaurant, which heretofore had been filled with quiet conversation and the sound of tinkling china and silverware, now fell to a hush. All eyes turned to the child, who now oozed down into his bolster seat in an attempt to attain safe harbor somewhere below the table. I, of course, did all I could not to laugh out loud!

Still, the best part of this entire interlude centered upon the look that the mother shot across the table to the father. If a glare could vaporize human tissue, this man would have been become particles in the atmosphere. Her message, attested to by the kinesics of her body language, went something like this: “You see! Don’t I tell you not to talk that way in front of the baby! You see how he IMITATES you!”

To say that the 3 year old simply imitated his father would be to imply that the child was a hapless victim of ambient or ‘drive-by’ language; that the child was the ‘passive’ recipient of language that he never intended to own. To the contrary, I would submit to you that humans aggressively select language that is pertinent to their lives; language that helps them to resolve problems. We select our own lexicon.

Did the father use the phrase that the child so succinctly deployed? Beyond a doubt! Was the child present when the father used the phrase? Clearly! But, the 3 year old heard it and said to himself, “I like that! I’ll file that for future reference!” And so he did. And the fact that he waited one hour and fifteen minutes to deploy proves to me that this was not an act of imitation. Just as his father, he waited to deploy until the situation was intolerable.

The statement was age inappropriate, but devastatingly ‘proficient’…

If you believe, as I sincerely do, that language (vocabulary) is 'self-selected', then the classroom must employ mechanisms that encourage self-selection. And those mechanisms must be compelling in nature in order for the language acquirer to engage mentally, emotionally and physically.

My Spanish and French raps (¡Festejemos!, Somos campeones, la Boutique magique and une Boum cool), distributed here on this site by Songs for Teaching, are designed to do just that. Through contemporary beats, focus on specific linguistic functions and colorful animations that provide 'comprehensible input', my music aims to support the 'subconscious' acquisition of language.

Certainly all of us have experienced a melody or song lyrics that we 'just can't get out of our heads' ... Even though there was no discrete attempt made at memorization! In this manner, it is my hope that my raps will effortlessly creep into your student's mind. And, of course, the culminating activity in the process is a performance of the rap, replete with 'bling' and hip-hop garb! ... WORD!

John De Mado produces and records instructional Spanish and French rap albums that feature original raps and animations designed to teach specific language functions and related vocabulary.

Most of us are taught to think outside the box, be creative, try hard, and do our best; and for the most part we all strive for this, even pushing our students to follow these same guidelines. But what happens when that’s not enough? What happens when you are bound by standards, guidelines and objectives? How do we continue to strive to be our best, creative and to think outside the box?

Music continues to be my answer for most learning situations. I can use music to think outside the box and be creative, while still maintaining my obligation to the teaching standards, and our daily classroom objectives. We might be bound to follow a given curriculum or stick to a given set of standards but we also have an obligation to push the limits of our creativity and remember to hold ourselves to the same standards that we require of our students. Music can easily provide that link.

Your story of the week might be Brothers and Sisters by Ellen B. Senisi, so why not integrate a song about family differences. You might be teaching a lesson on Rocks and Soil changes, songs about science would be a perfect addition to the learning, and don't forget math! Multiplication can be such a bore, but some skip counting songs just might do the trick to help those silly facts really stick! So don’t forget to push yourself to be more than just the standards on the wall and add some fun and creativity to your classroom through music.

-Andrea Villegas
Andrea is a mother of two (a three year old and one year old) and has been teaching primary school for seven years. She currently teaches second grade in Southern California. She states, "Music is a part of my everyday life at home as well as in the classroom."

As a teacher, putting on a musical performance can seem like a daunting undertaking. But, here’s the answer! Use curriculum-related songs that the students have been singing throughout the year! Then, it’s just a matter of putting the songs together with a simple script and showing everyone all the information that has been learned. It’s also a great way to give every child, who wishes, a chance to shine by giving them a solo line or verse. It’s something the students always remember…and the parents love it! 

Social studies is often the neglected subject (even though it is still required!), and it’s a great one to learn through music. Since knowing about our country and its government, important historical figures, patriotic holidays, and patriotic symbols is so important for every student in America, performing this “Patriotic Holidays and Symbols Program” should almost be required. It includes a February President’s Day song, “We Salute the Presidents,” along with the other songs in the program from two CDs: Learning About Patriotic Holidays and Symbols by Song and Learning About American History by Song. All the songs are easy to sing, but packed with information, keeping the non-musical teacher in mind. The information is reinforced with downloadable workbooks. Accompaniment tracks are included. 

Here is a sample of the program script . . . 

Patriotic Holidays and Symbols Musical                                   

#1 Speaker:  We would like to welcome you to our patriotic musical.  Recently, we have been studying about citizenship and patriotic symbols in social studies.  We have learned a lot of important facts and concepts through music.  Pay close attention to the lyrics of our songs and maybe you’ll learn something, too.

 #2  Speaker:  First, we will sing about a very important document:  the Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson.  It was the official paper signed by our founding fathers on July 4^th, 1776, declaring the reasons why the colonists wanted their independence from England.  The opening part of the Declaration is very famous:

 Everyone:  “We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights:  that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

 Song:  Declaration of Independence

# 3 Speaker:  Eleven years after the signing of the Declaration, the United States Constitution was signed by 40 delegates at Independence Hall in Philadelphia.  This amazing document has lasted over 200 years and is one of the oldest constitutions in the world.  Over one hundred countries have used it for a model in creating their own constitutions.

#4 Speaker:  Our national government now requires that every student, kindergarten through college, learn about this wonderful document.  Every September 17^th is Constitution Day, which celebrates the anniversary of the signing of the Constitution in 1787.  Our next song, called “In the Constitution,” helps us understand the three important branches of our government, the twenty-seven amendments, and our individual rights. 

Song:  In the Constitution

 #5 Speaker:  We are proud of our government based on liberty, freedom, and equality.  We want to try to be good citizens in all areas of our lives:  in our homes, at school, and in our community.  Our next song (which is actually part cheer) is called “I Am a Citizen.”

Song:   I Am a Citizen

For the entire script please click here! 

In the wake of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School last month, I find myself thinking (again) about the need for mental health services and social-emotional learning programs in our schools.  Too often, children grow up without the wisdom and support of informed adults helping them navigate the rough waters of childhood. In the 1990’s and early 2000’s, I worked as a trainer in schools, helping teachers create peaceable classrooms and helping students learn about skills and concepts to do with emotions, life skills, and conflict resolution. I believe that teaching children how to communicate with each other and providing opportunities for them to practice it in a structured classroom setting can go a long way in improving the emotional health of children.

In a peaceable classroom, students learn that everyone needs and deserves to be listened to. Listening is all about giving and receiving attention, and attention is a powerful gift! I sometimes say “attention heals,” because if we have a problem or are having some hard feelings, simply getting attention can help us feel better. Giving students frequent chances to engage each other in pairs can help replenish their attention so they have more available fortheir teacher as needed. This need not take any more than two minutes; through practice, students get use to quickly exchanging attention.

There are many ways to teach and incorporate sharing attention in a classroom. The simple structure of “Pair Shares” (Kagan model of Cooperative Learning) is the most efficient, allowing for everyone in the class to exchange attention simultaneously. Having a person’s full and undivided attention around a specified topic, be it academic (“I think the settlers’ life was hard because...”) or affect oriented (e.g. “Today I feel.... because....”) can help a child have more attention for the learning to come. Electronic timers come in handy for this helping children share equally and training students to be succinct.

I wrote the song “Listen!” as a fun way to remind children of the importance of sharing attention. The melody is from a Sufi chant (by Paramhansa Yogananda) that I learned long ago. Many students tell me that it is their favorite song on my CD (Come Join the Circle). I suspect they love it in part because of the message in the chorus: “We all want to be heard!” Children are starving to be heard. Teachers can help by acknowledging that need and structuring opportunities for it to be met. And how much more enlivened andenriched is a classroom where the children are heard!

-Paulette Meier

Paulette is a singer/songwriter from Cincinnati, Ohio who uses songs to reinforce skills and concepts in peacemaking with children. Her work in schools as a trainer in conflict resolution and positive discipline provided many real life scenarios for her songs.  The album,  Come Join the Circle: LessonSongs for Peacemaking, is used in classrooms across the country and is also distributed by the United Nations Bookstore in NYC. Currently she works as a teacher's aide in urban public schools, and provides song programs for libraries and after school programs to do with peace, justice, and earth care.  She also sings with a group called, "Just Earth" at farmer's markets, coffee houses, and wherever a song is needed to lift spirits and sing out for a better world!"