This is a guest post written by our friend, Lisa Yannucci. The songFrereJacquesis sungby kids in their native languages all over the globe. And kids everywhere know the tune. Morning bells are ringing! Ding dang dong! Bim bam bom! That makes it ideal to introduce children to international culture. Morning bells are ringing! After you hand out the lyrics, you could have the kids singFrereJacquesin the language they know it in....
Scientists seem to agree. The research is an ongoing process, and it is fascinating what is going on up there. Most of us non-scientists also agree that music can affect us in different ways. settle down for story time? Musicians themselves really ought to chime in, too, yes? (Gentle warning: watching TED Talks can easily take over your entire day…….!) We wouldnt have made it through school without music.
Felt boards can be purchased or made very easily. Spread the glue evenly on one side of the board and glue the felt to the board. Turn the board over. How many are in the bed?! Wrap and glue the edges to the back. Let dry thoroughly before you use. The smaller colorful felt will be used to make your characters. These seem to magically stick to the felt board!...
We recently posted a fascinating article about how bilinguals switch between languages on ourFacebook page. Parents often ask us for advice on raising their children bilingually. Parents want to do it and educators want to help. Educators who see children only once or twice a week are usually most concerned with exposure to the language. The more exposure, the better. Read about these situations inRaising Bilingual Children: The Snags. While the rest of us are speechless....
Before I went to Japan and started to teach kids, I ran a late night cafe in Dublin. Its an unacceptable situation that the TEFL industry has to look at. Havin a bit of fun! Havin’ a bit of fun! After a while, I was pretty much structuring my lessons around song. I would include at least four or five songs in a forty-minute lesson. Songs are a great way to get the languagein!...
Time to play cards! But wait: which one? And how to play with very young learners (preschool-aged and younger)? Time to play cards! Lets start with Concentration, also known as Memory. Younger children may not understand the game and may not react well to competitive elements of the game. So, here are some ideas for how to play Concentration with learners 5 and under. Step 1.Teach how to match things in general....
Using Songs With Small Groups Many of us have learned the advantages in using songs to teach large classes. Large classes can be amazingly fun, right? Quieter students either temporarily join in or hide behind the others while soaking in the song. Using Songs With Small Groups But in a small class, everyone can hear and see what everyone else is doing! Its harder to hide behind someone, and there is little or no crowd energy to pull everyone along....
Have a familiar story time routine.A routine is useful for helping students settle down for story time. To create a routine, try the following: a) Play story time music. This works well in classrooms, especially if you play the same music every time. b) Have a story time area. Yes, its wonderful to be able to plop down almost anywhere and any time to read. A fun and simple way to ensure students are listening and understanding is to make an occasional playful mistake....
Many factors go into making a childrens book a hit in your home or classroom. The story, the pictures, and the characters are all important. Your role in reading the book is an important factor as well. Here are 5 Simple Reading Tips it’s possible for you to try when reading picture books to children. If your children are beginning to read, have them help you read the title of the book....
Whats your favorite animal book? Update: A big thanks to everyone who shared their favorite animal-themed books! We assigned a number to each comment and used random.org to generate two random numbers. What’s your favorite animal book? The numbers were 7 and 27. This means the winning commenters were Gracenawati and Magdalena_B! Pleasecontact us through our websiteto let us know where we should send your CD! If you live somewhere were not able to ship to, well send a download version instead....
Need a quick and easy activity for the kids this holiday season? Practice shapes, colors and Christmas vocabulary with Shapes Christmas Trees. Simply download thisChristmas tree PDF templateand cut out the pieces according to the color guide. you could use felt, colored paper, or color them yourselves. To extend the activity, look for colors with I See Something Blue or I See Something Pink. Can you find something blue, yellow, red or purple?...
To help you out, weve put together a list of Christmas and wintertime blog posts. We wish you a wonderful holiday season! Christmas Blog Post Roundup Music and Movement Using GesturesUsing gestures with songs can really enhance language learning. Hows The Weather?Snowflake and snowman craft ideas. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! Worksheets and activities for Jingle Bells and 10 Little Elves. Christmas Topics ToysPractice discussing Christmas wants and wishes with What Do You Want For Christmas?...
The Skeleton Dance This song is based on a traditional spiritual hymn from the American South. Weve been asked numerous times what dem bones means. In addition to teaching on parts of the body, The Skeleton Dance helps teachleftandright. Left and Right One of the fun features of this song is working on left and right. Just keep practicing and have fun! This concept is best practiced consistently and in a variety of ways....
