#LangChat is dedicated to the discussion of topics associated with issues and trends in world language instruction and learning. Educators, administrators, learners, and aficionados of world languages are encouraged to participate and share their experiences and input on various topics such as new ways to teach vocabulary, using music in the language classroom, and making standards-based grading valid. This chat is also unique in that it brings together language educators worldwide and from different contexts (elementary, secondary, higher education, etc.) and languages.
Hola! I am Allison & I am one of your guest moderators tonight. I teach Spanish to grades 7-12 in Iowa. I LOVE using music in the classroom & am excited to chat tonight š¶ #langchat
I used Mulan and the Matchmaker to model How Not to Interview today in #Spanish class. Then Ss interviewed each other using questions adapted from #Google ! Fun story day.
#langchat#werchilton#tprs
#langchat French 2-AP at Mount Vernon High School in WA State. We have music playing everyday, every period. March brackets will be student-driven and thematic.
Noah in Denver. Me gusta la musica:) Been slacking on my playlists but here's a few of my 2017 faves for Spanish Teachers https://t.co/h3Z2Onz5OY#langchat
#langchat Hi! This is my first Twitter chat. My name is Anahi @ProfPariMHS and I teach at Melrose High School. I teach Spanish and Italian, Levels 2 (Spanish) and 4 (Italian).
A1 #langchat Music plays when students enter, when we are working on projects, & within our thematic units, usually 2-3 songs for theme, vocab & grammar.
Q1 how do I NOT use music?!? I can chant or sing just about everything I say. I also love music videos that tell a story with a simple catchy chorus. #langchat
A1: Music can be used for sooooo many things. Key for me is that it can hook language learners. Selfishly, it's a huge part of why I fell in love with Spanish so I want it on all day long! #langchat
A1: #langchat I use mĆŗsica for so many things! just because, to get in reps of target structures, to illustrate grammar pt, joined the #baileviernes bandwagon this semester, too!
Ā”Hola! #langchat Iām a first year teacher in Baltimore, MD teaching Spanish II to 8th graders. We just started locura de marzo today and theyāre already loving it! š¶
A1: Music is #authres love the reps in the chorus, engage Ss with culture & background info about singer/group, also used music as song competitions with Ss and for fun karaoke #langchat
A1 i love using music in the classroom. I try to use cultural so gs to rrepmohasize topics ee are studying in class. For example i played Pink Martini's Sympathique song when we went over La maison. #langchat
A1: I have music playing all the time! Noticing activities for new structures and themes is my go-to (other than having ss dance along to their fave songs) :) #langchat
Jason Talley, MS Latin in Dripping Springs, TX. I have used music/songs for beginning class and telling a story. Also have translated songs into Latin and teach them to the kids. Havenāt done it this year, though... #langchat
Great point! How many of our "real life" relationships have music at their roots? No reason we can't lean on music to form and strengthen relationships with students! #langchat
A1: definitely use music as reward/motivation, and to discuss themes or āgrammarā
Want to use it more for that hook. Get the inquiry flowing #langchat
A1: I love to use music as an authentic resource! Plus itās gives a break to practicing reading and writing. Itās nice to get to show my own interest with music! #langchat
A1: I also like to let the students listen to music while doing individual practice. For some it helps them concentrate better. And if it helps, Iām fine with it! #langchat
A1 I have used music/songs for beginning class and telling a story. Also have translated songs into Latin and teach them to the kids. Havenāt done it this year, though...yet. Also āsingā/recite lines of Latin poetry with Level 1s! #langchat
Exactly! Itās so much fun to watch a kid discover new music! I have seen Ss who came in apathetic and unmotivated become more active and interested in my class because they look forward to musique mardi/mercredi (we are on A/B block schedule) #langchat
I started @SenorAshby's Locura de Marzo and loved it. Doing it again this year and hope that my kids love it too! The kids I had last year begged their teacher this year to do it so I think that's a good sign! #langchat
A1: music and its rhythm is the international language of the soul! Thereās always music in class. I like to borrow clozelines from @Zamb0mbazo culture, grammar, phrases, #music has it all! #langchat
I invite classes to contribute to our YouTube playlists. They can add videos for our playlists through the link. Great way to bring in new artistes/ideas. #langchat A1
In reply to
@SenorG, @jaybeekay518, @MmeFarab, @SraDentlinger
A1 I use music to let Ss hear a taste of what kids their age hear in other cultures. We talk about genres, tone and meanings behind songs. I also use it as a means to show real life use of vocab and grammar. It also serves as a means of listening comprehension. #langchat
Last year my kids made music videos to their fave songs for world languages month--it took a lot of time, but it was so fun and they still talk about it! #langchat
A1: currently using music to do locura de marzo which enriches my classroom in the culture. But I also use it to teach grammar and vocabulary as well as using music to hook kids who arenāt invested into Spanish #langchat
A1: I'll share just 1 specific example. I use padlet to do an icebreaker where students share 1 of their favorite songs by a Latina/o artist (https://t.co/x9TQQpwxPP). Before each class, I play 1 of their songs and have students share briefly about why they chose it. #langchat
There's almost no better feeling than having a group of students break out in song during class, no? I had a large group of kids singing "French Kiss" spontaneously last week! #langchat
I've also used music to give each student their own "walkup song" like baseball players. Can then use their song to call on students, celebrate contest winners, etc https://t.co/8Spwav4F9i#langchat
A1: I'll share just 1 specific example. I use padlet to do an icebreaker where students share 1 of their favorite songs by a Latina/o artist (https://t.co/x9TQQpwxPP). Before each class, I play 1 of their songs and have students share briefly about why they chose it. #langchat
A2: I love to just have authentic music playing as students enter. We do #musicamiercoles with a new song that plays each week. We mostly just listen for fun #langchat
A2: Any way that will engage. Try to mix it up as even the most novel approach grows stale if repeated too often. One favorite is to have students guess WHY I picked the song (relevant vocab, culture connection, fell in love with the video, etc) #langchat
A2: #langchat I really enjoy if the song has a great video and I can MovieTalk the story, or if I can create a parallel story from it. The buy in is so much higher when they connect with the song!
A2: Showing the music video: During holidays (Edith Piaf at Valentine's Day etc.) or with new vocab/content (Tony Parker's La Famille when starting a unit on family) or nationalities/identity unit (Je Suis FranƧais by Black M) etc.) #langchat
FINALLY getting to listen to #inspiredproficiency and @profeashley and WOW @MundodePepita exactly what I needed - no need to throw every single celebration or holiday at students, it is just as (if not more) important to embed culture in our everyday class routines! #langchat
A2 every other week on Monday, I give the back story to the song/music video to hook my students, then we watch the music video. After that we follow "Song of the week approach https://t.co/Ju3M6grQb6#langchat
A2 I do a weekly musique mardi/mercredi as well as create an Apple Music radio station from their favorite songs to play as background work music #langchat
A1 #langchat I use music as a hook, to reinforce vocab and/or grammar, to connect w/the theme. I'd really like to figure out how to get my kids to dance to the music!
Q2: Because i use music to reinforce concepts i like to have thr srudents first just listen to the song, then take notes on words they recognize then i hand out the words in the target language and they listena third time following along. #langchat
A2: if you consider music lyrics as valuable #authres text, you can introduce by preteaching vocabulary with diff activities, use images from music video to make predictions, use chorus-create an image, focus on title of song- create ?s to hook students based title #langchat
A2 I will let students listen to multiple songs from one or more artists and then ask for which they liked most and why. I will also ask what they understood from the song and if they could tell the mood of the song (joy, breakup, mourning, etc.) #langchat
A1 #langchat I'm going to use your bracket idea. We have also done this for the Latin Grammys in September: fill out the ballots the day before then check the winners. Assign students a song and have them 1) translate; 2) summarize; 3) provide a comparable song; 4) analyze video
A2: I usually will play new music while they work BUT my favorite way is when my Hispanic students show me whatās new and fun to listen to and we share it for the class. #langchat
A2 I like to have francophone music playing in the background during stations, or when students enter room. Use as auth res for various themes #langchat
A1: oh yes, this year students learned #SignLanguage and gestures to a Christmas song and we started learning them for Vivir Mi Vida by @MarcAnthony#langchat
A1: Iām doing a MĆŗsica Marzo bracket to expose my classes to more diverse Spanish music (but thereās no dethroning Meneaito or Mi Gente). Added bonus: they leave their comfort zones and talk to new people when the match-ups get harder (āI donāt know which to choose!ā) #langchat
A2 - If our intention is to sing the song, I'll play the song at the normal speed and then play it at a slower speed to focus on certain words or the melody. They always insist on hearing it at a super fast speed too! It is a fun challenge to try keeping up! #langchat
A1 - I love using music to reinforce grammar concepts. For example, if we are learning about possessive adjectives, I look for a song that uses mi/mis, tu/tus, nuestro/nuestros... etc. #langchat
A2: I love to introduce it with a gesture reading of the chorus. Learned about gesture readings from @sonrisadelcampo. She has the BEST ideas! #langchat
REMINDER: We use a Q1/A1 format on #langchat. Q1 means Question 1 and you put A1 to mean Answer 1 (meaning you're answering Question 1). Also, include #langchat in your answers so we can all see it! :)
A1 (contād): but the best is when students come in the next day and tell me they heard a song from class on a ānormal playlistā and they recognized it. They get so excited! #langchat
A2: I sometime use lyrics as a discovery for a grammar topic. And i hope to use songs to incorporate social justice if there is one that fits my theme. Itās a great way for the students to connect language and a meaningful use. #langchat
A2 Not *in* the classroom, but we got permission to play TL songs in all four languages during passing time for all of world languages week! It's fun to see the kids dance along in the halls--and good visibility for the program! :) #langchat
I do the same thing with the Latin Grammys. Kids love it. This year I created a hashtag and we tweeted about our reactions during the broadcast #langchat
A2: Also love using some of the quirky songs out there for different brain breaks if I have more than one learning episode in during a class #langchathttps://t.co/k0eb96umIN
A2: I had a phase of being obsessed with My Maps on Google and having students make their own Mundo de Musica maps where pins would contain music vids from hometowns of the bands ss chose #langchat
I agree. I like to let the students just listen to the song (at through the 1st chorus) before we start talking about the themes or working with the lyrics. #langchat
A2: Also love using some of the quirky songs out there for different brain breaks if I have more than one learning episode during one class #langchat
Like this one: https://t.co/k0eb96umIN
A2: sometimes with units we are learning, sometimes because we need something beautiful to take our minds off the awful things that happen in our world. Listened to AbrĆ”zame by Camilla š¶mi abrazo es un arma sin filoš¶ #langchat
#langchat A3 favoriteS - there is no way to choose 1. 1 of ours is "Derniers baisers/Last Kisses" by Laurent Volzy. It's about summer love & growing up. We listen to it in Sept & compare to "Summer Nights" from "Grease." Classic!
#langchat A3: my favorite song to use in class has always been ironic by alanis or if i was you by m trainor . The former good for literary device and the latter good for grammar
A2: Over New Years, a Honduran friend taught me a dance. I taught my kids in January, and now these 11 year-olds are OBSESSED with a low-quality dance jam from 1996. Who am I to argue with Meneaito? #langchat
A3: #authres songs by Juanes, Enrique, Marc Anthony and anything current/appropriate #nonauthres@senorwooly ās songs are great and the ācanciones de hiphopā in Realidades have some good hooks #langchat
I love playing Selena - We watch her biography and the movie and reflect about her life. Students get so excited when they hear her music come on and ask for it often! #langchat
A3: There are just too many - I love using songs for so many different reasons and at many different times~impossible to choose just one ~ but Ss still love the classics Elle Me Dit & Bisso Na Bisso #langchat
#langchat A2: I usually play the song first, encourage them to dance and/or sing along, next I have them listen again and try to write any words that they recognize. I continue to layer it up to the main focus which could either be vocab and/or grammar with fill ins for a cloze
A3. This year my students' favorite was On ecrit sur les murs by Kids United. I love the song's message & found lots of articles/websites to read about group #langchat
My new favorite is
"Je sais" by Shy'M my students loved it and we had a great discussion about diversity since she her family comes from la Martinique #langchat
A3 It is hard to pick one song. I would have to say either Nada fue un error by @CotiOficial or Fotografia by @juanes because they have a relatable message to kids and use comprehensible input. #langchat
I can be a wet blanket on qualifications... I have to have more than just that students like it. It has to be useful and speak meaning, not catchy sexist demeaning trash. #sorrynotsorry#langchat#Icansayno#Noroomfor4
Absolutely. Tengo tu love and Vivir mi vida, maybe top novice Spanish songs of ALL time. Also like Me voy (Julieta Venegas) #langchat#highfrequency#funplusclean
A3: I have my own personal favorites to use in class but each class seems to adopt its own favorite song! My classes right now like Soy Yo, Nunca, anything by Morat, and all of Sr Woolyās songs! #langchat
A2 āfortune tellerā by A H Hafez. Tells a story and can be interpreted different ways. Good for past narration, and culture- shows Arab appreciation for music #langchat
#langchat A3 My favorites change. Some of my major go-to's are bc of what I teach: bailando for pres prog, a dios le pido for pronouns and subjunctive, que hiciste for pret vs imp
TBH On Ecrit Sur Les Murs changed the theme of my teaching two years ago - I agree about the message that needs to be repeated over and over. So relevant #langchat
A3. This year my students' favorite was On ecrit sur les murs by Kids United. I love the song's message & found lots of articles/websites to read about group #langchat
This! I totally forgot to mention this excellent resource for #Spanish teachers: Latin Music USA (although some of the interviews do have a few spicy words. https://t.co/VzOIe2Bjyq#langchat
I LOVE Carlos Vives! The year VolvĆ a nacer won Song of the Year redeemed the @LatinGRAMMYs for me. Also an oldie full of meaning & usefulness: 19 de noviembre #langchat
A3: I have my own personal favorites to use in class but each class seems to adopt its own favorite song! My classes right now like Soy Yo, Nunca, anything by Morat, and all of Sr Woolyās songs! #langchat
I actually expose the table dance reference with my students up front... they don't know what it is even, but I want to make his point that this is not love #langchat
A3 - My favorite song is BEBE's "Ella" b/c the lyrics are all about self-love. So many great grammar reinforcements too... discussion about the dialect in Spain, etc. https://t.co/M19KwuFNuUhttps://t.co/tZTiezNG32#langchat
I wish my HS Spanish teachers had used more music in class! I only discovered Latin music in college and itās my absolute favorite! Iām excited to be able to expose my students to different genres now as a teacher #langchat
A4: I pick songs to use in class for a variety of reasons - cultural hook, country specific, super catchy, wanting to expose students to diverse music, etc #langchat
A4: i admit wholeheartedly that it is NOT my forte to find songs that fit what I want, so I HAPPILY invest in others that do that work for me! #langchat
A4: Does it either 1) challenge ss conceptions about what Francophone music can be or 2) bring a unique linguistic/cultural element or 3) BOTH? If yes, it's on my playlist! #langchat
A4: I appreciate songs that are musically interesting, culturally significant, level-appropriate, and thematically matching for our unit. It helps if there is a fun music video! #langchat
Can be especially cool if bands are brand new and undiscovered bc they'll actually answer your message...got multiple bands discovered on his show to skype in with classes. Such a great way to hook Ss on songs! #langchat
Can be especially cool if bands are brand new and undiscovered bc they'll actually answer your message...got multiple bands discovered on his show to skype in with classes. Such a great way to hook Ss on songs! #langchat
A4: I think: How much is/can be made comprehensible? Are the lyrics/videos clean? Will they love the music? Will this help connection to culture? #langchat
Sad panda moment: when your SLA class is all about the linguistics and not the methodology. I am drowning in details I don't need to understand and losing my passion to learn and care. I know that linguistics is the bedrock of what we do, but it's just so....minute and tedious.
A4: It depends... if itās for the lyrics, I choose it based on comprehensibility and try to pick songs with the structures weāre working on. Sometimes itās for a theme or because the artist is from the country/area weāre talking about. #langchat
Appreciate "can be made comprehensible" & connections especially. This knocked out La bicicleta for me. I couldn't tell what that song was about much less figure out what to use it for. #justme#toeachhisherown#langchat
A4: I think: How much is/can be made comprehensible? Are the lyrics/videos clean? Will they love the music? Will this help connection to culture? #langchat
A4 The Ss usually come in and share it with me especially the native speakers. I can usual connect it to something we are working on. When they choose it they are more engaged. #langchat
A4: Diversity, representation, and inclusion are always big factors for me when choosing music (or any resource, really). I make sure that my students see black and brown faces and hear a variety of dialects and perspectives from all over the Spanish-speaking world. #langchat
It all depends on your goal! I know some teachers go much deeper as itās own unit. I personally sprinkle the bracket in with other units simultaneously #langchat
A4: Diversity, representation, and inclusion are always big factors for me when choosing music (or any resource, really). I make sure that my students see black and brown faces and hear a variety of dialects and perspectives from all over the Spanish-speaking world. #langchat
A4 I like songs where the singer has good pronunciation for the students and I try to pick songs that are diverse, meaning they represent different francophone cultures. #langchat
Updated my Bitmoji for 1st time in yrs. Itās like a cruel social experiment - well, I definitely have bags under my eyes so letās add that. Am I still the same size? Oh, forehead lines now? Genial. Pero- THEYāRE EN ESPAĆOL! #langchat me muero. Endless possibilities en la clase.
Haha it's about staying in touch with your roots and small town life, even after fame and fortune... right? At least that's what my students think now. #langchat
A4 - I look for songs with a lot of repetition, relevant vocabulary, and past/new grammar concepts. Love @SrWooly's idea to teach a song and then have students do a verbal "fill in the blank" to sing it with you! #langchat
A4 : @EnseignerTV5 is a wonderful resource for French music! & then it's often what I like to listen to āŗ @beatricepirate Radio Radio, Corneille #langchat
#langchat A4 could topic (theme/vocab/grammar), current event, or recent song I heard and/or liked and/or recent song a student heard and/or liked. I also encourage kids to suggest songs for me to put on Profe's Playlist- which apparently is a 'thing' for them
A4 I look for songs from artists all over the Francophone world for my weekly songs - it is such an easy yet meaningful way to emphasize the diversity of the many Francophone countries #langchat
A4: Deciding factors:
āļø features Daddy Yankee
āļø features Prince Royce
āļø heard it in Zumba class
āļø Produced by Looney Tunes
āļø Appears on Chicas del Cable or Casa de Papel
#langchat
A4 On the rare occasion I get suggestions from kids but I have to screen them to make sure it is not objectifying women and otherwise appropriate. But other than that I use my many tastes (folk, pop, rock, mariachi).
#langchat
A4: I definitely agree with diverse singers and music styles. And I'll add that 1--% comprehensibility is not always a deal-breaker for me. Last week in Paris when we were stuck on the RER in the snow on the way from CDG airport, 1/2 #langchat
A4: Sincerely, my top discovery tool is to look up the top music charts by country on Spotify and to check out what's trending in different Spanish-speaking countries #langchat
the man on the speaker telling us about the icy rails was not 100% comprehensible. My kids laughed & thanked me for all the crummy listening samples where they didn't hear it all, but still understood the main message. Authentic is sometimes messy. 2/2 #langchat
A5 1) Latin Billboard (often mostly trash, though) 2) @sraslb's blog posts (I'm terrible at Pinterest) 3) my Pandora station and 4) Mi clase es su clase blog https://t.co/9puV30g1So and 5) #langchat
A5 my absolute best resource right now is Apple Music. Iāve discovered so many great songs by creating radio stations based on my personal favorite Francophone songs #langchat
A5: French charts; Songs that are frequently played on French radio; what people listen to when I am in France in the summer; stsā favorite songs; other teachers in PLN #langchat
A5 - That's what I'm here to find! I don't really have a go-to resource for finding songs... aside from Top 40 hits which really need to be "screened" first and aren't always appropriate. #langchat
A5: @Zamb0mbazo , google songs I hear when I travel and my ever growing playlist. But thanks to u guys, I now have more resources to check out!!! #langchat
I will say, now that Iām not teaching high schoolers, itās harder to find good songs! They were also some of my best recommenders. āHey Mlle, you should listen to...ā #langchat
A5 I honestly just try to keep up with new suggested videos on YouTube! Thatās how I discover most of what I use in the classroom. When I hear a great song I bookmark it āŗļø #langchat
Precisely. And getting the main idea is the most important part. If you like a song on the radio in your home culture, you'll look up the lyrics you don't understand...
A1 I use music to get the Ss in whatever mood I need from them Si estƔn locos, it's smooth latin jazz, if they need a dose of excitement, something with a quick beat. #langchat
#langchat This year, my colleague and I had kids search for and nominate songs for this year's Manie Musicale. And they voted for one comeback from last year's bracket.
A5: I also have Sirius radio and thereās a station called Caliente I believe. So good! And sometimes Pitbull radio has some authentic songsāthat one is hit or miss. #langchat
If you were to ask the question, "Wendy, have you been updating your blog because you forgot to post you #maniemusicale2018 songs choices and it's already March?" the answer would be a strong YES. #langchat
A5: my host family's teenage kids, and host family parents, songs I hear when I am traveling, and youtube + random high frequency words from my unit. #langchat
Isnāt it great to easily look up lyrics? I used to unfold the tiny insert on cassette tapes just to realize I had been singing incorrect lyrics for so long! #langchat
A5 #langchat My lack of knowledge about any English-language music is due to my affinity for music from other countries. We should try to keep up with curent hits, but honor classics.
For example: I once saw that Amigos Invisibles were coming to town so I invited them to my school and 2 band members actually came and hung out in our cafeteria for an hour. If you don't ask, they can't tell you YES!!! #langchat
A5 #langchat My lack of knowledge about any English-language music is due to my affinity for music from other countries. We should try to keep up with curent hits, but honor classics.
TA to quote Madonna āmusic makes the people come togetherā And it is an incredible way to relate vocabulary, grammar & culture to a thematic unit #langchat
For example: I once saw that Amigos Invisibles were coming to town so I invited them to my school and 2 band members actually came and hung out in our cafeteria for an hour. If you don't ask, they can't tell you YES!!! #langchat
Thanks to the moderators and all of the awesome Teachers who shared and lurked! So cherish when I get to sneak in a #langchat on my Thursday!!!! Great chat y'all!
