Don't you just love when you can incorporate music into your classroom? Seriously. My students love to listen to music as they work and we always have a deal that as long as they are working quietly I will play music. Now, I'm not talking crazy rap and I'm not talking always classical either. I'm talking popular music with a slight twist.
Know what it is?
Kids movie songs. Yes, you heard me correctly I said kids movie songs. When new kids movies come out I try to figure out what songs are going to be popular with my students. Do I really go to all of those movies to figure that out? No! I use my own kids as guinea pigs and see what they like and then try it in my classroom. If my two sons will dance around my living room to it chances are it's on my school playlist. Now I don't keep much on there, and I do monitor for lyrics, but watching my students bop their heads to the music or sing out loud is always fun. I sing right along with them which makes them laugh (I have a horrible singing voice!) but they just smile and keep working.
Why do I go out of my way to find music to play in my classroom that I may not like? Remember those smiles I mentioned above? That's what makes this worth it. Without those smiles I wouldn't do it. Sometimes you have to show your students you're willing to work with them and not against them when it comes to learning.
We as teachers sometimes take advantage of the fact that we are the boss in our classrooms. By no means am I a perfect teacher, as I have been guilty of this many times. In fact, just two years ago my classroom was not a place that I liked to be and that was my own fault as much as my students'. I had some very difficult behaviors that I had to constantly deal with which upset the balance I typically have in my classroom by a lot. It was a year of revelations for me and the summer after it I regained my passion for teaching, did a lot of self-care, and went into the school year ready to show my incoming students who the boss was, and then they blew my mind and were completely different than the previous year. I could joke with them and they'd laugh, or I could express very calmly that I was disappointed in their behavior and things would change. I couldn't do that the previous year without having to raise my voice over students who were rude, loud, throwing things, or disruptive just because they thought it was funny. It's not a year I was proud of myself, but it is definitely a year where I learned a lot about myself and classroom environments.
When you create a classroom environment that is respectful and conducive to learning you will see results. One thing I have found with my students is that if I play music they are quieter because they want to hear what I have selected for them that day. Sometimes they're slow and sweet songs, sometimes they're upbeat, but they are always kid friendly and fun. I once showed them that I knew the majority of a popular song in sign language because we use sign language at home (more on that in another post). They thought that was amazing and wanted to learn. We connected and that's what matters most.
So do I love all kids songs? No, but finding music I can play in my classroom to make my students smile trumps my need for rock any day of the week.
So what do I play? I'm so glad you asked! Here are some of our favorites that I have on my phone and bluetooth to my speaker throughout the day:
1. Best Day of My Life - American Authors
2. Just the Way you Are - Bruno Mars
3. Demons - Imagine Dragons
4. On Top of the World - Imagine Dragons (my kids loved Imagine Dragons!)
5. Roar - Katy Perry
6. Good Time - Owl City & Carly Rae Jepsen
7. Shake it Off - Taylor Swift (which is what I know in ASL)
8. Smile - Uncle Kracker
9. Let it Go - Idina Menzel
10. Where you Are - Moana Soundtrack
11. How Far I'll Go - Moana Soundtrack
12. We Know the Way - Moana Soundtrack
13. How Far I'll Go (Reprise) - Moana Soundtrack
14. You're Welcome - Moana Soundtrack (a big time favorite among my students!)
15. Shiny - Moana Soundtrack
16. A Thousand Years - Christina Perri
17. Shut Up and Dance - Walk the Moon (another giant favorite of theirs!)
18. Try Everything - Shakira
19. Happy - Pharrell Williams
20. I am Moana - Moana Soundtrack
By the way, I teach 4th graders if that helps any. And my 3 & 4 year old's love these songs too! Good luck this coming year! What are some tunes you play in your classrooms?
Know what it is?
Kids movie songs. Yes, you heard me correctly I said kids movie songs. When new kids movies come out I try to figure out what songs are going to be popular with my students. Do I really go to all of those movies to figure that out? No! I use my own kids as guinea pigs and see what they like and then try it in my classroom. If my two sons will dance around my living room to it chances are it's on my school playlist. Now I don't keep much on there, and I do monitor for lyrics, but watching my students bop their heads to the music or sing out loud is always fun. I sing right along with them which makes them laugh (I have a horrible singing voice!) but they just smile and keep working.
Why do I go out of my way to find music to play in my classroom that I may not like? Remember those smiles I mentioned above? That's what makes this worth it. Without those smiles I wouldn't do it. Sometimes you have to show your students you're willing to work with them and not against them when it comes to learning.
We as teachers sometimes take advantage of the fact that we are the boss in our classrooms. By no means am I a perfect teacher, as I have been guilty of this many times. In fact, just two years ago my classroom was not a place that I liked to be and that was my own fault as much as my students'. I had some very difficult behaviors that I had to constantly deal with which upset the balance I typically have in my classroom by a lot. It was a year of revelations for me and the summer after it I regained my passion for teaching, did a lot of self-care, and went into the school year ready to show my incoming students who the boss was, and then they blew my mind and were completely different than the previous year. I could joke with them and they'd laugh, or I could express very calmly that I was disappointed in their behavior and things would change. I couldn't do that the previous year without having to raise my voice over students who were rude, loud, throwing things, or disruptive just because they thought it was funny. It's not a year I was proud of myself, but it is definitely a year where I learned a lot about myself and classroom environments.
When you create a classroom environment that is respectful and conducive to learning you will see results. One thing I have found with my students is that if I play music they are quieter because they want to hear what I have selected for them that day. Sometimes they're slow and sweet songs, sometimes they're upbeat, but they are always kid friendly and fun. I once showed them that I knew the majority of a popular song in sign language because we use sign language at home (more on that in another post). They thought that was amazing and wanted to learn. We connected and that's what matters most.
So do I love all kids songs? No, but finding music I can play in my classroom to make my students smile trumps my need for rock any day of the week.
So what do I play? I'm so glad you asked! Here are some of our favorites that I have on my phone and bluetooth to my speaker throughout the day:
1. Best Day of My Life - American Authors
2. Just the Way you Are - Bruno Mars
3. Demons - Imagine Dragons
4. On Top of the World - Imagine Dragons (my kids loved Imagine Dragons!)
5. Roar - Katy Perry
6. Good Time - Owl City & Carly Rae Jepsen
7. Shake it Off - Taylor Swift (which is what I know in ASL)
8. Smile - Uncle Kracker
9. Let it Go - Idina Menzel
10. Where you Are - Moana Soundtrack
11. How Far I'll Go - Moana Soundtrack
12. We Know the Way - Moana Soundtrack
13. How Far I'll Go (Reprise) - Moana Soundtrack
14. You're Welcome - Moana Soundtrack (a big time favorite among my students!)
15. Shiny - Moana Soundtrack
16. A Thousand Years - Christina Perri
17. Shut Up and Dance - Walk the Moon (another giant favorite of theirs!)
18. Try Everything - Shakira
19. Happy - Pharrell Williams
20. I am Moana - Moana Soundtrack
By the way, I teach 4th graders if that helps any. And my 3 & 4 year old's love these songs too! Good luck this coming year! What are some tunes you play in your classrooms?
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