The powerpoint from Kristin Lems' Pre-conference Workshop, How Teachers can Incorporate Music and Song in Teaching ESL, TESOL 2014. c 2014 Kristin Lems kristinlems@gmail.com Also see: ESL Support Video Channel: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNILOFXqUb-YY4hhjV4cOog

1. Kristin Lems
Professor, ESL/Bilingual Education
National Louis University
TESOL 2014, Portland, OR
How Teachers can
Incorporate Music and Song
into Teaching ESL
TESOL Pre-convention Institute

2. abstract
Music and song stimulate language growth by
training the ear to sounds and patterns;
practicing new sounds, words, and idioms
through singing; and creating classroom
community while lowering the affective filter.
With the Internet and smartphones, any
teacher can purposefully incorporate songs
and music in the classroom.
2014 Kristin Lems

3.  Learning about music is valid
in its own right, not just
as a means to other
knowledge or skills
 Language acquisition and
learning are integrated
processes, & so is the role
of music in them is, too…
Presenter Beliefs:
2014 Kristin Lems

4. Where does music
perception and
processing “reside” in
the brain?
2014 Kristin Lems

5. Music and language processing
 are both located in Broca’s area
 both recognize patterns and syntax
2014 Kristin Lems

6. 2014 Kristin Lems
Broca’s area lights up on PET
scans when subjects hear a
discordant musical sequence
just as it does when they hear
an ungrammatical utterance.

7. Music is also processed in the
limbic system, which controls
emotions
 Carol Krumhansl (Cornell University):
…music directly elicits a range of emotions. Music
with a quick tempo in a major key…brought about
all the physical changes associated with
happiness in listeners. In contrast, a slow tempo
and minor key led to sadness.
2014 Kristin Lems

8. Geoffrey Miller, University College,
London: pattern recognition
 "Our brain is constantly trying to make order out of
disorder, and music is a fantastic pattern game for
our higher cognitive centers…..our brains are
exercised by extracting different patterns and
groupings from music's performance.
 This pattern recognition gave rise to language
and stands behind mathematical ability as well
(The Math Gene).
2014 Kristin Lems

9. Educators all know…
Music overcomes inhibitions
Music gives people a chance to share their likes
and preferences
Music is non-hierarchical – people can enjoy
and take part in it regardless of educational
attainment
Every culture has
music – no one is
“deprived”
2014 Kristin Lems

10. Music is associated with our
deepest memories
You must
remember
this…
2014 Kristin Lems

11. The power of the arts in education
 Autistic children can be highly analytical listeners
and are able to access musical details more
readily than typically developing children
ScienceDaily (May 27, 2004)
 Artistic activities build community
 Provides an outlet and validation for GLBT kids
with artistic talent
2014 Kristin Lems

12. Music can create deep
conversations
2014 Kristin Lems

13. What do we know about music
and learning?
2014 Kristin Lems

14. An interest in a
performing art leads to
a high state of
motivation.
That in turn produces
the sustained attention
and the training of
attention that leads to
improvement in other
cognitive domains.
2014 Kristin Lems

15. One of the central predictors of
early literacy, phonological
awareness, is correlated with
both music training and the
development of a specific brain
pathway.
Dana Foundation, 2008
2014 Kristin Lems

16. Music is positively associated
with academic achievement,
especially during the high
school years
Citation: Southgate et al. The Impact of Music on Childhood and Adolescent
Achievement. Social Science Quarterly, 2009; 90 (1): 4 DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-
6237.2009.00598.x
2014 Kristin Lems

17. The infant brain makes
associations between melody
and positions in space
 When baby hears rising melody sequence while
watching an object rise, and falling sequence of
notes with a falling object, they learn to pair them
 When baby as young as 4 months shown object
falling when sequence of notes is RISING, and
object rising when melody sequence falls, they do
not learn the pairing
Relationship between sound and space perception
(Spelke, in Dana report, 2008) 2013 Kristin Lems

18. Hearing songs in new
languages assists in the
segmenting of new words,
probably due to the
motivational and structuring
properties of song
2014 Kristin Lems

19. Music as a Universal Language
Sing the audience’s part at
Bobbie McFerrin’s appearance
at the 2009 World Science
Festival
2014 Kristin Lems

20. Why are pop songs so powerful
for language learners?
 They’re everywhere – many learners have them as part
of their background knowledge
 They use high frequency vocabulary
 Use of 2nd person, first person singular and plural draws
listeners in, giving them an emotional “stake” in the
music
 They are repetitive, a perfect effortless “drill” for sounds
and syntax (Tim Murphey, 2000)
2014 Kristin Lems

21. Parallels between benefits of music
learning and bilingualism
 Both are associated with cognitive advantages
 Both are proven to hold back the effects of
Alzheimers
 Both have more powerful effects when
introduced at an early age
2014 Kristin Lems

22. 2014 Kristin Lems

23. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
1. Using instrumental or vocal music as a writing prompt and
conversation starter
2. Presenting about a musical genre, artist or musical work
from the L1 culture
3. Singing together ~ with or without gestures and props
4. Studying a song for its grammar, syntax, vocabulary, fast
speech, punctuation
5. Focus on listening – transcribing a song
6. Using a graphic organizer to analyze a song
7. Creating a visualization of a song using technology
8. Writing an interpretation to the plot of a song
9. Writing a new verse for a song and performing it
10. Learning a dance with or without words
2014 Kristin Lems

24. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
1. Using instrumental or vocal
music as a writing prompt and
conversation starter
Exemplar: El Condor Pasa
2014 Kristin Lems

25. Example:
El Condor Pasa
 Written 1913
 Part of a full scale orchestral
work
 Highlighted struggle of
Peruvian miners against
European bosses
 Wildly popular for decades!
Daniel Alomía Robles
Born 1871, Huánuco,
Peru - Died 1942,
Lima, Peru
2014 Kristin Lems

26. In the work, the Condor serves as a symbol
of freedom for the Incan people.
2014 Kristin Lems

27. From recording by Simon and
Garfunkel
I’d rather be a sparrow than a snail…
I’d rather be a hammer than a nail…
I’d rather be a forest than a street…
I’d rather feel the earth beneath my feet…
Students write sentences with these frames:
I’d rather be ___________ than __________
I’d rather ______________ than __________
2014 Kristin Lems

28. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
2. Presenting about a
musical genre, artist or
musical work
Exemplar: Umm Kulthum
2014 Kristin Lems

29. Umm Kulthum 1898-1975
 Great Egyptian singer renowned across Arabic-
speaking world
considered “diva”
“royalty”
from the power of
her song
2014 Kristin Lems

30. Write or talk about your favorite
singer……
2014 Kristin Lems

31. Presenting about a musical genre,
artist or musical work
Lesson plan:
• Students create an oral report about their
favorite artist or genre
• They can include a brief mp3 or YouTube of the
artist – limit to 3 minutes
• As student presents, have others fill out a
feedback form (establish purpose) and give to
the presenter
2014 Kristin Lems

32. Feedback form
2014 Kristin Lems
Name of presenter: __________________________
Subject of the presentation: ____________________
My name: __________________________________
“I really liked _______________________________.”
Something I learned:
“I learned that______________________________.”

33. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
3. Singing together ~
with or without
gestures and props
Exemplar: 5 Green and speckled Frogs
and the Itsy Bitsy Spider
2014 Kristin Lems

34. Singing supercharges opportunities
to hear and practice new words!
(And it’s lots
of fun, too!)
2014 Kristin Lems

35. Singing supercharges opportunities
to hear and practice new words!
(And it’s lots
of fun, too!)
2014 Kristin Lems

36. Five Green and Speckled Frogs
2014 Kristin Lems

37. Focus:
2014 Kristin Lems

38. The Itsy Bitsy Spider
A song about
resilience!
2014 Kristin Lems

39. Focus:
2014 Kristin Lems

40. Why is this tornado
Called
a waterspout?
2014 Kristin Lems

41. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
4. Studying a song for its
grammar, syntax, vocabulary, fast
speech, punctuation
Exemplars: I’m Yours by Jason Mraz
Talking Leaves by Johnny Cash
2014 Kristin Lems

42. Jason Mraz – text analysis
After listening once to “I’m Yours”:
What does “done done” mean?
How does the phrase “You win some…”
end?
What is another way to pronounce “The
sky is yours?” and what does it mean?
2014 Kristin Lems

43. 2014 Kristin Lems
Lesson plan:
Listen once without lyrics
and talk about the music
Provide cloze and play
again
Provide complete lyric
sheet
Discuss grammatical,
lexical, idiomatic, cultural
features of the song
Play it again as a
singalong!

44. 2014 Kristin Lems
Well you done done me and you
bet I felt it
I tried to be chill but you're so
hot that I melted
I fell right through the cracks,
now I'm trying to get back
Before the cool done run out I'll
be giving it my bestest
And nothing's going to stop me
but divine intervention
I reckon it's again my turn to
win some or learn some
But I won't hesitate no more,
no more
It cannot wait, I'm yours
Well open up your minds and see
like me
Open up your plans and damn
you're free
Look into your heart and you'll
find love love love love
Listen to the music of the
moment people dance and sing
We're just one big family
And it's our God-forsaken right to
be loved loved loved loved loved
done done
bestest
win some or learn some

45. 2014 Kristin Lems
So I won't hesitate no more, no
more
It cannot wait, I'm sure
There's no need to complicate,
our time is short
This is our fate, I'm yours
D-d-do do you, but do you,
d-d-do
But do you want to come on
Scootch on over closer dear
so I can nibble your ear?
I've been spending way too long
checking my tongue in the
mirror
And bending over backwards
just to try to see it clearer
But my breath fogged up the
glass
And so I drew a new face and I
laughed
I guess what I been saying is
there ain't no better reason
To rid yourself of vanities and
just go with the seasons
It's what we aim to do, our
name is our virtue
But I won't hesitate no more, no
more
It cannot wait, I'm sure
there’s no need to complicate…
Open up your mind and see like
me
Open up your plans and damn
you're free
Look into your heart and you'll
find that the sky is yours
I won't hesitate no more, no
more -It cannot wait, I'm yours
bending over backwards
this guy is yours

46. Talking leaves
by Johnny
Cash
Johnny’s song, based
on the story of Sequoia
and the invention of
the Cherokee alphabet

47. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
5. Focus on listening
– transcribing a
song
Exemplar: Que Sera, Sera
2014 Kristin Lems

48. Transcribing an Easy Song
2014 Kristin Lems

49. Lesson plan
 Divide students into small groups
 Each group is assigned one verse
 Least proficient group can be assigned to
chorus
 Each member of group listens to song, writes
what they hear, and compares notes to create
one version
 A member of the group writes it on board, and
the whole class listens again
 Any miscues noticed by other groups are
corrected, correct lyric sheet provided2014 Kristin Lems

50. 2014 Kristin Lems
Ways to scaffold:
 preteach key words in advance
(e.g. whatever, handsome, tenderly)
 explicitly teach tricky features:
(e.g. future’s not ours… (American
flap)

51. Transcribing a song with a
certain focus
 “the American flap” “Mairzy Doats”
 Preteach: mare, doe, lamb, kid
2014 Kristin Lems
Mares eat oats and does eat oats
And little lambs eat ivy
A kid’ll eat ivy too, wouldn’t you?
T + y = sh

52. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
6. Using a graphic
organizer to analyze a
song
Exemplar: Ironic by Alanis Morrisette
2014 Kristin Lems

53. “Infographic” by Matt Stopera
 To accompany “Ironic”
by Alanis Morrisette
2014 Kristin Lems

54. 2014 Kristin Lems

55. Won$1,000,000inlottery
DiedMonday morning Tuesday morning
timeline
2014 Kristin Lems

56. 2014 Kristin Lems

57. 2014 Kristin Lems

58. 2014 Kristin Lems

59. 2014 Kristin Lems

60. 2014 Kristin Lems

61. timeline
2013 Kristin Lems

62. timeline
2013 Kristin Lems

63. 2013 Kristin Lems

64. 2013 Kristin Lems

65. 2014 Kristin Lems

66. 2014 Kristin Lems

67. 2014 Kristin Lems

68. 2013 Kristin Lems
Oh dear….late
again….I need
a good
excuse..

69. 2014 Kristin Lems

70. 2014 Kristin Lems

71. 2014 Kristin Lems

72. 2014 Kristin Lems

73. 2014 Kristin Lems

74. Life
sneaking
up on you
Life helping
you out
2014 Kristin Lems

75. These are the Breaks…
 By Kurtis Blow
2014 Kristin Lems

76. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
7. Creating a visualization
of song lyrics using
technology
Exemplar: Help! By the Beatles
2014 Kristin Lems

77. Visualization project lesson
plan:
 Students choose a song (with your blessing)
 Student creates a photostory or powerpoint of
the song using images they have chosen
 It is played in class
 Students discuss how they chose their images
 Example: “Help” found on YouTube
2014 Kristin Lems

78. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
8. Writing an
interpretation of the
plot of a song
Exemplar: Man of Constant Sorrow
2014 Kristin Lems

79. Characteristics of Bluegrass
From Kentucky and
Appalachia
Irish, Scottish, African,
British influences
A capella singing,
usually telling a story
Taking turns on the
solos
Sometimes, very
fast playing
Male falsetto voice
(singing up high)
Acoustic instruments
(not electric)2014 Kristin Lems

80. Bill Monroe, father of bluegrass (1911-1996)
named after his Kentucky band, Blue Grass
2014 Kristin Lems

81. Originally made by coal miners, truckers,
farmers…poor people’s music from rural
America
2014 Kristin Lems

82. 2014 Kristin Lems

83. The guitar, mandolin, standup
bass….
2014 Kristin Lems

84. Do you know this banjo player?
2014 Kristin Lems

85. And don’t forget……
 The fiddle!
2014 Kristin Lems

86. Man of Constant Sorrow
Traditional American tune
from the movie soundtrack
“O Brother Where Art Thou?”
(2002 Grammy)
Performed by Dan Tyminski and
the Soggy Bottom Boys

87. 1. I am a man of constant sorrow
I've seen trouble all my days
I bid farewell to old Kentucky
the place where I was born and raised
the place where he was born and raised
2. For six long years I've been in trouble
No pleasure here on earth I've found
For in this world I'm bound to ramble
I have no friends to help me now
he has no friends to help him now
3. It's fare thee well my own true lover
I never expect to see you again
For I'm bound to ride that Northern
Railroad
Perhaps I'll die upon this train
Perhaps he’ll die upon this train
4. You can bury me in some green
valley
For many years where I may lay
May you learn to love another
While I am sleeping in my grave
While he is sleeping in his grave
5. Maybe your friends think I'm
just a stranger
My face you never will see no more
But there is one promise that is
given
I'll meet you on God's golden shore
He'll meet you on God's golden
shore

88. Group Project
a. You are a newspaper reporter. Write a story about
the events in the song, using a journalistic style.
What is the article’s headline?
b. The singer is singing this song to you. Write a
response to the singer explaining how you feel
about the situation. Do you want to see him again?
Are you angry at him? Heartbroken? Do you want
to follow him? Help us understand what happened,
and how you feel about it.
2014 Kristin Lems

89. Group Project
c. You are a not-nice next door neighbor of the
singer. Tell us about him.
d. You are the mother of the singer. Tell his story to
a sympathetic audience, such as your hairdresser.
How did these things happen to him?
Report back to the rest of the class.
2014 Kristin Lems

90. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
9. Writing a new
verse for a song and
performing it
2014 Kristin Lems
Exemplar: What a Wonderful World
By Louis Armstrong

91. Lesson plan
 Give brief bio about Louis Armstrong
 Explain the word “Satchmo”
 Play a youtube of song while enjoying images
 Pass out lyric sheet and listen again
 Analyze rhyme pattern
 Get into small groups and create new verse
 Find karaoke version of song on You Tube and
sing new verses to the class
2014 Kristin Lems

92. New Verse to “What a Wonderful World”
I see trees of green, red roses too.
I see them bloom, for me and you.
And I think to myself... what a wonderful world.
I see skies of blue, and clouds of white.
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself... what a wonderful world...
The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Also the faces of people going by,
I see friends shaking hands, say how do you do?
They're really saying, I love you.
I hear babies crying, I watch them grow.
They'll learn much more than I'll ever know,
And I think to myself... what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself... what a wonderful world

93. Your verse!
I see ____________________
________________________ (“A” rhyme)
_________________________
________________________ (“A” rhyme)
And I think to myself, what a wonderful
world! 2014 Kristin Lems

94. 10 techniques to use music with ELLs
10. Learning a dance
with or without words
Exemplar: Yesh!
2014 Kristin Lems

95. 2014 Kristin Lems
Resources:
Live performances on You Tube
•Compare performances of the
same song/dance
•Sing to Karaoke songs on You
Tube
•Google “karaoke” and the artist
you’re looking for ~ it’s all there!

96. The power of beauty – music is
beautiful!
2014 Kristin Lems

97. Music is fun for ALL ages!
Kristin Lems/* ~ stay in touch!
kristinlems@gmail.com
2014 Kristin Lems