There are some people who have the capacity to sit down for hours and memorize out of a book. Unfortunately, this skill is rare and most people need a mix of doing and learning to make information stick. Adding songs in the French classroom is a great way to help students get a bit of both. The challenge of memorizing the words is still there, but the musical aspect provides a way to keep students engaged in what theyre doing. When you give students a fun challenge, youll find that frustration levels quickly decline.
Songs lighten peoples spirits and give them something other than the words to concentrate on. Songs in the French classroom make the work of learning less intimidating. There really are few things more off-putting than seeing a page full of words you dont understand and knowing that youre going to be expected to memorize them all. Songs are actually a bit more challenging in some ways; its the fun that makes them more productive. Simply put, people enjoy doing things that allow them to use newly-acquired skills and French songs in the classroom do just that.
For students who need to learn French fast, there are few things in the world that provide mental queues as well as does music. The melody provides a natural way to recall the words that were to be learned and make sure that, when the student is having a tough time of it, they have something to fall back on. You can demonstrate this to yourself in your own language. If you can remember the melody of a song well enough, you can usually recall at least a few of the words. Its important to note that most people can do this with songs they never even really paid attention to.
For students who need to learn French in the classroom environment, make sure they have materials that demonstrate to them the proper pronunciations. Ideally, these should feature native French speakers, who will pronounce everything flawlessly. Plays and musical productions are great assets for this. There are musical products on the market that offer a blend of music and spoken French that encourage students to engage and to utilize what they learn by singing along. These are great resources for those who want to learn a bit more about the language, or who need to teach it.