Articles by Tanja

Tanja is the Director of and a teacher at Knock Knock English schools as well as a contributor to Super Simple Learning. She has taught high school English in Nagoya, Japan and was a teacher trainer through the Aichi Prefecture Board of Education. She grew up in the Washington, DC area and has a Masters in Second Language Studies from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Beatlemania for the Babes

September 8, 2009 in Thoughts by Tanja | 4 comments

Did you sing any Beatles songs when you were a kid?

National Public Radio recently did a report on why toddlers like the Beatles so much. (Funniest line: “Beatlemania returns to America this week.” What? It left?)

According to Dr. Deforia Lane,

The Beatles have repetition, predictability and rhythm. And in certain cases, it literally paints a picture for children. And quite frankly, the beat makes you want to move.

Heeeeey…sounds like Super Simple Songs characteristics to me! (And we thought of all that first, right?)

The Super Simple Songs have loads of repetition (Uh-huh), predictability (Rain Rain Go Away – Play With It), and rhythm (Knock Knock, Trick or Treat). The Bath Song paints a picture for the children, and you can’t sit still during The Pinocchio. (Links for the rest of the songs.)

Yes, much of me suspects that these kids are singing the Beatles mainly because their parents and teachers like the Beatles, but it’s true: many Beatles songs are easy for kids to sing and relate to. I like Bob Dylan, but I don’t have my kids sing his songs. (Another terrifically helpful Beatles/Super Simple Songs characteristic: articulation.)

I didn’t realize the Beatles’ higher voice range is also an appealing characteristic for toddlers. I would have thought lower registers were preferred, but I haven’t heard many toddlers squealing for Barry White or the Righteous Brothers.

The short report is well worth a listen. If you prefer reading, there’s a hastily-written not-yet-corrected transcript on the same page (ooh, I love those misheard lyrics at the end: I get high! I get high! I get high! not exactly what you want your toddlers singing at top of their lungs, eh?).

To answer my first question above, I don’t remember singing the Beatles as a kid. Not a single one. I don’t know why!

Oh, who is Dr. Lane? She’s a music therapist and the coordinator of the Toddler Rock program at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. Toddler Rock? I didn’t know this program existed. How cool is that? We should organize a field trip, yes?

Moe!

May 15, 2009 in Activities by Tanja | 1 comment

Your 5th and 6th graders are going to love this.

There’s some exciting unpredictability, there’s some strategic planning, and there’s a whole bunch of laughter.

Devon and I recently presented this activity as part of a workshop at PEN (Primary English Teachers of Niigata), and my 5th and 6th graders have decided this is their new favorite game.

There are several variations. Start with this version.

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1) Divide your class into 2 teams and assign team captains. Play Eeney Meeney Miney Moe, and the team captains point to each student in turn.

2) At the end of the rhyme, “moe” will land on one student from each team.

3) These 2 students do Rock Scissors Paper with each other.

4) The winner returns to the team, and the loser sits down.

5) Repeat until all the students from one team are sitting down.

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Tip: You don’t need to spend much time teaching Eeney Meeney Miney Moe. You will play it so many times during this activity that the students will learn most of it automatically. Happy warning: you and the students will continue humming it for the rest of the week.

Stay tuned for variations on this activity!

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