Why Use Songs To Learn English
You may have never thought about it but it is very important to listen to songs in English in childhood, both at home and at school. Why? Because together with learning the mother tongue, children also get used to listening to another language, in an easy and fun way. Find out how your children can learn English with songs.
The importance of learning English
English is a West Germanic language that originated in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England. Nowadays, it is very important to learn it, as it is the most widespread language in the world, along with Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. English is a useful tool that will help your children in various fields, fostering their personal and social as well as professional growth.
English is a compulsory subject in our school system. Also, when we speak we use a lot of Anglo-Saxon words. This is because the Italian has adopted many English words and incorporated them into his vocabulary, for example “shampoo” or “sandwich”.
However, although English is taught in schools and although many English words are used in daily life, there are few people who can spell and speak it correctly. Unless they are dedicated to this language professionally, they learn it for fun or to travel and speak it in places where only English is spoken.
Therefore, starting to learn a second language from the earliest years of life is essential so that when they are teenagers, learning it will be really easy. In fact, if your children learn English from an early age, this language will become so familiar and everyday for them that it will be child’s play to continue learning it.
Children learn fast
A young child’s brain is much more receptive than an adult’s. Therefore, a child is more likely to learn a language more quickly and easily than an older person.
As with many other things, and as with the mother tongue itself, children are unaware that they are learning and they do it very naturally. Therefore, it is likely that if they get used to recognizing English words without difficulty, so that they learn the language faster and better.
Furthermore, many experts, pedagogues, psychologists and teachers of English recognize that the best way to learn a language is to practice it. Therefore, if children listen to adults speaking to them in English, it will become part of their daily life experience.
Songs for learning English
Songs in English are the best way to learn this language. Babies are like sponges that absorb everything easily and very quickly. And then, they have to listen to the songs in English because they have fun, almost without realizing they start learning the language.
Therefore, in addition to age-appropriate English exercises, the main reasons why children should listen to English songs are as follows:
- They learn the vocabulary, accustoming the ear to listening and understanding the syllables and words of the language.
- They develop phonetics, that is, the sound of words. Due to their rhythms and sounds, the songs are attractive and enjoyable for children and, therefore, are better remembered and repeated.
- Listening to music, in general, allows children to better develop their auditory perception and improve their sense of rhythm. Since it is English music, it helps them to better develop their expressive ability in this language.
- It is a more complex way to stimulate their reasoning skills.
- They improve their social and emotional development. In addition to learning their mother tongue, learning another language offers children an alternative tool through which to communicate with others and with the world.
What are the best songs for learning English?
The choice of songs must always be governed by an evolutionary criterion. That is, songs should be selected based on the age of the children and their educational levels. Also, the good thing is that they not only learn the English language, but they also learn other school content.
For example, English songs about colors, numbers or the alphabet are particularly suitable. In addition, the Christmas carols in English when the Christmas season arrives, or the songs with which to learn the days of the week and the seasons.
In short, children who listen to songs in English, dance, have fun and learn a foreign language in a simple and natural way.
