Studio3Music Blog

Posts Tagged ‘foreign language’

Mar
27

Music in any Language

Posted in Bits and Pieces

No matter the language, we all have a great time singing and playing games in class. Some children come from homes where English is not their primary language.   But even in a class they attend alone, they fit right in.   Music makes an easy and comfortable transition!  Here are some of the reasons why music can help:
•    improves concentration
•    improves memory
•    brings a sense of community to a group
•    motivates learning
•    relaxes people who are overwhelmed or stressed
•    makes learning fun
•    helps people absorb material

world-childrenKindermusik is a wonderful way to celebrate all sorts of music from around the world.  In Village, when we start Rhythm of My Day, we’ll travel to Jamaica with “Water Come a Me Eye.” We’ll travel to India and Germany in Our Time with the “Bangara Dance” and “Alle Meine Entlein,” respectively.  We’re off to France in Imagine That with “Bonjour Mes Amis,” where I hope to say bonjour to my sister who lives there!  In the Older ABC classes, we’ll go down under to Australia with “Epo I Tai Tai E,” one of my favorite songs.  African music is on the horizon both in Young Child and the Older ABC classes.  And, the Younger ABC classes will visit Mexico with “La Cucaracha” during the Down on the Ground unit. What fantastic musical travels! 
Merci beaucoup!  (Thank You!)

-posted by Miss Beth who says, au revoir, Auf Wiedersehen, arrivederci, さようなら, до свидания, adiós

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Dec
24

Your Brain on Music, Part 3

Posted in Child Development, Things to do

foreign-languageWe have a lot of families in our studios that speak a second or even third language at home. Miss Allison once told me that she was taught if a child grows up hearing a second language, but not necessarily speaking that language, the neural pathways for that language are not pruned, but go dormant, so to speak. And then, if child later in life decides to speak that language, he or she will have a much easier time learning and speaking (without an accent) that language, than someone hearing the language for the first time.

As many of you know, Miss Allison keeps all sorts of useful information (and sometimes not so useful, but interesting nevertheless) in her head. But she couldn’t remember when or how she learned it. So I turned to my new favorite neuroscientist, Kenneth Wesson, and asked him to confirm and clarify for me. Here is what he said:

In such a case, a child grows up hearing what would constitute a second language rather than a foreign language. At that stage that early the developing young brain can accommodate the production of neural pathways for any language. Yes, it is true that those neural networks for language that are generated in the first 20 months of life are highly resistant to the pruning process. In the subsequent years, it is indeed likely that this “second language” proficiency may be reconnected easier than it will be to learn a completely new (third) language.

So, those of you who speak two languages at home, keep it up, even if your children only hear it, rather than speak it with you. Be sure not to neglect the music of your culture. Songs almost always contain authentic, natural language. Songs are almost always directed to the native-speaking population, so they usually contain contemporary vocabulary and idioms. Watch this  fabulous video for more information on the connection between language and music.

For those of us who speak just English, here are some suggestions for using music to help develop the neural pathways for a second language:

  • Listen to your Kindermusik CD’s. Many of them contain songs in languages other than English.
  • Here’s a product that comes highly recommended – Teach Me Tapes. Although I haven’t personally reviewed it, I like how it is geared toward toddlers and up, and they have bi-lingual versions of songs we are all familiar with (Mary had a Little Lamb, Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes). It’s not a language program in itself, but it’s great for introducing kids to language for the first time.
  • Think about how the TV show Dora The Explorer is written. They sing conversational phrases. I don’t think I’ll ever get “Come on, vamanos, everybody let’s go!” out of my head. But it works! Can you sing “ho-la” on two different notes? Of course you can. Sing some simple conversational phrases, and have your child repeat them back. It’ll be much easier to remember than spoken words. Why? Because the words will now have a rhthym and note pattern to them.

    • Those of you who speak a second language at home…I’m totally envious! Please, tell us what other ways you introduce a second language into your home using music.

    -posted by Miss Analiisa, who despite being raised in San Diego when her language neural pathways were forming, speaks Spanish like the Finnish girl she is.

    Your Brain on Music, Part 1
    Your Brain on Music, Part 2

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