5 Music ESL Lesson Ideas
Music is a topic that always shows up in ESL textbooks. This is a topic that has the potential to be tons of fun, but somehow, can sometimes be a bit boring. Here are a few ideas that will help bring a little life to your ESL music lesson!
First, I’ll share with you my favorite format for Music ESL lessons, then I’ll share a few other ideas that might work well in your classroom!
1) Learn English from Songs
This is my go-to format for music lessons now. Simply use the lyrics to learn new vocabulary, phrases, or pronunciation. Download the songs and listen to the together as a class. Study the grammar or learn new words!
2) Base your lesson on a song
Most of the time, we think about songs as just fun. But songwriters are poets, and some songs are super meaningful. You can base your whole lesson off of one song or draw discussion from songs!
“Live Like You Were Dying” by Tim McGraw talks about one man’s quest to cross off his bucket list when he learns he is dying. Have students talk about their bucket list or what they want to do in their lives.
“Letter to Me” by Brad Paisley talks about writing a letter to himself when he was in high school. He gives his high school self advice and encouragement. Have students talk about what advice they would give their past selves.
“The Man” by Taylor Swift talks about the frustration of being a woman in a society catered towards men. She discusses gender inequality and wonders about where she would be if she were given equal treatment and opportunities. Have students discuss gender inequalities and opportunities for advancement in their own countries and lives.
3) Introduce a Song
Have students introduce a song or a singer to their partner. Let them show the song to their partner and teach their partner a few vocabulary words. You can even go deeper and ask students to share why this song or artist is meaningful to them. Encourage them to share how they relate to the song or how the song reminds them of a certain time in their lives. This is perfect for practicing talking about past tense, emotions, or adjectives.
4) Teach a Song
Choose an English song to actually teach students. Students generally love learning songs, so take some time to break down the song’s lyrics, then teach them how to sing the song together! If you’re not confident with your singing abilities, you can always play the original track instead of having the karaoke version to sing along to.
5) It doesn’t have to be a song
Of course, with a music lesson, we’re thinking about using songs, but it doesn’t have to be a song! Download interviews from different artists or musicians and have the class watch them. You can study their vocabulary, or ask questions before hand that the students have to answer. It can be fun to hear about a musician’s personal life or hear what inspired their top hits. I absolutely love James Corden’s Carpool Karaoke series for this. It’s a fun mixture of singing songs and having a conversation. Students have a chance to hear how native speakers really interact with each other. The videos are generally a little longer, around 15 minutes, so you could always shorten the video or give them the chance to practice listening for a longer period of time (depending on your students’ level). My favorite video for class is Ed Sheeran’s Carpool Karaoke, since students are generally pretty familiar with the songs he sings in the video. Not only does he sing Shape of You (which every person has heard, I’m sure), but he also sings hits by Justin Beiber and One Direction. There’s also some physical comedy, when he tries to stuff his mouth with chocolate candies, that everyone can laugh at, regardless of their English ability. Search “Carpool Karaoke” on YouTube or check it out at the link here: https://youtu.be/ckdsJ-LaCvM
Tip: Hot potato with music is the perfect review game for this lesson
Hopefully this helps give you some ideas to make your ESL music lesson plan tons of fun!