I'm one of those people who almost always has a soundtrack playing in my head. Sharing music with my students is something I've always enjoyed.
I've now found there to be benefits that I never expected through this process.
Reach Out to Struggling Students
After I set up my equipment for a class, I tend to go sit somewhere in the classroom toward the back. I often find this to be a good way to connect very casually with a student who hasn't been completing assignments, or who did poorly on a recent test.
It doesn't have to be a big formal thing. We can just both enjoy the song. Most often, the student will bring up their difficulties with me, before I even address the topic.
Change the Mood
As some of you might remember, I sometimes teach three sections of the same class in a semester. I still marvel at how different classes can take on such different personalities.
I find it helpful to use music to bring more energy into a room. Or, there are those times when we really all need to settle down and center ourselves a bit, and the right tune will help us to do that.
Expand Musical Repertoire
Before streaming music services existed, students used to get a kick out of how large and how diverse my song collection was. They liked to play deejay before class and would help me rediscover artists I had forgotten about.
Today, it's less about pulling songs from my music and more about being introduced to artists who are new to me. It always seems like a turning point in a class when a student recommends new music to me.
My Playlist
Here are a few songs that you’ll hear, if you stop by my classroom this semester:
- Build Me Up Buttercup
- I Wish
- Get On the Boat
- In the Light
- I Love Me
- Try Everything
- Wade in the Water
- I Feel Good
- Don’t You Worry ‘bout a Thing
- Sit Tight
- Farther Up the Road
Your Turn
What are you listening to in your classroom this semester?
I always go to tunein.com and play an Italian radio station. I’m Italian heritage, and I often take students on study abroad trips to Italy. It’s a fun way to get them to talk with me before class. Often someone will ask me if it’s Spanish (because they sound similar) and we go from there.
Hi Bonni,
Are you familiar with the CD “Spirit of the Forest” by Baka Beyond? The music is said to help with focus/attention, and I have used it for years with students in K-12 and am going to begin using it in my teaching students at the graduate level too. Here’s a link to one of the songs on the album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ODNhOEl9kM
That one is new to me, Stephanie. Thanks for sharing it.
Would love to hear more about how you incorporate music into your classes. Do you discuss the meaning behind the music? Just use it for background during an activity?
Most of the time, it is as I describe in the post, above. Occasionally, I’ll bring in a song and talk about it more for the meaning… but, that’s tough to do too regularly when what you teach is business.
Aloha Bonni: I use music to help explore critical thinking and writing in a course about story and narrative. These are songs that complement short stories:
The Airborne Toxic Event. “Sometime Around Midnight.” (2008).
Chapin, Harry. “Cat’s in the Cradle.” (1974).
Dylan, Bob. “The Hurricane.” (1975).
Eminem. “Stan.” (2000).
Epik High. “Love, Love, Love.” (2007).
Gentry, Bobbie. “Fancy.” (1970).
Girl Talk. “Play Your Part (Pt. 1).” (2008).
Gray, Macy. “I’ve Committed Murder.” (1999).
Lady Gaga. “Born This Way.” (2011).
The Leaves. “Hey Joe.” (1965).
Pearl Jam. “Last Kiss” (1998).
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. “Into the Great Wide Open.” (1989).
A Tribe Called Quest. “I Left My Wallet in El Segundo.” (1990).
Wright, Betty. “Tonight Is the Night.” (1974).
These are fantastic, Brooke. Thanks for sharing about how you’re using music to enhance your course.