Choosing and preparing a song for a class activity may be a hard task. Here are some tips on how to select and prepare a song activity, not necessarily in the order presented.
- Songs have to be appropriate to the level of proficiency of students and intelligible;
- Take into account how old students are;
- Classic songs are usually good choices;
- Lyrics which bring up taboo subjects and/or have swear words should be avoided;
- Music videos are very attractive;
- Avoid songs which are long or have long introductions;
- Songs which have lots of replays may be boring;
- The activity should have a pre, during and post framework;
- Whenever possible, prepare activities which do not need a worksheet;
- Cultural aspects, if any, should be mentioned/discussed;
- Different kinds of activities can be prepared, not only fill-in-the-blank ones;
- Listen to the song and read the lyrics simultaneously to check if they match before preparing the activity. If they do not match, find another source;
- After you have chosen the audio file and/or the music video you want to use to prepare the activity, the same source should be used in class to work on it. By doing so, you avoid mismatches;
- Always have a purpose in mind.
