Teaching Children about Space
Using Space Songs for Children as Part of the Learning Experience
Since it is such a huge concept, teaching children about space can be quite a tricky thing to have to do. It’s especially difficult with primary school children, who are still young and developing and may not really grasp the idea of things existing outside their hometown, let alone our planet.
However, one advantage of teaching children about space is that it is the sort of topic where you can have a lot of fun. You’ll be able to try out some different teaching methods, which will make the lessons memorable as well as having a range of additional benefits for your class.
Using drama and/or space songs for children is one way to add a touch of character and life to the classroom, encouraging pupils to immerse themselves fully in the topics. By adding an engaging storyline, you can make these topics much more accessible.
Benefits of Using Space Songs to Teach Children about Space
Using space songs for kids has a whole host of additional benefits:
– Engagement – because space songs for kids involve participation and interaction, every child can get actively involved rather than just observing other, more confident students doing so. And the more engaged children are, the more benefits the session will bring to them.
– Language development – space songs for kids will help your class develop their language skills in a number of ways. Not only are such songs a good way for them to learn and memorise new words; they also help them to get a better grip on pronunciation and grammatical constructions.
– Listening – teaching about space through songs can improve children’s listening skills. For instance, if you set up a song in rounds they have to focus more on the other parts so they know when to come in, meaning that they have to listen very carefully.
– Timing and awareness – following on from the listening aspect, children can also improve on things like timing and social awareness as they learn their parts. These skills are highly transferable, and can lead to an improvement in children’s ability to communicate.
– Confidence – singing songs, whether individually or as part of a group, can help increase children’s self-confidence. This in turn makes them feel more comfortable when it comes to expressing themselves.
What Else Can I Teach My Class Using Songs?
The range of subjects and themes that can be taught through song is never-ending. They are particularly useful for teaching languages, as they can help children learn new words and ensure that they pronounce them correctly. However, teachers of every subject can benefit from using songs in their lessons as they function as great memory aids. Think back to your school days, and it’s likely that even now you’ll remember some of the songs you sang.
So whether you’re teaching children about space, maths or minibeasts, songs can make information easier to digest and memorise. If you would like to find songs to support the subjects you’re teaching, head over to www.outoftheark.co.nz. Out of the Ark has a wonderful selection of songbooks covering a diverse range of topics, all available to order online for delivery.