Music in The Classroom
Using music in the classroom is a great way to infuse some fun into transitions or provide a brain break. It can also be used to energize, calm or focus students. (And teachers!)
I use Spotify* or Amazon Unlimited to make easy to use playlists. Another option is to make YouTube playlists. I love using the original artists, but sometimes it's best to use the Kidz Bop version of songs because any questionable lyrics have been changed. I also like to use a variety of musical styles.
After a few weeks of using some of these songs consistently, your students will know what each song means. i.e. Happy Days means to quickly grab backpacks, pack up to go home, clean the room and be back in your seat by the time the songs ends.
Songs for Transition - Great short songs for getting materials out or longer ones for clean up.
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Less Than Two Mins
The Muppet Show Theme Inspector Gadget TV Theme Seinfeld TV Theme Death in Paradise TV Theme The Addams Family TV Theme Doctor Who TV Theme Quantum Leap TV Theme The A Team TV Theme Piano Sonata, No. 25 in C, Rondo - W.A. Mozart Bastien und Bastienne - W.A. Mozart Unaccompanied Cello Suite, No. 1 in G - Bach Prelude in A Major - Chopin Waltz for Piano, No. 6 - Chopin |
About Two Minutes
Happy Days TV Theme Knight Rider TV Theme The Benny Hill Show Flight of the Bumble Bee - N. Rimsky-Korsakov Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies - Tchaikovsky Mazurka for Piano, No. 5 - Chopin Salut d'amour, Op. 12 - Elgar Longer for Clean Up Hungarian Dance #5 - J. Brahms Here We Go - *NSYNC Fur Elise - Beethoven Enjoy Your Life Waltz, Op. 340 - J. Strauss Thais, Meditation - J. Massenet |
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Breakfast in the Classroom
I'm walking on Sunshine - Kidz Bop (Katrina & The Waves) Come on Over - Shania Twain Roar - Katy Perry I've got the World on a String - Michael Buble How High the Moon - Ella Fitzgerald It's A Good Day - Peggy Lee You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile - Annie Soundtrack Concierto De Aranjuez - A. Glasunov Saxophone Concerto - A. Glasunov Energizing, Get to Work Tunes
Take Five - Dave Brubeck Au Privave - Charlie Parker New Orleans - Wynton Marsalis The Four Seasons - Vivaldi Cheerful, Upbeat, Uplifting - YouTube Happy Music, Bossa Nova - YouTube Happy, Relaxing Music for Children - YouTube Playtime, Happy, Upbeat - YouTube Songs for Focus, Calm & Reading - These are perfect to bring minds to a place of calm - after recess, during silent reading, quiet work, journaling or small group time.
The Swan - Saint-Saens Nocturne, Op. 20 in C Sharp Minor - Chopin From the Pride & Prejudice Soundtrack:
Thais, Meditation - J. Massenet All the Things You Are - Dizzy Gillespie Salut d'amour, Op. 12 - Elgar Symphony No. 9, Largo - Dvorak Va, pensiero - G. Verdi Fur Elise - > Beethoven Gymnopedies - Satie Vocalise - Rachmaninov Liebestraum - Liszt Spartacus: Adagio - A. Khachaturian Wie Melodien zeiht es mir - J. Brahms, J. Noman Amour Viens, Samson et Delilah - J.Y. Thibaudet verison, Aria: Opera Without Words Viens, Mallika, Lakme - L. Delibes |
Brain Break/Dance - I love to start the day with a confidence-building chant and a dance or a stretch. Anytime I see my students are struggling to focus, I adjust the temperature and have them stand up to do a brain break. This could be a quick stretch, an activity to get them walking around the room or a fun dance. These songs are also great to bring up the energy level during or between lessons.
Happy - Pharrell Williams Dynamite - Kidz Bop (Black Eyed Peas) Barbara Ann - The Beach Boys Life is a Highway - Rascal Flatts Conga - Gloria Estefan I'm Walking on Sunshine -Kidz Bop (Katrina & The Waves) Staying Alive - Bee Gees Shut Up and Dance - Kidz Bop (Walk the Moon) We Built This City - Starship Just the Way You Are - Kidz Bop (Bruno Mars) End of the Day Feel Goods - My kids would often sing along to these songs while they wrote about their day and what they learned in a journal.
Lean on Me - Bill Withers I Choose - India Arie What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong Hello Dolly - Louis Armstrong Bye Bye Bye - *NSYNC Spread it Around - Johnny Paycheck Respect - Aretha Franklin You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile - Annie Soundtrack The Climb - Miley Cyrus So Long, Farewell - R. Rodgers, R.Hammerstein - The Sound of Music Soundtrack Music of My Heart - Gloria Estefan, *NSYNC |
*A note on Spotify: Use the free version or tell customer service you're a teacher and ask for a discount to premium. For various reasons, be sure to unclick the option to have the app open when you start up your computer. If you already have it set up that way, do a quick web search on how to change that for your operating system.
