The summer break is coming to an end and the school year is about to start in the northern hemisphere. It's important to get your class settled into a routine and following the class and school rules as quickly as possible. Music is a great way to help children learn concepts and can be used as an effective classroom management tool. Here are some Rocking Dan Teaching Man YouTube songs and animations that can be used to help get your students into a routine and have everyone singing from the same classroom management song sheet all year long!
Start the school day off with music first thing in the morning. As your children come into class play the song "Good morning sit on the floor quietly." It gives the children clear directions and expectations about how to enter the classroom. The song reminds the children about the things the teacher is looking for when they come into class. It's a fun catchy song. Challenge your students to see if everyone can be sitting on the floor quietly ready to learn before the end of the tune.
Getting a nice straight quiet class line can be a challenge at times. "The line up song" teaches the children in a fun melodic way the things you are looking for when they line up. It gives clear expectations about how the class line should look and what the children need to be doing in order to be ready to move around the school.
A great session of learning can lead to an untidy classroom. The children may have been using glitter, recycled materials, boxes, paper, markers, pencils, scissors, electronic devices, books and cardboard during the lesson. Everyone needs to be responsible for taking care of the classroom when it's time to pack up. Sometimes it can be a challenge to get the children motivated to clean up. "Tidy up the classroom" is a fun song that encourages the children to clean up quickly, safely and respectfully. Challenge your students to see if they can tidy up the classroom before the end of the song. You can play it a couple times if it's a big clean up job. Your kids will be happily singing as they tidy and before you and they even know it the classroom will be cleaned up and looking great!
Through out the school day you are going to need the children to move from one lesson to another. "Transition time" is a fun song that encourages the children to move quickly and sensibly to their next activity. The song gives the children 1 minute to do everything they need to do to get ready for the next lesson. It's a great way to get the kids focused on what they should be doing so no time is wasted between learning sessions.
Music and movement can also have a positive impact on your students' brain function. Music and movement can help to create the right balance in the mind to allow the children to attain an optimal level of alertness and calmness so that they are ready to learn. Here are some songs that can help the children in your class find their optimal level of mental alertness.
"The silent bean bag game" song helps children with their throwing and catch skills as well as giving them a chance to settled into the school day and self regulate. It is also a lot of fun.
The days are getting colder and the leaves are falling from the trees as we move into a new season. Here is a fun movement brain break that your kids will love and will help them renew and refocus their energy to get back into their work. Dance like a scarecrow!
Hey who doesn't want to dance like a scarecrow!
It's also really important that your class gets along with and respects each other in order to create a positive learning environment. "What makes a good friend" and "Hands off Feet off" are a couple of tunes that help to teach and re-enforce the concepts of respect, self control and friendship.
Try these songs to assist with your classroom routines and to help get your children in the right frame of mind to learn. Look out for my next blog post with will be full of Rocking Dan Teaching Man educational learning songs about beginning school.
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