Lesson 41 Music and Literacy

1. Music and Literacy

Music is a natural partner for literacy development. The rhythm, rhyme, and repetition in songs build language skills and phonemic awareness.

1.1. Activities for Literacy Integration

• Sing-Along Stories:
• Use storybooks with built-in songs (e.g., The Wheels on the Bus or Over in the Meadow).
• Sing the story and encourage children to join in.
• Phonemic Awareness Games:
• Use songs with rhyming words to teach phonics. Example: “Down by the Bay” (e.g., “Did you ever see a cat wearing a hat?”).
• Ask children to suggest their own rhyming words for each verse.
• Alphabet Songs:
• Sing the traditional ABC song or create new ones to teach letter names and sounds.

1.2. Writing with Music

• Lyric Creation:
• Encourage children to write new verses for familiar songs. For example, “Old MacDonald had a zoo” instead of a farm.
• Storytelling Through Music:
• Let children narrate their own stories and set them to music using simple rhythms or melodies.