~ Want to improve your vocabulary and fluency in English?
~ Don't have much opportunity to speak to people in English?
~ Tired of endless grammar exercises?
Then grab that hairbrush, put on your favourite artist and start singing!
Have you ever noticed how you seem to learn the lyrics to your favourite songs without even trying? Music is a fantastic and fun way to improve your language skills without even realising that you are studying. The rhythm automatically helps us to remember the words and our brain unconsciously processes the collocations, syntax and pronunciation. Plus, while repeating grammar exercises over and over is tiresome and boring, most of us enjoy listening to our favourite songs on repeat and, in language-learning, repetition is key when it comes to building your speaking confidence.
Top Tips for Turning your Listening Pleasure into Language-Learning.
1. Get a copy of the lyrics
Song lyrics are not always clear at first, even when we are listening in our own language. Don’t feel bad if you can’t make out all of the words at first. Simply go online and find the lyrics on one of the many lyrics websites. Or find a video with lyrics on YouTube.
2. Sing along with the lyrics in front of you
Take the time to listen to your song a few times with the lyrics in front of you, or watch the lyrics video on YouTube a few times. This is an important step, so don’t be tempted to miss it out. Listening with the words in front of you will help you to avoid getting incorrect words and phrasing stuck in your head. It will also help your brain to decode the words, meaning that you will recognise them more easily the next time you hear them.
3. Sing along out loud whenever you can
Find times and places when you can confidently sing along to your song. My favourite place is the car, where I can sing out to my heart’s content and no-one can hear me. Vocalising out loud will help you get more confident with the sounds, increasing your fluency when you are speaking. Don’t be surprised when you hear yourself casually slipping words and phrases from your songs into your conversations.
So many English-learners regularly listen to songs in English without taking full advantage of them in their language learning. By taking a few extra steps, you can easily turn something you already enjoy into a powerful tool for improving your speaking and listening skills.
Once you feel ready to put your lyrics knowledge to the test,
why not go to the next level and try out Lyrics Training where you can pit your skills
against other users by completing gap-fills to top music videos.