SINGING

Sound can be a useful learning tool.

I saw this firsthand a few weeks ago when I met a couple and their daughter at a local restaurant.

Their daughters were learning arithmetic, history, language, science, and other facts by singing.

They were using a special curriculum that included songs for many basic things that students learn in various subjects.

One of the girls sang a few different songs and it was quite impressive how much she had learned from singing.

My daughter enjoys singing, too. Recently, I heard her singing some of her multiplication facts.

You can simply sing facts in order, like the table of fours: 4 times 1 equals 4, 4 times 2 equals 8, 4 times 3 equals 12, etc. Or you can add an occasional phrase here and there, especially if it rhymes.

It’s good for patterns, too, like 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, etc.

Most children learn the alphabet song. There are many other songs available to help with learning.

I recall listening to the Schoolhouse Rock songs when I was a kid.

Most people learn better one way than another. So using a variety of teaching strategies helps each student learn through his or her strength.

But I think it’s also important not to let every student rely only on his or her strengths. It’s important to develop the other learning styles, too.

We become better students not just by focusing on improving our strengths, but also by improving our weaknesses.

Singing arithmetic isn’t for everybody, though. I’m sure nobody wants to hear me sing my multiplication facts—or anything else, for that matter. 🙂

Copyright © 2014 Chris McMullen, author of the Improve Your Math Fluency Series