Mixed-Up Lyrics

In this activity, students predict the sequence of lyrics. The task might be easier in terms of prediction if the lyrics tell a story or have sequence words.

Preparation

Prepare the lyrics of a song to be cut into strips. It would be best if the lyrics were retyped or spaced in a way that didn’t make it obvious how they were originally ordered. For the standard procedure, you will need one set of strips for every three students in the class. For Variation 1, you will need one strip of paper for every student in the class.

Procedure

1. Divide students into groups with three students per group. 2. Explain that you are going to give them a set of the lyrics of the song. They should read through the lyrics and put them into the order they think is correct. Give them about five minutes to do this. Clarify any vocabulary that they may not know. 3. Tell them that as you play the song, they should check their work and put the strips in the correct order. 4. Play the song two or three times so that the majority of the students have the order correct, then check their answers. 5. Go over any expressions, vocabulary, or grammar that may be relevant to their classroom work.

Variations

1. Count how many lines there are in the song. Divide the class into groups with this number of students in each group. For example, if the song has 15 lines, then each group should have 15 students. Give each student one line of the song. Ask the students to stand up. Tell them that as they listen to the song, they need to stand in the correct order according to their sentence and what they hear. 2. For lower level classes, you may just want to divide the song into four or five sections.

When to Use It

• To listen for discrete words and phrases • To help students make print and sound connections

Level

Skills

Practice

Materials

Lyrics cut up

Preparation Time

10–20 minutes (if you need to type the lyrics)

Activity Time

10–25 minutes

Possible Resources

Sing Out Loud: Traditional Songs https://americanenglish.state.gov/resources/singout-loud-traditional-songs Sing Out Loud: Children’s Songs https://americanenglish.state.gov/resources/singout-loud-childrens-songs