In my iFLT session on detox(tbooking), we talked about downsizing. Even if you’re bound by a textbook or a department using way too many “units”, you can pare away the words you know are less valuable and make some room for fun things that really connect students with the language… things like music.

My 12 year old son synced his iPhone with my computer and it put my Spanish music into his library… imagine my surprise when I found him listening to Sofía by Álvaro Soler.  I said “Nick, do you like it?” and he replied “I may not know what it’s saying yet but it is so darn catchy!”  If music can do this for a student who is NOT in Spanish class yet, imagine what it will do when they understand a few or even MANY of the lyrics in their new language!

I DO match songs to my units in most cases.  For example when we study El Salvador’s Civil War and read the novel Vida y muerte en la Mara Salvatrucha, we listen to the SPANISH version of Gangsta by Kat Dahlia and Sueño Americano by los Rakas… but there are a lot of songs I use as weekly bell-ringers that get in my students heads and keep them listening to the language outside the classroom.

What I do with the songs varies!  I may have them do a CLOZE activity.  We might listen all week and finish with a game of lyricstraining.com on the SMARTboard.  We might do an activity with manipulatives… there are so many ways to use songs differently!  If you have always used songs, these songs will likely be familiar to you… if not, they may give you a great place to start.

5 great songs for Spanish 1: You are the One by Sonny Monreal (Spanish and English gives them a confidence boost as the first song of the year), Picky by Joey Montana (Available here from my TPT if you need a little help getting started), Te Quiero by DJ Flex, Tengo tu Love by Sie7e, Cuando me Enamoro by Enrique Iglesias and Juan Luis Guerra.

5 great songs for Spanish 2: Como te Odio by Lasso, Sofía by Álvaro Soler (Available here from my TPT if you want to see some sample activities), Solo Soy by Doctor Krápula, Todo Cambió by Camila, Darte un Beso by Prince Royce (Available here as a movie talk unit from Kristy at Placido Language Resources).

8 great songs for Spanish 3 and 4: La Bicicleta by Shakira (Available here), Cómo te Atreves by Morat, Paraíso by D’Vicio (Available here), Sé que te Duele by Alejandro Fernández (Available here), Andas en mi Cabeza by Chino y Nacho (Available here from Martina Bex’s Comprehensible Classroom), Amor con Hielo (Also from the Comprehensible Classroom), La Gozadera by Gente de Zona, Latinoamérica by Calle 13.

Whichever songs you choose to use with your students, just ENJOY the music with them! For me, there is no grade attached.  I DO have them turn in their cloze activity if we do one (but I never load it to the online gradebook and they never seem to ask about it)!  This relaxed policy on music makes it feel like listening to music in their L1 and they start to do it AT HOME!  Without being prompted!!!  It’s like they’re doing homework for FUN!  They even find NEW SONGS! 🙂

Always keep one ear on Batanga radio to see what’s new that you think will become an earworm and set Spanish in their head even outside the classroom!