Anyone who has ever worked with young children- or has some of them at home- knows that their attention span is minimal.
The younger the children, the less they can focus on an activity, even less so when it sounds like a lecture.
Children love to move, and they can get distracted very easily, so having them sit in a circle for a long time and talking to them will certainly not work.
Instead, getting them to move and using music during class time can get them more easily involved and it will definitely make you have their attention for longer.
As experts explain,
“Music is one tool to engage each student and provide a pathway for connections and deeper understanding. Songs are essentially poems, and have a lot of meaning packed into few words.”
At the same time, music and dance make it easier for students who just can’t stand still for long, or for students with physical impairments to participate in class activities.
And, while there are still some teachers who tend to use older methods in their classes- see lecture-like lessons- the new generation of teachers seems to know that making the lesson fun is key to having an engaged and willing-to-learn audience.
This is one of the core principles of Kids R Kids Learning Academy of Mableton.
The school goes by the principle “hug first, then teach”, which means that teachers’ first concern is to make the kids feel comfortable with them and build a strong bond with them, and then they can learn anything.
And what better way to learn than music and dance?
Especially when it comes to toddlers, they definitely need music in their lives. It makes them happy and, happy kids means kids open to learning new things.
Teacher Brian Macon Jr., who has been at the daycare for two years, was recently caught on camera while he was teaching the alphabet to his toddler students using a fun, upbeat song.
The school staff captured part of his dance on video and posted it on the school’s Instagram account.
View this post on Instagram
No wonder it soon went viral.
More than 700k users liked the cute video and thousands commented below.
“Those kids will remember that for a long time to come. Nice job!” someone wrote, while another user commented: “Give this man a triple raise … even better put him in charge of education policy!”
The teacher explained in an interview with WSB-TV that he always uses music in his classes.
“I encourage music and movement in everything I do cause I know that’s one way the children learn.”
He also talked about his mentality as a teacher.
“That’s what we are here for: to have fun while learning and teaching at the same time,” he explained.
What a great way to involve the students in the learning process and what a beautiful sight a teacher dancing with his students is.
Watch the full story in the video below.
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