Introducing Music and Movies to Children of Other Cultures

Let’s face it, many people from other cultures whether they be children or adult are exposed to the culture of the United States through our music and movies. A good recent example of that is the recent death of Michael Jackson. People from all over the world know about Beat it and the Moonwalk and could sing Billy Jean but can’t speak enough English to order a meal or catch a taxi in the States. Music and movies are basically what the world knows about the United States so implementing them into a TESOL classroom is an amazing teaching tool. But with all the movies and different types of music that have been produced over the years, there are some types that are more appropriate for teaching English.

In one of my TESOL assignments I was asked to tell what type of music and movies I would introduce to children of other cultures. The type of music I choose was American pop because pop music is what seems to represent much of America in the eyes of people from other cultures. When you talk to young people from other countries many times they will show off their speaking abilities by singing a few lines of a popular American song. In the classroom if you can get a student to sing one of these songs you can evaluate their pronunciation plus understanding of the words they sing. Not all students are willing to just break out in song but if the song is played at the beginning of class most will join right in especially if the teacher starts singing.

The movies I really think appeal to children of other cultures are the recent computer animated movies like Toy Story or Shrek. These movies are absent of the violence and vulgarity you find in other types of movies. Children watching the animated movies learn what the characters are saying and repeat those words.