Teaching kids to sing can be uncomfortable for parents and teachers if singing is not our strong suit. But, there are ways that students can be taught to sing, even if you may not be the best singer yourself.
1. Sing
Yes, I said to sing. What I mean by this is kids don’t care what the song is or how good of a singer you are, they just want to sing. Step out of your comfort zone if you aren’t the best singer, and the more you sing, the more comfortable you will be doing it. Then, the more comfortable you are singing, kids will be also.
2. Sit the Strong Singers Next to the Kids Who Aren’t
If you know kids, you know how competitive they can be. Kids who are more naturally shy will hear a strong singer sitting next to them and will probably try to sing louder. The kids who don’t have a strong singing voice or have problems matching pitch well will probably not grow up to be the next Mariah Carey, but they can improve their tone by listening to other singers.
3. Pick Songs Kids Are Interested In
Whether in a school setting or at home, pick songs that kids enjoy singing. This is not to say you should not teach several different types of songs or musical repertoire, but at first the point is to get kids comfortable singing. So, find out what songs they are interested in and start with that. Once kids become more comfortable with you and with singing in general, when you introduce new songs, they will not resist it as much.
4. Be Patient
Learning to sing can take time. With my experience at my first teaching job, the students hadn’t had a music class in 7 years. So, I had to be patient and realize this was new for them. Some of the students went from barely getting a whisper out to being my strongest singers. I talk even more about being patient with your budding singers in this podcast episode.
5. Use Various Teaching Methods
Some great ideas for helping to develop young singing voices is by using solfege, having them follow your hands as they move up and down, or using different vocal warm up charts.
What ways do you like teaching kids to sing? Is it out of your comfort zone to sing in front of kids?
P.S. Are you feeling frustrated or stuck as an elementary music teacher? Check out these free resources to help you teach elementary music with confidence!
