Teaching is one of the most challenging professions and often teachers do not get the accolades that teachers deserve.
For years, the subject that has caused the most anxiety amongst children is math. For most students teaching using multiple modalities is key.
Students need to be shown the math concepts using concrete objects, explicit teaching and for some, they learn best using abstract concepts by breaking numbers apart.
One of the ways to help students learn challenging concepts is through song. Math songs for kids are one of the best and easiest ways to help students learn.
It is important for teachers to accommodate students multiple learning styles all while ensuring that students master the concept so they can pass standardized tests.
There is a plethora of research that suggests that using music is not only enjoyable for students but also helps increase student outcomes and learning.
Music has been proven to help students to retain information (Vaughn, 2000). Incorporating songs about math helps students to remember and apply math concepts and makes learning much more meaningful (Giles & Frego, 2004).
Many studies examine parents who listen to classical music during pregnancy and infancy and how these children grew up learning faster.
More recent studies that have been researched demonstrate the importance of music in the classroom and how songs incorporate music and help auditory and kinesthetic learners.
Teach a concept to a simple tune and you will notice how kids pick up on the rhythm very quickly. Not only does it helps students remember but it motivates students to want to learn. Using songs in math help students from kindergarten to 12th grade.
Follow these tips to dramatically improve the effectiveness of using songs in the classroom:
If you are looking for ideas to use songs while teaching math there are some fun websites to help you get started on your journey.
Link: https://www.education.com/songs/math/
Here you will find tons of songs from number recognition, shapes, place value, and more. You can search for songs using a math concept or by grade level.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNTakNQwoAqVtPSORzswT_A
This YouTube channel has great songs for kids in kindergarten to second grade. There are songs grouped into playlists for different themes and subjects.
Here is a direct link to the math songs playlist – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHI0ePgwlgU&list=PLDzS-WvwZB-od2On1YtSyom6VQxCuZf04
Link: https://www.songsforteaching.com/mathsongs.htm
If you are an intermediate or secondary teacher this website will help you find songs for more difficult concepts like algebra and geometry.
Link: https://www.flocabulary.com/subjects/math/
On Flocabulary, you can find songs for different subjects. In the math category, you can find songs on concepts such as addition and subtraction, probability and statistics, and more.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/c/GoNoodle/
Go Noodle has a collection of songs for different subjects. While they don’t have a lot of math songs, they do have a few for teaching things like greater than, less than, equal to, and shapes and patterns.
Here’s a direct link to their songs related to math – https://www.youtube.com/c/GoNoodle/search?query=math
No matter what the grade level or math concept you are teaching, songs have been shown to inspire, motivate, and engage students in a way that positively impacts memory.