INTRODUCTION

This is an open textbook, freely available online, for conversational review in Spanish using song lyrics, videos, and in-class activities related to them. It contains nine communicative goals and nine key grammatical structures that help accomplish these goals.

I am a pioneer in teaching Spanish with music and have published books and articles dedicated to this engaging pedagogical method. My first article, published in 2001, was the result of several years of experience teaching this way. I have also used other realia materials in my classes like sayings, proverbs, and telenovelas.

Using music for second language acquisition has been recognized as an effective teaching method. It provides students with an easy way to memorize the language, makes the experience of learning grammar fun instead of painful, and helps in the development of listening and speaking skills. The cultural richness of the songs and the way songs awaken student’s enthusiasm for poetry add to music’s pedagogical value. Singing to the songs is a pleasurable activity for the students that reinforces listening and speaking abilities, and provides rhythmic and kinesthetic elements to the production of the language (Corrales-Martin, 2001).

¡Qué viva la música! Repaso de conversación en español, or Long Live Music! Spanish Conversational Review is intended for conversational review, typically a fourth-semester class that affords students with opportunities to practice, aurally and orally, as well as in writing, the main communicative goals and key grammatical structures learned in previous classes. It can also be used in similar high school classes.

The textbook uses nine songs as thematic units. They were selected because they include key grammatical structures that will help students accomplish specific communicative goals. For example, songs that use ser, estar, and hay (to be and there is/there are) are chosen to support the goal of describing people, places and things. The songs also correspond to nine different countries. When I teach the class, groups of students are responsible for presenting each song. Presentations highlight a well-known feature from the song’s country of origin, introduce the composer/interpreter, and explain the content of the song. In addition, all students prepare for class by writing a summary of each song that explores aspects such as form, content, language, culture, communication, and cosmovision. Their summaries are discussed with partners and then shared with the class. I provide study guides to help with student analysis, presentation, and writing of the summary.

Karaoke is used in the class to support learning aural/oral aspects of the language like pronunciation, fluency, and rhythm. Student homework includes preparation of a class activity (actividad en clase), around the content, language, and culture of each song. To evaluate whether or not students have accomplished the communicative goals, students produce and present to the class a mini-discussion and mini-dialogue, based on a popular saying that contains the key grammatical structure. An aural/oral exam concludes each unit.

Key grammatical structures are explained using Gramática Viva /Live Grammar: A Grammar Centered on the Verb, which I developed. At the end of the textbook there is a summary of the main topics of this grammar that can be used by the instructor if desired.

The book includes: rubrics for the analysis of the songs, the writing of the summaries, and the presentation of the songs; information on the songs’ composer/singer and the first line of the lyrics; the class activity for each song; content for the mini-discussion and mini-dialogue; the materials from Gramática Viva; and a list of alternative songs for the grammatical topics. Additional resources like tables for ‘Conjugación y uso the verbos’ and a sample class syllabus can be found on the Manifold project page for this textbook.

Full song lyrics can be found online and then transcribed by the students. The end result is a textbook that enriches students’ understanding of Spanish communication, grammar, and culture.

I have used a version of this textbook in my classes. To evaluate the effectiveness of the materials, I conducted a survey at the end of the class that asked students to evaluate the class as a whole as well as each specific song and its related activities. Informal discussions of the materials were carried out throughout the semester. Student comments about the positive aspects of this approach included the following:

The class was less stressful

Saved money

Learned more

Materials are applied to class

More targeted materials

Singing songs improved verbal communication

Songs taught culture

Syllabus had all the information

Syllabus and course materials together helped with organization

Less mindless exercises

More real-life examples

Easy access