Writer: Ahmad Tumidi
BACKGROUND
Song is one side that can't be separated from kids. Singing a happy song and playing it in the garden are very interesting for them. In kindergarten, studying English is hard and teacher may have many difficulties to teach them. And teacher will try some ways to solve it. A wise teacher understands about students’ world, that children are familiar with playing, singing, refreshing and many others pleasure activities. So, several of them choose song as one of media to teach English. There are many possible reasons why using song in studying English for foreign learner. Those are:
1. Many people said that "Learning English is difficult, so song will help to make it easier and interesting for beginner. As a fact, a case of many students who didn't success in passing the last examination this year in our country are caused by their trouble in English mark.
2. English is one of specter subject for student. As one fact; when I was guiding fail student of junior high school last fasting month in SMP Sultan Fatah when I asked one of them to read the text, she said "wongjowo kok kon moco inggris pak.. pak…" and the other, when they were repealing third examination (Paket B test for SMP) last Saturday 19 November 2005 most of them were surrender and waited the help from teacher that gives them the answer because they were afraid would have trouble with their own answer and it would make them got same result, failed in passing the last exam again. Siti Riwayati (one of student from SMP 5 Salatiga and now in SMK Diponegoro Salatiga) said "tekoho jam piro pokoke aku nung gu dewa penolong, timbang tak garap dewe salah. malah sesok aku ora sido ning Sumatra", Mr. Sri asked " Lha ngopo' ek?", she answered "PON tho pak makili lomba lari".
3. Kids’ life is familiar with playing, happiness and Entertainment.
4. Children prefer to do something that make them happy.
5. Children concentration to attend a class is twice of age
6. Children are sensitive with bore.
7. Singing happy song can stimulate their spirit.
We can see in many kindergartens or elementary school, their voice louder when there are singing a song than other subject although at the last time of schedule, at the afternoon.
8. Singing is the simple way to memorize material.
Today English is one of favorite subject to be studied. Most of student study English proudly and also their parents, there are also many student afraid to study English, so teacher should have a way to solve it.
A FACT
When we are baby, we heard and listened what people said, repeat as possible, without think it means. It happened in our life because of that behavior in large number of frequencies baby who tried to say and used that voice gradually. Baby will use the language to express his willing after they had understood the meaning of word. After baby has understood the meaning of word and able to use it, study writing is one of possibility for beginner. Student will find many problems to solve such as the differences of spelling and pronunciation between English and their mother tongue.
For instance:
Spelling
Letter English Indonesia
A ei a
B bi be
C si ce
Pronunciation
Word English Indonesia
Book buk bo'ok
Apple aepi aple
Paper peipe paper
Base on that statement above, the learner needs some ways look them up to learning English easily. This paper will discuss that singing English song as one of first step in study English.
THE FUNCTION OF SONG FOR KIDS EDUCATION
In paragraph above we have understood that kids life familiar with song and singing a song. Although many teenagers dislike to sing a song, but may be they used to like it. When Children sing a song, it is not always caused by their talent or good voice but their happiness, pleasure and express their life. Other fact shows the important song for children, there are many song in kid's magazine for instant Ceppy, Bobo and others. The functions of song are:
1. Emotional Education
By singing children will find the real life, happiness and freedom eto (express. Each song has spirit such as happy song, slow song or soft song. It very important to build student attitude, such as:
a. Enthusiasm and spirit song will bring student become optimistic and ambitioned.
b. Struggle song will bring student doing something hardly.
c. Slow, soft and sad song make student to be calm, polite and kind.
d. Sad song also makes student love others.
2. Motoric education
In our life, when we hear music will move our body to following the intonation of its. Music is one of effective evident to stimulate moving people to enjoy and dancing. Children will move their body freely when they hear music-wake up from sad and pessimism student.
3. Developing of imagination capability
The title of song will show what song tells about. The imagination of children will be brought by the narrative of song, because song consist of many contains base on its title, such as:
a. The beauty of country
b. Story of hero
c. Love story and many others.
4. Emphasizing student self confident
Singing a song is one of way to express student being. It can show when the student singing together in kindergarten. Some of them sing louder than other, but when they sing a lone in from of class will sing calmly and some time no voice.
5. Developing of language capability
Song consists of many sentences and sentence consists of word. So, by sing a song student will follow to say word like native song (correct spelling and pronunciation) and by thinking the meaning student will understand the meaning. It is possible that students express what they want by choosing the word that found in the song. Student will always remember that word because when sing a song he understand further about a song.
6. IQ development
There is no doubt that song can improve student knowledge, especially in language because song mentioned many word so student will find new word.
7. Ethic moral education
Song will bring student as its means; happier, calm, free from fear, love to other, kind and others.
HOW TO CHOOSE SUITABLE SONG FOR CHILDREN
1. Researching in theme and content
Teaching song for children should be selective because not all songs suitable and able as medium of education for them. And should be known that not all education titled songs are able to be understood in all levels of children, for instance: play group songs (for 3-4 years old), kindergarten songs (for 5 years old), elementary songs (for 6/7 12) are different.
2. Understanding the ambitious
Ambitious is a long distance of the lowest and me highest tone in a song. There are many differences between children, teenager and adult because the mastering of it depends on age, older is higher.
3. Study about melodies difficulties
The difficulties of song are affected by interval of note. Children can't sing a song when it has too high of interval. Beside interval, difficulties of song depend on the price of tone. Song will more difficult to sing if the price of tone is smaller.
4. Study song spirit and type
Many kinds and contain of song:
a. Happy
b. Pleasure
c. Admire
d. Amaze
e. Sad
f. Surrender, etc.
TEACHER CREATIVITY
1. Change the song
To Change the song is only change or translate the poem or sentences of a song.
Example: senin
selasa
rabu
kamis
jum'at
sabtu
minggu
itu nama-nama hari
Become
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Those are names of the day
2. Create the song
To create a song is make a song by us than there isn't before.
TEACHING SONG
1. Song preparation
Song preparation consist of:
a. Mastering that song before
b. How to make easier in mastering the class
2. Emotional preparation
To make our student interested we must:
a. In a good performance
b. Enthusiasm and optimism
c. Don't bring private problem
3. Choosing condition
As a teacher we must kind in choosing best condition when we want to let our student to sing a song.
References:
1. Diktat program penyetaraaan guru TK (K-100) kab. Temanggung Angkatan II tahun 2001
2. Niven david, Ph.D. 2002. The 100 Simple Secret of Successful. Hipper Collins Publishers. New York
3. Alhamd Ibrahim, 2002. Bersama pendidik muslim. Darrul Haq. Jakarta.
4. Dryden Gordon dan vos Jeannette, 2003. Revolusi cara Belajar. Kaifa. Bandung
5. ScottA. Wcndy and Lisbeth H. Ytreberg. 2003. Teaching English to Children. Longman New york