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Cabeza, Hombro, Rodilla y Pie

October 8, 2013

Head, shoulders, knees and....foot. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMaJ1_eZDos How can you NOT use this song in Spanish? It is *almost* an exact translation of its English counterpart, and almost every student in your class will recognize it. Instead of simply giving your students the vocabulary, turn it into a class discussion filled with comprehensible input by talking about the size of your head, nose, etc.! Click here to download a free lyrics sheet to facilitate the discussion. However, be sure to use yourself as the subject so that students are not embarrassed; if a person wants to volunteer a description about his or her own body part, go for it. And let's stick to the body parts in the song, okay? The kiddos don't need free reign to talk about ANY large or small body part....

  1. Gesture to each body part from the song as you say the term in Spanish and students label the pictures in Spanish.
  2. Teach the song to the students (with gestures) and sing it 2x
  3. Tell the class IN ENGLISH that you are going to have a conversation, and the rule is that no one is allowed to volunteer an answer about the size of a classmates' head/nose/foot etc. You can only talk about THE TEACHER or YOURSELF...unless someone volunteers information about him/herself, then it's fair game. It's important to say this in English so that everyone understands and feelings are not hurt. It just takes one kid not understanding (or not caring, unfortunately) to hurt a classmate.
  4. Ask the class, "Clase, ¿mi cabeza es grande? ¿mi cabeza es pequeña? o ¿mi cabeza es normal?" Wait for their answers, then confirm one of them and give a reason (like, "Sí, mi cabeza es grande porque soy muy inteligente!"). Then ask, "¿Quién en la clase tiene una cabeza (same adjective) también?".
  5. Continue discussing each body part this way to give your students lots of comprehensible input!!

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