Early elementary school is the best time to introduce facts that will become the foundation of future learning, because, until about fourth grade, kids have an amazing capacity for memorization! Early instruction filled with numbers, times tables, spelling words, letters, and sounds stays with them throughout their schooling.
Using music as a tool to memory learning is both easy and fun. Somehow putting information to quirky tunes really helps with recall. I used Grammar Songs with my kids to study parts of speech and punctuation rules. There are activities and exercises throughout the book to reinforce the concepts in each song.
From this same series, we used Geography Songs for continents, oceans, and countries, as well as the solar system. We had a blast learning about Africa, the most challenging continent, with 57 countries in one song! States and Capitals Songs covered all 50 states and their capitals.
The songs themselves won't win any music awards, but when information is put to music, the process of memorization becomes much easier. Vast amounts of knowledge can be accessed by recalling the tune to a song. My children still remember some of the songs we learned, and they are adults now!
Tip: We used the CD's in the car to make better use of our driving time.
Kit includes audio CD with 16 songs, 68-page student workbook featuring song lyrics and written exercises, teacher's guide with activity suggestions, and answer key.
—Lynette
