Aprendre anglès mentre et diverteixes? És possible! Hi ha moltes maneres originals de reforçar l’aprenentatge de l’anglès des de casa, i avui volem parlar del poder de les cançons: la combinació de les paraules, el ritme i la melodia permet als més petits assimilar sense esforç els sons propis de la llengua, així com aprendre algunes paraules i estructures gramaticals. Tot d’una manera quasi inconscient i a través d’una activitat tan agradable com cantar.
A continuació, hem seleccionat una sèrie de cançons infantils conegudes en anglès i les hem dividides per grups d’edat:
Cançons en anglès per a infants
«Happy Birthday»
Amb el clàssic “Happy Birthday” que, segons el llibre Guinness dels rècords, és la melodia més cantada del món. Escrita el 1889 per dos educadores nord-americanes, aquesta cançó és la gran protagonista de tota festa d’aniversari. També els més petits poden aprendre a entonar-la fàcilment amb el text simple i repetitiu:
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear [name]
Happy birthday to you
«If you’re happy and you know it»
Una cançó molt divertida que convida els més petits a realitzar a cada estrofa un gest diferent per demostrar la felicitat. L’esquema és repetitiu i la melodia és encomanadissa, la qual cosa ha garantit el seu èxit:
If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!
If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!
If you’re happy and you know it, then you really ought to show it;
if you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!
If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet!
If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet!
If you’re happy and you know it, then you really ought to show it;
if you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet!
If you’re happy and you know it, shout “hooray”!
If you’re happy and you know it, shout “hooray”!
If you’re happy and you know it, then you really ought to show it;
if you’re happy and you know it, shout “hooray”!
If you’re happy and you know it, do all three!
If you’re happy and you know it, do all three!
If you’re happy and you know it, then you really ought to show it;
if you’re happy and you know it, do all three!
«Old McDonald had a farm»
Us portem una cançó tradicional d’entre les més populars i antigues. Fou creada el 1600 i s’ha anat passant de manera oral a través de generacions, motiu pel qual existeixen numeroses versions. La cançó ensenya als infants el nom d’alguns animals:
Old MacDonald had a farm,
E-I-E-I-O.
And on his farm he had a cow,
E-I-E-I-O.
With a moo-moo here,
and a moo-moo there,
here a moo, there a moo,
everywhere a moo-moo.
Old MacDonald had a farm,
E-I-E-I-O.
Poi si prosegue con gli altri animali: a pig, a horse, a duck…
«Itsy-bitsy spider»
Aquesta és una cançó ben simpàtica. Conta les desventures d’una pobre aranya en un dia de pluja:
The itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain
And washed the spider out
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
And the itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the spout again
«Hickory Dickory dock»
Aquesta és una altra cançó molt simple i encomanadissa que ensenya als nens a contar fins a 6 en anglès i també a començar a dir les hores ja que, de fet, a cada estrofa canvia l’hora.
Hickory Dickory dock
The mouse ran up the clock
The clock struck (one, two, three, four, five, six)
The mouse ran down
Hickory Dickory dock
Cançons per a infants de 3 a 8 anys
«London Bridge is falling down»
Aquesta cançó és molt antiga, de l’any 1600. El seu vocabulari és ric i l’ús dels nombrosos phrasal verbs fa que sigui ideal per a infants de primària:
London Bridge is falling down,
falling down, falling down.
London Bridge is falling down,
my fair lady.
Take a key and lock her up,
lock her up, lock her up.
Take a key and lock her up,
my fair lady.
How will we build it up,
build it up, build it up?
How will we build it up,
my fair lady?
Build it up with silver and gold,
silver and gold, silver and gold.
Build it up with silver and gold,
my fair lady.
Gold and silver I have none,
I have none, I have none.
Gold and silver I have none,
my fair lady.
Build it up with needles and pins,
needles and pins, needles and pins.
Build it up with needles and pins,
my fair lady.
Pins and needles bend and break,
bend and break, bend and break.
Pins and needles bend and break,
my fair lady.
Build it up with wood and clay,
wood and clay, wood and clay.
Build it up with wood and clay,
my fair lady.
Wood and clay will wash away,
wash away, wash away.
Wood and clay will wash away,
my fair lady.
Build it up with stone so strong,
stone so strong, stone so strong.
Build it up with stone so strong,
my fair lady.
Stone so strong will last so long,
last so long, last so long.
Stone so strong will last so long,
my fair lady.
«Oh My Darling Clementine»
L’última cançó que proposem compta amb un ampli i ric vocabulari. “Oh my Darling Clementine” entona també com una melodia tradicional:
Oh my darling, oh my darling. Oh my darling, Clementine,
You were lost and gone forever, dreadful sorrow, Clementine.
In a cavern, in a canyon, excavating for a mine.
Lived a miner forty-niner, and his daughter Clementine.
Yes I love her, how I love her, thought her shoes were number nine.
Herring boxes without topses, sandals were for Clementine.
Oh my darling, oh my darling. Oh my darling, Clementine,
You were lost and gone forever, dreadful sorrow, Clementine.
Drove the horses to the water, every morning just at nine.
Hit her foot against a splinter, fell into the foaming brine.
Ruby lips above the water, blowing bubbles soft and fine.
But at last, I was no swimmer, so I lost my Clementine.
Oh my darling, oh my darling. Oh my darling, Clementine,
You were lost and gone forever, dreadful sorrow, Clementine.
You were lost and gone forever, dreadful sorrow, Clementine.
Estem segures que petits i grans us podreu divertir molt a l’hora que apreneu paraules i estructures de la llengua anglesa a través de les cançons que us proposem.
Aprendre al ritme de la música és meravellós!
