1 Number Song | Today’s Number Song with Matt and Friends

I’m excited to share the new Today’s Number Song video: Number 1. This is a new series. More below the video!

Today’s Number Song: Learning to Count Numbers and Objects

This fun new series introduces the concept of numbers and counting to young learners of English (ESL, EFL). A children’s English class is not complete without some counting. This video teaches the number 1 and counting one apple, one t-shirt, one dog, and one car.

Activity idea: After watching the video, ask your students to find one object in the room and bring it to the front of class. Each student can take turns saying the number 1 and the name of their object. For example, “1 pencil.”

I hope you find this video helpful for your kids English classes.

Happy singing and learning!

1 Apple Na Na Na -Counting Apples Song for Children’s English Class

Practice counting yummy apples from 1-6 in this fun numbers song. Lyrics below:

Lyrics: 1 Apple Na Na NA
one apple, two apples, three apples
na, na, na, na, na na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na
four apples, five apples, six apples
na, na, na…
yummy, yummy, yummy
yummy, yummy, yummy
yummy, yummy, yummy, apples
six apples, five apples, four apples
na, na, na….
three apples, two apples, one apple
na, na, na….
I’m hungry. Ohh!
yummy, yummy, yummy
yummy, yummy, yummy
yummy, yummy, yummy,
apples na, na, na…

Song available soon on Spotify and Apple Music!

Original song by Matt. Copyright Dream English

Count to 1000 by 1s Video

Counting is really important for young English learners (ESL, EFL). Numbers are useful in every day life (shopping, cooking) and numbers also contain many important phonetic sounds of the English language. More below video:

It takes a bit over 23 minutes to count to 1000 by 1s in this video. That is a long time to sit through a video! However, you can use parts of this video to practice. For example, try counting from 1-100 one day, and the next 101-200.

Put it on in the background before class, and let your students listen to the numbers. These are just a few ideas. I hope you find this video useful for your classes and students! Happy Teaching!

New Video: Let’s Count to 100 by 1s Chant for Learning Numbers

I review numbers every class with my young learners, and this video is a fun and simple way to count from 1 to 100 by 1s in your young learner English classes! More below the video!

You can also review numbers in class using flashcards, or object, or fingers. After reviewing the numbers, I always like to do a quick quiz with my students. I show a few numbers and ask, “What number?” Children can learn numbers quickly and a numbers quiz is a fun activity to give children confidence in their English learning adventure!

You can download the audio only for this chant for free! Click here to go to the webpage with the chant! You will also see an action version of this chant on that page. Try it when your students need some excercise!

 

Top 5 Ideas for Teaching Numbers in Children’s English Class

I recently started studying French again. I used to be able to speak a bit of French, and I decided to pick it up again. The biggest thing I am struggling with is numbers. I am not sure why, but it made me realize again how important it is to teach numbers well in Children’s English classes (ESL, EFL).

Update: Listen to this Blog as a Podcast Episode:

Top 5 Ideas for Teaching Numbers to Children

  1. Use flashcards to teach numbers. If the students are young teach 1-10. Count with your fingers, count objects, and use flash cards. Students from age 4 can start with numbers up to 100 and more. We count to 10,000 in my classes. First count 1-20, then by 10s to 100, then 1,000 then 10,000. Give it a try!
  2. Numbers Songs: After counting I follow up with a numbers song! Depending on the students level I use the following songs: Let’s Count 1 to 10, Let’s Count to 20, Let’s Count to 100 by 1s
  3. Ask the students their age: It is important for students to remember numbers individually, not just by counting up. Ask, “How old are you?” to your students. They can answer, “I’m five years old.” or more simply “I’m five.” Of course with their correct age.
  4. Numbers Dice Game: I have a large dice with numbers 1-6.  First, I show the students the numbers on the dice, and then ask them to roll the dice. They have to say the number that lands on top in English. Fun and simple!
  5. Numbers Quiz: Show random number flashcards to your students and ask them “What number?” I sometimes show them really fast to add a challenge. You can also bring a group of students up to the front of the class and quiz them. I often combine this with asking them, “What’s your name?” after they answer I show a number flashcard and say, “What number?” It keeps the kids active and having fun

These are just some of my ideas for teaching numbers in your children’s English class. I hope they are helpful. Happy teaching!

Five Santa Christmas Counting Song for Children’s English Class

The Five Santas Counting Song is a fun and active way to practice counting from 1 to 5 with Christmas characters. How to teach, Lyrics, Poster, and Free Song MP3 below the video:

In the song we count five Santas, five reindeer and five elves. To make the song more fun, I added some actions for each character. Your students will have a lot of fun with this song. Recommend Ages 2-7.

Free Downloads:

  1. Click here to download a Free MP3 of this song to use in your classes. (please note the song is copyright and this is for classroom use only.
  2. Click here to download a free poster to teach the vocabulary of the song (as pictured below)

    five santas poster sample

How to Teach

  1. Start by introducing the characters in the song using the poster: Santa, Reindeer, Elf. Teach each character name with the action. Santa says, “ho, ho, ho”, the reindeer jump, and the elves dance.
  2. Practice counting the numbers 1 to 5 using your hands or the poster.
  3. Watch the video and sing along and do the actions.

Practice Quiz

You can use the poster above to ask the students questions like, “How many Santas?” For example, use another piece of paper to cover up two Santas. Next, ask the students to count the remaining Santas. The answer is 3 Santas! Repeat with other characters.

Vocabulary Practice Game

Try a simple gesture game. Do the actions of one of the characters, and ask the students to guess which character you are. For example, dance like an elf, and ask the students, “Who am I?” The student should answer elf. You can also let your students try to be the characters. They will love it!

I hope you have a lot of fun singing this song in your classes! Check out more Christmas songs from Dream English at www.dreamenglish.com/christmas Merry Christmas!

 

Let’s Count to 10 on a Pirate Adventure! A Fun Young Learners Classroom Song!

When teaching young learners English in an EFL or ESL environment, I love doing circle time songs. A circle time song is a song you sing and act out while walking in a circle with your students. With this in mind I created the new Pirate Ship Action and Counting Song. More below the video:

Counting and Moving

The idea of this song is very simple: Let’s count numbers while moving in a circle and doing some fun actions. The pirate ship part is an extra layer of fun! We’re not just walking and singing, we’re having an adventure!

How to Teach:

Target Vocabulary: pirate ship, pirate, numbers 1-10, plank, beach, crocodile, treasure, open, gold coins. (If you are not sure about some of this vocabulary, please watch the video. Also, check out the video thumbnail for the following vocabulary: pirate, plank, beach, treasure, 1,2 ,3.)

You can let the students watch the video one time, and have them act along with it. Or, draw some pictures on the board, or use flashcards to show the different parts of the ship, beach, etc.

After the students are familiar with the vocabulary, you can teach the song without the video if you like. Try getting your students in a circle, and singing the song. You can either do this a cappella (without background music) or using the song only. Your students will have a lot of fun getting their energy out and doing all of the actions. Give it a try, and happy singing!

The song Pirate Ship Action and Counting Song is available on iTunes, Spotify and other streaming services. 

 

Back to Basics English for Young Learners #1: Numbers

With so many songs, videos, flashcards, games, where does one begin teaching English to young learners? It can be overwhelming! My answer: get back to basics. In this post, and more going forward, I will cover some basic and simple ideas for teaching English. Remember, teaching English is easy! Present the material in a fun and interesting way, and children will do the rest with their magnificent minds. More below the video:


Basic # 1: Teaching Numbers 

We might think that most young learners already know numbers. I meet a lot of new students who have a basic idea of how to say numbers in English, but maybe have never done so in front of people. Numbers are a fun and simple way to boost young learners confidence in the English classroom.

Practice, practice, practice

Numbers are not only great on their own, but they contain many sounds of the English language. I start many classes by simply counting 1 to 10 using flashcards. If the students are older we might count to 100, or 1,000 or higher! It depends on the level, and kids get a kick out of saying really high numbers. You can make flashcards, write numbers on a white board, or even count objects. Be creative!

Numbers Songs

I have recorded a few numbers songs over the years, but the still number one favorite is Let’s Count 1 to 10. Simple, and always fun with the actions.  Here is a list of the Numbers Songs I use most in my classes. Click on the link to go to the page or video with the song.

  1. Let’s Count 1 to 10
  2. Let’s Count to 20
  3. Counting to 100 by 1s

Vocabulary Use

You can do many things with numbers. Ask students, “how old are you?” and they answer, ” I am five”, etc. You can use numbers in a shopping game and use the vocabulary, “How much is it?” “It’s 25 dollars.”

Games

You can play a shopping game, restaurant game, or many other fun games with numbers. Below are links to my favorite number games to use in class:

  1. Easy Counting Game
  2. Put in Order Game
  3. What’s Missing Game
  4. Toss a ball to students and count. (not a game, but a fun activity)

Numbers Wrap up

As a teacher I like to keep things as simple as possible. To teach numbers, practice saying numbers with your students, sing a numbers song, then play a numbers game. Simple and effective. Keep it light and fun, and your students will be counting to a billion in no time! Happy Teaching!