Writing to Learn:

Song Lyrics
By Vincent Rabiola
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Engage

 Think about different kinds of songs you

know
 What makes them different?
 What is similar?

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Different Song Styles

 Nursery Rhyme  Jazz

 Rock n’ Roll  Folk Music
 Country  Bluegrass
 Rap  Love Songs
 Show tunes  Children’s music
 Classical  Etc.

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 Poetry in Music
 Songs are written much like poems:
 Rhythm
 Rhyme
 Rhyme Scheme- a sequence in which rhyming
occurs (Ex. ABAB)
 Stanzas (or verses)- a grouping of two or more
lines of a poem in terms of length, metrical form, or
rhyme scheme
 Look for all of these poetic devices in
song lyrics Vincent Rabiola 5
What Makes Good Song Lyrics?

 Rhyme scheme
 Rhyme
 A chorus- a refrain or repeat; the verse that is
repeated in a song
 Repetition

 Do all of these apply to all song styles?

 Let’s look at some examples
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Nursery Rhyme: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little
Star” by Jane Taylor
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are.
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
When the blazing sun is gone,
When he nothing shines upon,
Then you show your little light,
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
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Then the traveler in the dark
Thanks you for your tiny spark;
He could not see which way to
go,
If you did not twinkle so.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
In the dark blue sky you keep,
While you thro' my window peep,
And you never shut your eye,
Till the sun is in the sky,
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
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 Rock & Roll Song:
“Let it Be” by the Beatles
When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be

And when the broken-hearted people living in the world agree

There will be an answer, let it be
For though we may be parted, there is still a chance that they will see
There will be an answer, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be
There will be an answer, let it be
Let it be, Let it be, let it be, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be

And when the night is cloudy, there is still a light that shines on me
Shine until tomorrow, let it be
I wake up to the sound of music, Mother Mary comforts me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, yeah let it be
There will be an answer, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, yeah let it be
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be

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 Rap Song: “Fresh Prince of Bel Air”
by Will Smith

Now this is the story all about how
My life got flipped, turned upside down
And I’d like to take a minute, just sit right there
I’ll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel
Air
In West Philadelphia born and raised
On the playground where I spent most of my days
Chilling out, maxing, relaxing all cool
And all shooting some B-ball outside the school
When a couple of guys said were up to no good
Started making trouble in my neighborhood
I got in one little fight and my mom got scared
And said you’re moving with your Auntie and Uncle in
Bel-Air
First class, yo, this is bad,
Drinking orange juice out of a champagne glass
Is this what the people of Bel Air livin like
Hmm this might be alright
I whistled for a cab and when it came near the
License plate said ‘fresh’ and had dice in the mirror
If anything I could say that this cab was rare
But I thought now forgot it, yo home to Bel Air
I pulled up to a house about seven or eight
And I yelled to the cabbie, yo home smell you later
Looked at my kingdom I was finally there
To settle my throne as the Prince of Bel Air

I begged and pleaded with her the other day

But she packed my suitcase and sent me on my way
She gave me a kissin’ and she gave me my ticket
I put my walkman on and said I might as well kick it

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Looking back

 What similarities were there between the

three songs?
 What were the differences?
 Did all of the songs have a rhyme
scheme? A chorus?
 Was there any repetition in the three
songs?
 Do all songs look the same?
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Writing Songs to Learn

 We can even use songs we know to help

us study!
 All we have to do is change the words!
 Let’s look at an example of this…

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 Example:
“Symbiosis Song” by Wendy Wichert
to the tune of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”
(A Nursery Rhyme)

Symbiosis means interactions between two organisms

Through mutualism, parasitism, and commensalism

Mutualism is the best relationship

Because both of the organisms will benefit

Parasitism has a parasite and a host

Where the parasite benefits and the host can become a ghost

Commensalism means that one organism does well

The other organism is unharmed so everything is swell

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 You Try It!

 Pick a song style that you like

 Pick a song you know that falls into that
song style
 Pick a topic that you are learning about in
school
 Try to compose lyrics about your topic to
the song and song style you have chosen

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Sources for Presentation
 Jane Taylor. “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.” 1806.
http://kids.niehs.nih.gov/lyrics/twinkle.htm

 The Beatles. "Let it Be.“ Let it Be. Capitol Records, 1970.

 Will Smith. "Fresh Prince of Bel Air."1990.

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/willsmith/freshprinceofbelairthemesong.html

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The End!

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