Chinese Dynasty Song

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

The following attachment is a mnemonic device that I have used for the last several years with my history students regarding China. The basis of the song is to assist students in memorizing the order of all the major Chinese dynasties all the way up to the leadership of Mao Ze Dong & Deng Xiaoping. It is meant to be sung to the tune of Frere Jacques or Where is Thumper. Anyway, after a few attempts the students will learn it, and it remains in their memory for quite a long time, if not forever. It is not uncommon to see some students (while testing) singing the song in their heads in order to answer questions about China. I feel that it can be used for student of all grades. The only thing I would suggest is to go through some slow dry runs, and give the students the appropriate pronunciations of the dynasties. Last of all, try being adventurous and take them outside (if able) to try and sing it. Try to reinforce over the course of the year. Hopefully it helps!

Manuel Mendoza 😀

[Anonymous]

Awesome device!! Thank you so much for sharing it! Although I will not specifically use it in my literature class, I showed it to one of my colleagues at Carson who teaches World History, and she absolutely loved the idea. We are both big on mneumonic devices, so that helped. She will be starting a unit on China next month, so I'm anxious to hear how this works for her. I'll be certain to pass it along to you. Thanks again for sharing a great way to learn!

[Anonymous]

Thank you so much for this! i teach special ed and having an auditory supplement is always helpful! I am actually going to use this for my own learning. Nice find!!

[Anonymous]

Cool resource and great instructions! I have several students who are working on an assignment involving ancient East Asian dynasties, and this could be helpful to those who selected China. I'm requiring students to identify each ancient dynasty and its duration, and this might help reinforce their discovery and learning.

[Anonymous]

Yes thank you for sharing this as a way to reach our students. My only problem is sometimes I have a problem pronouncing these words, especially the words that are from ancient civilizations where we have to just do our best. What are you all using to get the correct pronounciation of words? I love to sing so we will be using it...I just can't garuantee that the students will say them correctly for their high school teachers.

[Anonymous]

What a wonderful tool to teach students to learn the order of the Chinese Dynasty. Music and songs are a powerful tool in education. It makes you wonder why the arts are the first to go when there are budget cuts. Being a teacher of theatre arts, I see the value in using music, art and theatre in the classroom. Those are usually the lessons that students remember. The arts can be used in any discipline, and I wish that the value of the arts were recognized. Research shows that students who are involved in the arts have higher test scores because of the discpline required to read music, practice and interpret drama, and visualize concepts.

Dawn

[Author]

Posts