SONGS in the classroom: IF I WERE … I WOULD… – intermediate / advanced / teens / adults

Marc Chagall, "The Green Violinist," 1923-24. Oil on canvas, 78 x 42 3/4 inches (198 x 108.6 cm). Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

Songs always bring a breath of fresh air into the classroom and are greeted with joy.  I usually try to choose songs, which are not only clear and fairly easy to understand but have meaningful content for language learners such as grammar, phrasal verbs or vocabulary pertinent to what we are studying.

For intermediate/advanced students I find that IF I WERE A RICH MAN – Musical:  Fiddler on the Roof is not only repetitive easily teaching the SUBJUNCTIVE with practically no effort but the song also gives us the opportunity to discuss the historical and religious context the musical is set in:  a small Jewish community in a Russian village with all its traditions and its relationship with the Christian community in and outside the village.  All in all a catchy tune which can also arouse curiosity to watch the entire musical and can lead to interesting discussions.

You can download the worksheet to the song below.  Feel free to delete or translate the Italian into another language.
  

Hope you have fun with it!
Susan

fiddler_on_the_roof_-_songs.docx
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