[Eric]

Quote emile

"Stan" by Eminem has an intriguing story that the students can piece together from the lyrics.

Do you really let them listen to that? It gets pretty intense.

[emile]

Do you really let them listen to that? It gets pretty intense.

Fortunately I don't teach little kids. Currently I'm teaching fresh grads. Also, I have a version of the song that went through the local censors. It's funny though, they censored some odd words like 'suffocate' (pronounce the middle syllable ) and missed some of the real swearing.

[clivehawkins]

Quote Eric

Do you really let them listen to that? It gets pretty intense.

That raises an interesting point. How far do you go with swearing and 'offensive' slang? Clearly it depends on the group, but I've had classes where we've done songs with some strong language that we've later looked at together. It's always been pretty productive. I don't actively encourage them to use this language but I think they should at least understand it. After all, if they travel about they're going to hear it and need to know what it means.

Also, if they do want to use it they at least have a chance of getting it right!! I have a friend here in Italy that for years used the word 'wonker'. It never had the desired effect. People just laughed.

[Eric]

Quote clivehawkins

I have a friend here in Italy that for years used the word 'wonker'. It never had the desired effect. People just laughed.

That's a good question, though. How far do you explore the language and all its beauty. I guess it depends on how comfortable you are with the material and how confident you are in your class to handle that kind of material. For me, I wouldn't be comfortable teaching the uncensored version of Stan as it's even a little uncomfortable to sing at karaoke... but I still do.