I know non-targeted input is all the rage, but frankly, I’m hung up on high-frequency vocab repetition. And the more I can get key words, phrases, and structures stuck in kids’ heads, the more Spanish they can take with them when the class is over.

So these are the tunes I have been using or plan to use this school year. How many are already on your list?

1 “Calma” por Pedro Capó con Farruko

If your students listen to NO other new songs this year, make sure they at least hear this summer hit. One of the best things to come out of my classes is when students hear a popular song that takes them back, which this one will surely do for years to come. Just, you know, you might want to get creative with the interpretation of some Puerto Rican slang. My Mexican mom had no idea what “medalla” meant in this context, but she was ALWAYS singing along. Granted, she is fond of a cervecita on the beach, but for my high schoolers, I advised them to consider it a METAPHOR for their MINDS (which one or two have taken a bit literally on writing tests, but, hey.)

Best vocab takeaway from this one? “Cierra la pantalla” comes in SO handy EVERY. DAY.

PS everyone MUST use this choreography I got from @SraMThomas.

2 “Nada sale mal” por Aitana

This is a gift from my Spanish exchange student to you. If she had her way, they’d be listening to Aitana CONSTANTLY. In fact, several have mentioned they still listen to this one from early in the semester while they’re in the car or the shower.

Granted, there’s some low-frequency stuff in here, but I like how the “Nosotros” form gets snuck in with a familiar verb (because DUH jugar is one of the very first we need!) as well as the “tienes que” so the go-getters have that structural example early.

Best vocab takeaway: pones/pongo–that way when we got to clothing, they had an easy mental reference!

3 “Loca” por Alvaro Soler

I had Spanish I girls waxing eloquent in intermediate mid, spontaneously comparing Sr. Soler to Víctor of “Guapo” fame during conversation and even critically responding to the idea of women being crazy in their writing! But the kids CANNOT get enough of this song. I worried it would be too complex, and that “provoca” et al were too low-frequency and wouldn’t stick, but I guess the cognates are strong with this one.

Best vocab takeaway: pierdo – I haven’t fully exploited it, but it did find its way into some students’ writing.

4 “Criminal” por Natti Natasha con Ozuna

This one is frequently cited as a favorite in class discussions. Hard to deny Ozuna, and you gotta love an empowered Natti Natasha. I was concerned about just “cri-criminal” getting stuck in their heads on repeat, but they remembered more–and a line or two snuck into a few writing tests samples where students were being Mario from Agentes Secretos writing to Paula!

Best vocab takeaway: to my surprise “me robaste el corazón” I had kind of been hoping for siento or puede ser, but they use what they need!

5 “Lunes a jueves” por Leslie Grace con Farina

Who can resist a little reinforcement on days-of-the-week? I will say that it can get awkward if you spend too long explaining “no con ganas.” This is one that tripped them up for a while on our weekly lyrics Kahoot (I mostly just add the week’s lyrics and then go back through ALLLL that we’ve done, 2-3 questions per song). It really makes them distinguish between pero and puedo, you know?

Best vocab takeaway:me llama vs me llamo. It still hasn’t sunken in for EVERYONE, but this song helps.

6 “Mami” por Piso 21 con Black-Eyed Peas

I confess the Spanglish in this one had me (@SraSpanglish) conflicted, as I wanted students to get SPANISH stuck in their heads. I also had a hard time picking which lyrics I wanted to focus on as the chorus–still not sure I made the right decision there. I went with

Mami, eres dulce como azúcar
Tienes ese toque que me gusta
Hace que yo diga aleluya
Espera Let me translate

“Mami” por Piso 21

See, that had the minimum of English, but then there’s the part that shows the different ways to say “I love you” which can be a useful discussion (which I quickly glossed over, regretably)

Best vocab takeaway? I was hoping for eres, but maybe with the other lines, “te quiero” would stick.

7 “Sola” por Manuel Turizo

“Vaina loca” from last year’s list is always a big hit, so I feel like this will be a good one as we wrap up level 1, or maybe for level 2. Manuel Turizo’s voice is pretty hypnotic, and though I knew “Ella quiere beber, ella quiere bailar” would never get out of their heads, I feel like that one’s harder to finagle than a “medalla“.

Best vocab takeaway? Hopefully, dice vs habla. They’ve been exposed to both, but they’re still pretty jumbled in their writing.

8 “Perro” por Olvidate!

So I had a big divide over “Libre” from the 2018 list–half LOVED it and played it at home even before the class selected it, and the other half? Hated it with a PASSION. Still, how often do you get a chance to sneak URUGUAY into the class discussion and authentic texts? Also, the message (and the mascot) of this one tickles me. They can deal with the cumbia accordion.

Best vocab takeaway? I’m thinking te vas or mejor así–possibly some good passwords in there.

9 “Se Preparó” por Ozuna

OK, DON’T google Ozuna scandals, because you want to keep enjoying his music. He’s second only to Maluma for my own middle schooler (can you believe it? MIDDLE SCHOOLER), and that’s only because he’s learned not to ask what Maluma’s saying, really.

That being said, I was looking into more past tense songs, planning to teach Spanish 2 this year. I do have one section, so I think this will come in handy. Also, Ozuna songs NEVER LEAVE YOUR HEAD.

SAFETY HINT: I tend to have videos playing in the background and just focus on the chorus–especially for this video, since around 2:50, there is some scandalousness and a certain extended digit…With an older audience, the scenario could generate some important discussions about privacy and relationships, though. In the meantime, I’m switching out the official video for a lyric video on the playlist (embedded below).

Best vocab takeaway: I’m hoping the preparó and the llamaba will stick for the imperfect and preterite examples to come back to.

10 “Me voy” por Cimafunk

Full disclosure: the end of the year was approaching, and I had been relying heavily on the lists from the last three years (one of the few perks of switching schools), AND most of the songs I’d been listening to over the summer ended up with…questionable videos.

So I checked out “10 Latin Artists to Watch in 2019” from Billboard and found this gold. It’s a different kind of sound that I think will be completely new for most of my students, but that will also stretch their interests beyond the types of music they’re used to. Plus: we totally needed some Cuban flavor on this list.

Best vocab takeaway? I think our last password of they year needs to be “Me voy pa’ mi casa,” as much as my kids love talking about going home anyway.

So those are my suggestions going into 2020. What would you add? Check out previous years’ lists for even more songs!

• 2019
• 2018
• 2017