First they came for Pluto. Then math. Now it’s the alphabet!
You may not know your ABCs – or be able to sing anymore.
The alphabet song of our youth has been updated, and confused parents must learn a new rendition of the song to keep up with their children.
The ABCs we know and love—set to the same tune as “Twinkle, Winkle Little Star”—have pauses after certain sets of letters, culminating in the phrase “Y and Z.”
It also closes with the lines “Now you know my ABCs / Next time won’t you sing with me?” and has the infamous fast-paced “LMNOP”.
But now children are coming home from school singing a similar but new version, where there are pauses after different letters, ending in “XYZ” – leaving out the word “and”.
The new song also changed the closing line. The children now sing “Now I’ll never forget / how to say the alphabet.”
Familiar way
ABCDEFG (pause) HIJKLMNOP (pause) QRS (pause) TUV (pause) WX (pause) Y and Z / Now I know my ABCs / Next time won’t you sing with me?
New way
ABCDEFG (pause) HIJKLMN (pause) OPQ (pause) RST (pause) UVW (pause) XYZ / Now I’ll never forget / how to say the alphabet
While the tune is the same, the difference is noticeable enough to make parents feel like there’s a whole new alphabet.
The reason for the change is said to be to no longer have the “LMNOP” rush.
It also removes the “and” between the “Y” and “Z”, eliminating confusion about an extra letter.
Tampa Bay’s ABC Action News reported that the change helps students learn to speak English as a second language.
The song apparently first circulated in 2012 on social media through the educational site Dream English.
Naturally, people have thoughts about changing a tradition that has so far stood the test of time.
In the comments of a viral TikTok posted by a teacher about the new song, opinions were mixed. Some said that while they weren’t personally fans of the new version, the change made sense.
“It’s better. I hate it,” wrote one.
“PLUTO FIRST NOW THIS,” someone shouted, remembering when Pluto was declared not to be a planet.
“Ugh, how dare you explain the extremely logical reason behind changing something from my childhood,” one user quipped.
“I agree with you, but didn’t we all do well knowing how to read and such with the original way of singing the alphabet?” someone asked.
“This version is definitely superior, even though my nostalgia doesn’t want me to admit it,” wrote another.
“I was about to get angry at how unnecessary this was and after hearing it, I tearfully agree that it’s clearly better,” one admitted.
However, most were confused and believed that the change was unnecessary.
“As a kid I said LMNOP, but I knew there were special letters. I was just lazy,” said one person.
“It’s funny how we ESL learners were learning LMNOP well, but English-speaking kids ‘hear’ something else?” commented one.
“Who the hell thought LMNOP was a letter or that there was an ‘N’ between YZ? We literally had the alphabet on the wall in front of us with a teacher and a ruler pointing as we sang,” argued another.
“I’ve never in my life met anyone who thought LMNOP or YN or NZ were individual letters,” someone remarked.
“However, we all kind of figured it out. Not many adults think YNZ is a letter,” admitted one user.
“Don’t they go through the alphabet and learn every letter anymore? Just throw the song at them and let them figure it out, right? a ridiculed one.
The original poster, who goes by @teacherrachelsorsel on TikTok, explained in the comments: “Even with pronunciation, this guy’s kids are still developing phonemic awareness! This simple change is a big help for many people. Often children cannot be diagnosed with dyslexia or a phonemic disorder until the end of first grade or later. We want all children to have access to at least the alphabet from the beginning.”
“What research has found is that when children first learn to read, they need to develop two skills,” Rachel, who specializes in structured literacy, literacy intervention and dyslexia, further explained to USA Today .
“One is called the alphabetic principle. . . . The other skill is called phonological awareness.”
“You think about [the alphabet] so simple, everyone knows, but there’s actually a lot that young children’s brains are doing when they’re learning letters,” she added.
“When they’re struggling with something as ‘simple’ as the alphabet song, the whole journey to reading is going to be really difficult.”
#alphabet #song #parents #completely #confused #ABCs
Image Source : nypost.com