I used to be a social coach for adults…

…bringing them out into social settings and getting them to meet and connect with new people.  The common issue I dealt with most was helping them find things to say to the people they’d approach.

They didn’t understand that it had less to do with what to say, and more to do with just being confident enough to say anything.

I realized that most of my students were expecting the other person to provide the value during the conversation, which is what people tend to do when nervous or shy.  In order for them to lose the little monster in their heads that filtered every word that came out of their mouths, I needed to get them to mentally change gears into a verbal stream of consciousness.

I found the best way to do this was to get them to freestyle rap with me before going out.  As silly as this sounds, it worked.  It’s also a great exercise to do with your children! It forces them to constantly be spitting out words and rhyming them on the spot while attempting to have it all make sense.

Plus, you get to show off your family’s totally mad chill freestyle skills in your swagger wagon.  Can you be any more awesome than to teach your kids how to rap on beats?

Here’s what you need:

It’s not hard to find beats to rap to, just open up iTunes Music Store and type in “rap beats.”  There are a lot of crappy beats out there, but there are also some good ones.  Download the good ones, and then make a “Freestyle” playlist in iTunes so you can easily locate them.

Start a cypher during car rides by popping in the beat CD into your car stereo and rapping with your kids on the way to Shoprite.  A great game to play while freestyling is called “The Word Game.”  Each rapper gets a turn at rhyming a set of words for twenty to thirty seconds each.  After he starts getting tired, move on to the next kid, and so on.

Mommy: “Car.”

Aaron: “Well I’m ridin’ in the car, and I go real far.  I shine really bright, I’m a superstar!  I am a good boy, and I love my mom.  I hear the baby crying on the intercom!”

Daddy: “Running.”

Charlie: “I love jumping and running, and I think it’s really funny.  I hop around a lot just like a little bunny!”

When just starting out, make sure the “cypher” begins with you so your children can get an idea of what it’s all about.  As time goes on, forget the rules and just start freestyling with each other.  You’d be surprised at how talented kids can get at this game, all they need is practice and after a few weeks they’ll be spittin’ rhymes like pros.

Remember, the goal is not to sound like Jay-Z while practicing.  I expect you to rap crappy at first! But the whole point is to harness you and your kids creativity in a fun way.  Your rhymes can be silly, and start off super simple, just make sure you are having fun.

Plus, you can sleep well knowing that you are the coolest parents in the universe.  Anytime parents do something creative with their children, coolness happens.  Rock on.

Want to download the freestyle rap playlist so you can bump beats in your swagger wagon with your kids? Click here!