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Family Music At HomeWelcome parents and caretakers as we have discussed in class it is our goal to give families songs, games and activities they can play with their child/children at home. Here is a picture of my family recently with my 1 year old cousins. We didn't have drums on hand but plastic yogurt containers, spoons and our voices did the trick! I hope you are able to include some of the activities from our class into your daily play. |
singing & Listening |
Sing with your children, children learn from modeling others so remember it doesn’t matter how well you sing it just matters that you do sing. Echo or copycat games are a great way to get children singing. When your child does sing give them tremendous praise! Lastly consider adding lullabies to your bedtime routine. That way you know you have sung every day with your child. Music is like a language it can only be learned through a human being not through a music player, phone, computer, etc.
Perhaps the most important skill a musician has is the ability to listen. With so many visual stimulants today for young children parents have to make an extra effort to work on listening skills. Reciting nursery rhymes, poems or stories without visual aids is one way to do this. You can also pick out sounds from the environment, for example listen to a bird, a train, rain drops on the window, etc. Another way to develop listening skills is to play different types of recorded music. For example, consider playing classical music, jazz music, multicultural music, etc. Putumayo CDs are great or download various artists on i-tunes, Pandora or Spotify. |
Instrument Playing & Movement |
When buying or making instruments for young children focus on the sounds they make. It is more important how they sound verses how they look. Some homemade shakers sound better than so many of the “musical” toys sold in stores. When playing instruments treat them as something special for music time and store them in a different place than your child’s toys.
Music invokes movement and often tells us how to move. Once again parents should demonstrate how to listen and move to music. If it is slow and gliding move in this way, if it is short and separated consider jumping, etc. Music is also a great way to introduce gross motor skills like marching, galloping, tip toeing, running, etc. |