Archive for October, 2008

The Funnest, Easiest Birthday Party You’ll Ever Plan!

Published at October 31, 2008 in Bits and Pieces. Closed

Cake ordered– check… guest list finished – check…a complete blank on how to entertain 10 children under the age of 5 – BIG check.  Sound familiar? 

If it does,  we have a solution for you!  Join the families who come to Studio3Music for an effortless and incredibly fun birthday party!  We’ll make your child’s birthday extra special by providing an themed interactive musical experience that will create wonderful memories.    Our Kindermusik Educators are the experts at creating a birthday around your special theme, using dancing, singing, instruments, puppets, balls, parachute,  and more.  Every party package includes 15 minutes of exploring time with fun instruments or toys as guests arrive, followed by 45 minutes of Kindermusik fun and play.

Birthday parties can be held at our studio at the Redmond Town Center. We provide the fun for all of your guests in a wonderful setting.  No need to scrub and dust the house in anticipation for visitors only to spend hours cleaning when the last guest leaves.  We’ll do all the work for you!  A party at the studio includes table coverings, plates, cups, napkins and utensils for all children who come.

We can also bring the musical fun to your house or party location!  Interested?  Check out our birthday party packages online or contact Analiisa for more information or to set a date analiisa@studio3music.com.  

Parents who have had Kindermusik birthdays at the studio or at another party location, wasn’t it fun?  Let us know!  We would love to hear about your experience.

- posted by Miss Jesikah, one of our birthday party specialists!

Get Silly - it’s okay!

Published at October 30, 2008 in Bits and Pieces and Things to do. Closed


I am the first to admit that I am a kid at heart. I tackle, twirl and tickle my daughter from sunrise to sunset. At a recent college reunion, I noticed that in general most of the parents did not take the time to get down on their toddlers level – let alone down on the floor to play with their children. I watched my friends (all parents of infants & toddlers) stand on the sidelines as their kids sat there bored. It dawned on me these parents must not either 1) know how to interact with their kids, or 2) are so completely exhausted that they need a breather. Either way, I must have seemed crazy because I jumped into a quick rendition of Ring around the Rosey and Old McDonald. This is all it took to have these kids jumping in my lap for the rest of the evening.

These moments make me appreciate all of our Studio3Music parents and your commitment to playing & singing with and enjoying your children. As you know, there will never be a greater toy or gift that you can give your child than the time and love you show them. It is in these moments, these experiences that give them confidence and a foundation to grow. I truly enjoy the smiles our parents bring to class and the memories that your children create. It is what motherhood and music are all about.

-posted by Miss Kim, whose daughter Hallie is the beneficiary of her silliness!

Clean Routine

Published at October 30, 2008 in Imagine That, Our Time, Things to do, Village and Young Child. Closed

Another wonderful week of “cleaning up the house” continues in our Kindermusik classes! We’re having a great time moving to the music as we dust and sweep. Both in Our Time or Imagine That, our “house” is spotless.

In one of my Imagine That classes I forgot that we needed to “clean up.” So, one little boy told me “Miss Beth, but the house is still dirty. We need to sweep and dust!”

I sure hope their enthusiasm for cleaning is continuing at home too. Now, if I could only get my 12 year old to be as excited about his chores!

Although I love a clean classroom, what’s more important is that through repetition we are building routines in class. The children know that after we “play outside” and get “dirty” our next step is to “clean ourselves” and the room.

Either in class or at home, establishing routines builds your child’s confidence. He or she knows what to expect and when to expect it. Here are some routine building ideas for children of all ages:

Village: Take time with your baby to practice intentional touch at home before bath. To build your child’s language skills, give your baby a play-by-play of your chores.

Our Time: Let your toddler help put clothes in the dryer when you are doing laundry… it will help your back too! Add a fun chant. “Clothes, clothes, clothes, shhh!”

Imagine That: Let your preschooler know what chores need to be done. “First, we’ll put away the clean dishes, then we’ll sweep the floor, and then it will be time to play.” Then ask, “What’s first? Then what will we do? And what’s the last thing?” Including them in the work develops responsibility. Sequencing events builds memory and concentration. Additionally, when they know the events of the day you can circumvent the emotional outbursts that accompany surprises.

Young Child: Your Young Child is ready for some of his/her own responsibilities. Put him/her in charge of emptying a trash can, setting the table, or another very specific task.

For children of all ages: Be sure your daily routine includes time to read together every day. Reading together provides a wonderful family connection.

Have a great week with some clean routines!

- posted by Miss Beth, who loves to be “dusted” in class!

Our Time - Playing with Language

Published at October 27, 2008 in Child Development and Our Time. Closed

Hi Moms and Dads and Grandma’s and Nannies and Aunties and Grandpas -

I thought I’d take a minute while dinner was cooking itself to write out the Foundation of Learning statements I used in class last week. I try as often as possible to give you ones that aren’t already in your Home Activity Book- after all, you have those. The ones in my head are more difficult to get to, so I thought the blog might be a good place to put them. That way you have access to them in case you missed class, or were having one of those moments in class where your attention was diverted. Though, I can’t imagine what could possibly divert your attention in class. It’s just so quiet you could hear a pin drop in there!

In Our Time we focused on making noise- every toddlers favorite pastime! There are lots of good ways to practice noise making with your toddler- animal sounds; sounds that imitate machinery such as cars trucks, airplanes, trains, sirens; and more.

Our practical application and focus for our noise making were the sensory related sounds that are in the book “At My House”, which came with your home materials. Most of these sounds are onomatopoeias- especially the ones related to the two pages with pictures of food on them. Noise making for the toddler gives them an opportunity to practice the phonemes within our language without the stress of communication. The act of speaking requires a great deal of physical and cognitive coordination, and often leads to frustration for the child, and- let’s face it- the adult on the receiving end of the attempted communication, too! So engaging the child in a rousing game of “What does the (fill in the object or animal ) say?” gives them precious practice time with out any frustration. Making noise with them in a place where they can see your face and your enunciators (lips, teeth, and tongue are the visible ones) will give them clues on how to make those sounds. Playing at “making faces and noises in the mirror” is also a good extension of this activity.

- posted by Miss Allison, who encourages you to make some noise!

Village - Building Community Through Dances

Published at October 27, 2008 in Village. Closed

Hi Moms and Dads and Grandma’s and Nannies and Aunties and Grandpas-

I thought I’d take a minute while dinner was cooking itself to write out the Foundation of Learning statements I used in class last week. I try as often as possible to give you ones that aren’t already in your home materials- after all, you have those. The ones in my head are more difficult to get to, so I thought the blog might be a good place to put them. That way you have access to them in case you missed class, or were having one of those moments in class where your attention was diverted. Though, I can’t imagine what could possibly divert your attention in class. It’s just so quiet you could hear a pin drop in there!

In Village last week we talked about using Circle and Line Dances to build community in the classroom. A community is defined as the overall social context in which people live. Since babies are people too (even though big brother or sister may disagree), their community is an important part of their lives. When we dance together as a class, we allow our children to see us work together as a team, responding to others in a positive way as we laugh and play together. We allow them to connect with their peers and the other grown-ups from a place of safety and security- your arms. Once a child is secure in the environment and with the people, they will start to explore and try out new things- they are now ready to learn! Your Kindergarten teacher was correct when she said, “Safety First!”

We also talked about how you can use a line dance with your spouse at home as a way to involve both of you in the baby’s classroom experience. Brothers and sisters will enjoy these dances, too. It gives them a way to connect with baby and the family as a whole, which can reduce the stress and anxiety that accompanies the addition of a new sibling to their lives. Circle dances can also be modified for home use… most of them translate easily in to the “line” formation that two people and a couple of kids will automatically form no matter how hard they try to be a circle!

- posted by Miss Allison who loves to dance in any formation!

Symphony Serenade at the Seattle Symphony

Published at October 27, 2008 in Things to do. Closed

Have you seen our new concert logo? Kindermusik International teamed up with our web/graphic/knows everything we don’t guy Scott Bothel and colaborated together on the logo for our new concert series with Soundbridge, (the education department of the Seattle Symphony), and members of the symphony.

I know some of you got to see Allison last July in our Fiddlin’ Fun concert, and it was such a raging success the Seattle Symphony asked us to create 3 more concerts this year! Our next concert series, entitled Play Me a Story, is December 5th and 6th, at 9:30 and 10:30.

This concert will be all about using music to tell a story, and we’ll use music to express emotions, portray characters and describe events. Together, our pianist and Miss Allison will create a story, taken from ideas given by the children in the audience. At the same time, we’ll have a professional artist on stage draw the story, and the illustrations will be projected on the big screen. You could come to all four concerts and hear and see a different story each time!

Of course, we’ll have favorite Kindermusik songs, and some very special guests as well. Don’t wait to purchase tickets; they sell out on very short notice! You can purchase tickets right here. We think it is a terrific way to spend a morning together as a family before the holiday craziness begins full force. And afterwards, go down to Soundbridge and play with all the cool displays and instruments they have just for children!

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who LOVES snuggling children on stage during rocking time.

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