Your Baby:
Bring your baby into your lap and simply enjoy time together. If he’s fussy, rub his tummy or back in a heart-shaped motion, or gently squeeze his arms and legs in a milking motion. Sing some favorite lullabies. If you put on a CD, sing along. After all, your voice is his favorite sound, whether or not you sing in tune.

Your Toddler:
Turn down the lights and play soft music. Sit or lie down (but not in bed, because you’re modeling relaxing, not going to sleep!) and just breathe deep and enjoy. Allow your toddler to simply wander if she’s not ready to sit still. She’ll learn to relax by watching you.

Your Preschooler:
The urge to stacy awake and learn is strong in preschoolers, and they often need help calming down. Play quiet games: Who can whisper the softest? Can you float like a feather? Or a cloud? Listen to soft, soothing music and then lay on the floor and do…blissfully, quietly, absolutely nothing.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who is tempted to stop working and go lie down with a good book… and maybe take a nap.

I participated in a podcast with Dr. Don Hodges of the University of Texas at San Antonio, Director of the Institute of Music Research and Coordinator of Music Education, professor of music education to graduate and undergraduate students, not to mention the orchestra conductor. (So with that title, you can tell knows what he’s talking about!)

I don’t know any children who eagerly sit down for multiplication drills in July and August, even cleverly disguised as bright colored and cheery workbooks. But I do know that books are, for the most part, a different story. Think summer reading programs and incentives at the library. I remember participating over 35 years ago, and they are still going on today.

So, back to the title question. Want a better reader? The answer, according to the experts, is music. Simply listening to music does not make you smarter. But as Dr. Hodges points out, when children are actively making music and participating in music, they tend to do better overall.

As parents, we tend to spend time on drills and programs (remember the “bright and cheery workbooks?), but the actual spending time in making music making is more beneficial, not to mention more enjoyable.

Anything that we are actively involved in causes the brain to re-wire itself over time (and once again, I’ll give this oft-repeated fact – music is the only activity that engages the entire brain simultaneously).

According to research studies, children who took music classes or lessons had actual measurable changes in their brains after the classes. But is what even more interesting is that certain areas of the brain that had the largest change, one being language (this includes reading).

Successful acquisition of reading and writing is dependent on a solid foundation of oral language skills. Music gives children a lot of those oral language skills. Music allows them to experiment with grammar rules, rhyming patterns, breaking down sounds (auditory discrimination), cadence and rhythm, as well as symbol interpretation – all components of reading.

Music has long been used in Speech and Language Therapy in helping brain damaged people to regain the ability to speak. This “music therapy” works because language and music share some areas of the brain, and are next door neighbors in other parts of the brain.

Music, unlike sitting alone or with a grownup and struggling through a book, takes place in a social learning environment. (Even musicians, who practice for hours and hours alone, come together in a group to rehearse and perform.) The pleasure that comes from making and creating something that is yours and sharing that experience with others is highly satisfying and motivating. And when learning happens successfully, children are self-driven to learn harder and more complex ideas.

The Practical Part

So… piano lessons for six month olds? Put the headphones on your 3 year old and turning on the Haydn? Nope. Research proves what parents know – the key is the interaction between grownups and little ones. Birth to 7 years is a critical learning period. And children learn better with their special grownups by their side, singing and playing and being musically engaged with them. (And they want you there, too!) That’s why we have home activity books in Kindermusik, even when they start coming to part of class (like Imagine That) on their own.

Want a better reader? Actively engage with your child in making and creating music in a social environment. Kindermusik (of course!) is a great way to do just that.

Click here to listen to the whole podcast.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who needs to post this and go actively participate in two certain children’s violin and flute practices.

Really, the core subjects our children need to learn hasn’t changed. But our world has changed, and we need to help our kids to be ready to meet these different challenges. Math competency is still vital for an engineering job, but employers want creativity, teamwork, critical thinking skills, accountability and adaptability. They want their employees to be self-directed and have the ability to communicate well. (Be that email, conference call, written reports or in person.)

Here’s a brief excerpt from The Partnership for 21^st Century Skills:

Learning Skills: “To cope with the demands of the 21st century,” the report states, “students need to know more than core subjects. They need to know how to use their knowledge and skills-by thinking critically, applying knowledge to new situations, analyzing information, comprehending new ideas, communicating, collaborating, solving problems, and making decisions.”

I recently provided commentary during a podcast with Michael Butera, the Executive Director of MENC (Music Educator’s National Conference) about this subject.

I’ll come right to the main point: Music provides students the skills they need to not only succeed in school, but in life. Back to this in a moment.

No one denies that music holds a great attraction for us as human beings. I look to my own 11 year old, who (if I didn’t occasionally pull them out to speak to him) I fear his ear buds would grow permanently attached.

Music is a life-long endeavor. How many times did you hear someone say to their math teacher, “But when in real life am I ever going to need to calculate the collision point of two trains, one going 120 mph and the other 27 mph?” But a child who plays piano will often be found 25 years later on the floor with their own children singing and making music.

Many of you have told me that your children are geniuses. (I kid you not. I hear it all the time.) And that may be so. But there are many children who don’t burst onto the school scene shining brilliantly and there are certainly many who struggle.

But what I love about music is that everyone can participate. Students who don’t experience academic success in the classroom can often experience success in the music. Maybe for the first time they can flourish and grow.

When a child gains confidence with their music success, they take that confidence (along with the academic and critical thinking and teamwork and social skills (remember the list above?) they learned from music into all sorts of other areas of their life. Success breeds success. And research already has proven those students who are involved in music do better at math, reading, and even sports, and are less likely to drop out of school.

For you parents of genius children (I’m not making fun of you, since I have genius children of my own…), here’s some things you may want to know:

The majority of people who go into medical school are musicians. The same is true in general for students who pursue higher education. The National GPA is also higher for students who are involved in music.

Back to the main point. Music provides students the skills they need to not only succeed in school, but in life. We all want to prepare our kids to be happy, independent, successful grownups. It doesn’t matter if they become lawyers or farmers. In today’s world, the skills they need are universal. Music is a joyous way to help them reach their full potential.

Here’s the podcast in it’s entirety.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who has always wanted to learn to play the cello, and has decided that it’s never too late to teach an old Euphonium player new tricks, so she’s going to start this fall.

Researchers have discovered that infants respond to the rhythm and tempo of music and find it more engaging than speech.

The findings, based on the study of infants aged between five months and two years old, suggest that babies may be born with a predisposition to move rhythmically in response to music.

The research was conducted by Dr Marcel Zentner, from the University of York’s Department of Psychology, and Dr Tuomas Eerola, from the Finnish Centre of Excellence in Interdisciplinary Music Research at the University of Jyvaskyla.

Dr Zentner said: “Our research suggests that it is the beat rather than other features of the music, such as the melody, that produces the response in infants. We also found that the better the children were able to synchronize their movements with the music the more they smiled.”

But, if you’ve come to a Studio3Music Kindermusik class, you already know that, and didn’t need scientific research to tell you so.

What I love about this research is that it enforces what we’ve learned about the brain. In the first 7 years of life, the brain’s main job is to organize itself. It does this through sensory integration. Sensory integration is the process of sorting, ordering and organizing sensory input (sounds, tastes, touch, visual input, smells, the sense of gravity and movement, and where the body is in space) so that the brain produces useful body responses, useful perceptions, and emotions.

When sensory integration is happening as it should, learning is also easy, and children naturally then seek to learn more complicated tasks. There is an inner drive in children to develop sensory integration. Remember how the babies in the research study smiled the more they could synchronize their movements to the music?

They experienced an “adaptive response”, which is a purposeful, goal-directed response to a sensory experience. The sensory input from his eyes, muscles, joints and vestibular system all are integrated and organized in his brain; therefore, he can make his body move in time to the music. And that ability to do so is very satisfying. So the baby smiles.

I think the key is this: Music helps organize the brain. When the body and all of the senses work together as a whole, adaptation and learning are easy for the brain. Most of our learning must occur first through the integration of our sensory systems. This provides the groundwork for later cognitive functions.

But, you already knew that, whether in your head or in your heart. And so does your little one. And that’s one of the reasons you come to class every week. Because music leads to learning, and learning leads to great satisfaction. What better gift can you give your children?

­-posted by Miss Analiisa, who loves to watch the babies wiggle in their grownups arms as they head toward the studio, cause they can’t get to Kindermusik fast enough, or the older ones running down the sidewalk towards the door, calling their teacher’s name!

How do you go about it? Let me help! I’ve been a Kindermusik Educator for a few years now, but have a degree in Vocal Performance studying opera. Just last year I performed with the Tacoma Opera company. I love children and I love music. Getting to introduce my love for opera to children is a passion for me. In fact, I did several operas in elementary schools while I was in college. They loved when we performed short Opera scenes for them, and they were the best audience a performer could ever have.

They laugh when it’s funny, show concern when it’s sad, and if there happens to be a big bad wolf in the story, they make sure to let the piggies know he is close by!! If you have school-aged children you might look into Northwest Opera in Schools, Etcetera (NOISE), and other groups that bring opera into the schools (Seattle Opera has had a program). You can set it up for them to come to your school!

For preschoolers, there are lots of ways to introduce them to opera. If you allow your child to watch a little TV during the day, there is a great show called Wonder Pets on Nick Jr. This is a show for preschoolers that has the feel of Operetta -a lighter version of opera with a frivolous story and some spoken dialogue. In Wonder Pets there is orchestral music throughout the show, and most of the dialogue is sung, rather than spoken.  You can watch it right here:

Since it’s not easy or wise to take a 2-5 year old to the opera, you can find videos of operas to watch at home, or books to read. Your children will be entranced by the big sets and costumes. They can dress up like the characters and use different voices for different singers – all things preschoolers love! Here is a link to a list of operas your children might enjoy and recommendations of productions to view.

The most practical way to introduce children to opera is through CDs. Now don’t just sit and listen, get up and let the music move you! There’s music in every opera that will make any child want to get up and run around the room. So, get up and move with them. The Humming Chorus from Madame Butterfly will have you flying like butterflies. There are softer musical moments that are fun to “fall asleep” to; snoring is a must! Here’s a great compilation of operatic works to march, dance and fly to.

You can also teach and experience emotions through music; a sad musical motif  can have you and your child weeping and wailing oh so silly-like. Use a scarf to dance around the room and weep and wail. Don’t forget to blow your silly noses! Light and happy sounding music will get you on your tip toes bouncing around the room. Of course, there are plenty of intense musical moments in opera that can be scary (show them your best scaredy-cat face), or creepy (creep around the room as if you are going to sneak up on someone). So don’t be afraid to move to the music, be silly and have a great time instilling a life-long love of music!

-posted by Miss Stacey, who leaves you with this quote: “To be completely and comprehensively educated means having a background in the arts. By introducing students to opera, we build and sustain cultural intelligence. … Passing on knowledge and understanding about the power of opera to communicate universal themes, ideas, and emotions ultimately enhances and betters our society….” – Dr. Joseph Piro, Associate Professor Curriculum & Instruction, Long Island University

What I have come to love about Kindermusik is that now, at the end of the year, as I look into your faces and I look into the faces of your children, I know deep down that what you all take with you as you continue on is something that you’ll never forget. It comes from the foundation of how we teach: through play. Every day we get to play with our children, and in the classroom, I know that as a teacher, it is my goal to help you as caregivers and teachers of your children, to show you what you already do so well, and build on it even more. Take for example:

-          A richer vocabulary
-          Better verbalization
-          Higher language level
-          Better problem-solving strategies
-          More curiosity
-          Better peer cooperation
-          Higher mathematics skills
-          Empathy
-          Prediction of other’s preferences and desires
-          Control of impulsive actions
-          Increased motor control

These are all examples of skills we want our children to learn so they can have everything they need to be happy and healthy. Now pick two or three of these things. Think of an example from this past year in Kindermusik where you saw these skills emerge while you were playing and singing and dancing with the children. Reflect on what happened, what you were doing, what kind of play it was, what the children said, what you said, where you were, etc. What did you notice? What do you notice now that you didn’t notice then? Sometimes when we play with children or see children playing together, we don’t always make the connection that their play is helping them learn important skills, but it happens every day.

Learning happens in many different forms. When we get older, there is more time spent on formal and structured learning. We sit down in a desk, we learn from books, and lectures, and so on. However, to truly learn and absorb a concept, there must be structure and chaos. Everything that we learn during structured parts of our day is processed and absorbed into our long-term memory during the unstructured and more chaotic times. We see this every day. A dance with specific steps to follow on the beat is an example of structured learning. Open music play during a steady beat is an example of a more free and open learning. Both are equally essential for learning experiences to happen.

This is why play is so essential to learning and is the foundation of everything we teach. But I am hardly the first to think so. In the 1970s, Israeli psychologist Sara Smilansky conducted research on the role of dramatic and sociodramatic play (dramatic play with others) in cognitive and socio-emotional development. These long-term studies were among the first of many that link children’s ability to engage in dramatic and sociodramatic play to their later academic success.

For example, I was not alive during the Civil War. I know, big surprise. But I am a huge history buff. I can vividly recall most everything I learned in a history or literature class. Problem solving in schools requires a great deal of make-believe. We have to imagine conceptual constructs all the time. Imagining a story and writing it down, solving arithmetic problems, finding a variable in calculus, determining what will come next are all things that require an imagination and a sense of make-believe.

There are many things in education we learn about that we never directly experience, like my anecdote about the Civil War.  Having this ability to make these constructs and imagine these concepts is a learned skill. It emerges in play. That is why children with a strong foundation in play so very clearly have the skills they need to be successful in their education, and can confidently make their own choices.

As I look back over the year, I think about everything we have learned. Each concept in we address in class, all the songs we’ve learned and skills we’ve seen our children develop, and I see that at the heart of all of it, is play. Education should always be this fun I think. In my book, school should never be boring, and play should always be at the heart of everything we do with our children.

-posted by Teacher Aaron, who leaves you with a quote from Ignacio Estrada: “If a child cannot learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way they learn.”

Being delightfully as opinionated about music as Pam is, (and in the trenches every day), I knew I would get a great answer. What I didn’t expect was the emotions and memories of my own school music experience that her answer would trigger.

My Question: What is the impact on students when we take music out of schools?

Her answer:
This has been really good for me to reflect at this time of year when work gets pretty challenging and I’m tempted to count the minutes until the last day of school.

In my opinion, the number one impact is that there is a large group of students who lose out on experiencing a sense of belonging and purpose, (especially in middle and high school when that is so important).

For me and so many others I know, music is what gave us some kind of identity – we weren’t jocks or cheerleaders or druggies or theatre people, we didn’t have some ethnic group, or belong to the FFA – we were band or choir geeks and we knew that we belonged to something bigger than ourselves.

The 40 – 100 (or however big your band, orchestra or choir was) other kids were our cronies, our peeps, our brothers and sisters; they had our backs. We got out of our music groups what many kids are looking for when they join gangs – a sense of family and belonging.

I have seen kids who were “social misfits” blossom and become leaders through being successful in music and earning the respect of other students because of their success. I have seen shy, quiet girls become confident and vivacious because of the admiration they receive for their musical talent. I have seen awkward boys become self-assured young men because of their performance experiences. I am so proud of my students – watching them grow from kindergarten through high school.

Again, at least for me, the other great impact is applying hard work to achieve excellence, to work toward perfection – not just being good at something – being better than we ever dreamed we could be, and having that moment when it all comes together and touches your soul.

I have always been a good student – A’s in school, high honor roll, cum laude, etc., but music is the only academic area where moments of high achievement have touched my soul. No term paper or science lab ever did that. As a working adult, I apply those high standards to everything I do.

When we take music away, we take those moments away.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, whose realizes that her happiest memories of school center around music, whether it be singing “Don Gato” in third grade, being picked for “the solo” in 6^th grade band (and totally flubbing it at the concert, but my band mates cheered me on anyway), or playing in a group of 400 other musicians in all-state band and feeling part of something magical.

Spatial awareness can be defined as: an awareness of the body in space, and the child’s relationship to the objects in the space. This can include spatial orientation, which is the skill that allows them to understand and comply with simple requests such as: “line up at the door” or “sit in a circle.”

Doing the Hokey Pokey in Kenya!

Spatial awareness is also linguistic. The understanding of the positional words people use to define themselves in space is essential to spatial awareness. “I am underneath the bridge….I am behind the tree.” You get the picture.

Next time you are in your Kindermusik class, check out the movement chart on the wall and notice how many of the words are directional or relational. Hoop play is one of the many activities in Kindermusik designed to promote spatial awareness…I am in the hoop, outside the hoop, beside the hoop, in front of the hoop. Another well-loved favorite is the “Hokey-Pokey” …“you put your right arm in, you take your right arm out, you put your right arm in, and you shake it all about…”

Our Time’s “Zoom-E-Oh” which demonstrates up/down, high/low, in/out, away/together, etc. Songs like these and activities like hoop play are allowing your child to learn to organize the available space in relation to themselves and in relationship to objects and other individuals.

In addition to spatial awareness, they are learning things like body parts, rhythm patterns, and a sense of direction. Spatial concepts learned through movement and exploration simultaneously develop muscle strength, coordination, self-confidence, and thinking skills. Spatial awareness helps you distinguish between words on this page and see the letters in correct relation to each other.

Which brings us to the initial question: what is the link between your child’s Kindermusik experience and his ability to read a map? Studies show that the development of spatial orientation leads to increased understanding of location and direction and even eventually the ability to understand and read a map – the point being that spatial awareness or a lack thereof has a direct impact on everyday skills that make a practical difference in our ability to navigate through life.

This same ability applies to reading and writing music on the staff, swinging a golf club, lobbing a tennis ball over the net, heading a soccer ball into the goal, or sending a baseball over the fence.

So…what if the Hokey-Pokey is what it’s all about? Well….in some respects, it is!

­-posted by Studio3Music, with thanks to contributor Theresa Case, our friend and Kindermusik Educator from Greenville, SC.

I love “All Fall Down” from Away We Go ”. But we’ll do it in just about every class level. From a learning perspective, it works for all age groups.  And I love it because it is just plain fun.

On the off chance that you’ve never experienced the joy of playing “All Fall Down”, let me fill in the blanks a bit. There are rules that everyone follows, so that makes it a game. Everyone gets a streamer.  Parents, too. And there is music (naturally).

The music has three cues, and each cue requires a specific reaction from the players (these are the rules):

         To start, everyone lies on the floor.
         When you hear the crank, you get up.
         When you hear the music, you dance.
         When you hear the descending scale, you fall down.
         Repeat until the music is over.

Then repeat again and again and again, until everyone is tired.  You’ll be physically tired before your child is tired of the game. 

Why? Because they love this game.  Here are some of the reasons I think they love it so much and will play it over and over again.

Reason One: The need to move is so powerful in the early years that any game or activity that encourages movement is going to be a hit.  This particular game inspires total abandonment to movement- it is all about movement. Fast movement, slow movement, moving just your arms as the streamers fly all around you, smooth movements and jerky movements- it just doesn’t matter so long as you are moving. No one feels like this game is too hard. No one feels like this game is too easy. So the success rate is 100%.   

Reason Two: This game allows young children to address one of their bigger fears as new movers and walkers – falling down. Have you ever seen a child take a tumble, pop right back up, obviously unharmed, burst into tears and dash into mom’s or dad’s arms?  They do that, not necessarily because they got hurt, but because the fall scared them.

A game where falling down is the ultimate goal is a great way to alleviate this fear.  The children are in control of the falling; they learn that they can get back up again, that their brain is in control of their body throughout its range of motion. Learning to fall down helps to put the child in control of their body.

Reason Three:  The game has a surprising intellectual element.  There are no language cues that signal what to do. The child simply learns to recognize the sound of the descending scale pattern and understand that means it’s time to fall down. 

Initially, they learn by watching the grownups.  I am quite sure they learn the musical cue, because after three weeks of playing “All Fall Down” in class the children are now anticipating it; they know when it’s coming and get ready.  A pre-schooler in “Imagine That!” dashed by me today and said “It’s coming Miss Allison!!!”  and she was dead on.  (She was thrilled to be right- such success!)  And they know how long they need to lie on the floor (it’s different each time) and they don’t move until they hear that crank. Which is connected to…

Reason Four:  This game teaches self-control – how to wait, how to follow instructions, how to share the space with a dozen other moving bodies and not crash into them. It teaches deliberate listening and deliberate action.  It is a game that is full of purpose. 

It is so full of purpose that it’s easy to forget the original intent of the activity is to teach the musical concepts of high and low.  And it does that beautifully as well.

-posted by Miss Allison, who wants you to head into the living room and clear the furniture and enjoy a few moments of unconstrained, falling down joy. 

For those of you who don’t own “All Fall Down” in your music library, you can download it right here.

20% of what we read
30% of what we hear
40% of what we see
50% of what we say
60% of what we do
90% of what we see, hear, say and do
(this now becomes Active Learning)

(Source – Accelerated Learning for the 21^st Century by Colin Rose and Malcolm J. Nicholl)

The "birds eye" above the note is a fermata.

Integrated “active” learning is what you’ll experience in every one of our Kindermusik classrooms. For instance, take a fermata. A what you say? (Look left for a picture.)  When you come across a fermata in music, it means to hold the note or the rest, usually as long as the conductor tells you to.

Now, you might think a 15 month old has no use for a fermata. And you’d be right. However, a 15 month old does need to learn what the fermata can teach him. To pause, hold and wait until he’s told to start again. What parent doesn’t want that?

To teach the concept of a fermata, we get out the parachute and sing a song. One of the lines is “Hop up, my baby, three in a row”.  At the word “up”, we lift the parachute up and hold it. The teacher then tells the class when to bring the parachute down by resuming to sing the rest of the phrase “my baby…” The pause (hold) in between “up” and “my baby” is the fermata.

The children learn and remember the fermata concept (pause, hold and wait until told to go) by integrated active learning:

Hearing the parachute move up and down
Seeing the parachute move and stop
Holding onto the handles and moving the parachute up and down
Feeling the wind as the parachute moves up and down
Hearing the music stop (or stopping singing as they get old enough to sing)

As children get a bit older, we play musical games like riding stick ponies, and stopping our bodies when we hear the music pause, and then waiting until the music instructs us to go again.

Hear, See, Say, Do. The perfect recipe for active learning.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who loves that a paused “up” parachute even looks like a fermata!