I’ll be posting a three part blog from my conversations with Ken Wesson, and excerpts from some of his articles.

The Developing Brain

It may seem simplistic, but it is critical to remember that every person’s brain is unique; and it is profoundly impacted by the experiences we have. In fact, some students born with a disability but reared in an enriched environment do better than students with normal brains who are raised in impoverished environments, says Ken Wesson, educational consultant, neuroscience.

When children receive a lot of stimulation, enrichment, an opportunity to learn, and reinforcement, the brain builds additional neurocircuits, which leads to a rich and functional brain, Wesson continued.

[This describes exactly – but in fancier terms - what we aim for each of our Kindermusik classes to be like.]

As the brain learns and masters new skills or content, it requires less energy. When a student is exposed to a new idea, it takes 75 millivolts to get the brain’s neurons to fire, according to David Halstead, president of Brain Power Learning Group. When a student uses the neuro connection for that skill or content a number of times, the brain requires less energy to process the information, only about 50 minivolts. Eventually, for knowledge that is used repeatedly, such as 2 + 2 = 4, the brain will develop a well-formed synapsis in which the neurons are “glued together,” Halstead continued.

[This is why we have rituals and repeated activities in class.]

Additionally, the brain likes and looks for patterns - it doesn’t have to work as hard when it recognizes a pattern. Patterns are also one of the brain’s primary ways to process new information - it looks for information it already knows to “make new information fit.”

[Did you know that teaching patterns is one of the reasons we do dances?]

To meet the many demands imposed on it, brain cells specialize to get the various jobs done, says Barry Chaloner, director of the Center for Early Intervention.

However, the brain is ruthless. If a particular skill or function is not used, the brain eliminates the system, or neuron path, for that skill or function. One example of such excising of needless functions is the way penmanship suffers as people spend more time on a keyboard. On the other hand, if a child has a disability, the brain creates compensatory hypertrophy - the brain develops neurons in another area to compensate for the disability.

I’ll be posting some fascinating information about children’s brains and second language learning shortly!

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who is wondering how many millivolts were fired in her house today…

“Over in the jungle

Where the leaves meet the sun

Lived an old mother marmoset

And her marmoset one.”

(from Over in the  Jungle:  A Rainforest Rhyme by Marianne Berkes)

This week, my classes focused on rhyming. Rhyming is an essential prereading skill.  Being able to hear and perhaps even predict a rhyming word helps prepare the child to sound out words and distinguish the letters within a word based on their sounds.

Beginning phonics focuses on the beginning and ending letter.  Rhyming focuses on much more.  It trains the ear to distinguish vowel sounds as well as the ending consonant letter sounds.  Plus, rhyming is a great way to learn to spell!  Only the onset of the word changes, making it easy to memorize how to spell tons of words.

For younger kids, play repeated oral rhyming games.   For example, sing “I’m A Little Tea Pot” and then chant, “hot, pot, hot, dot, hot, slot, hot…”  For kids in school, make a written list of rhyming words and notice the spelling patterns:  hot, pot, squat, and caught all rhyme, but their spelling varies.

Rhyming improves memory and is a fun learning tool.  As children learn to rhyme and sing rhyming songs, their listening skills improve.  They’ll be better readers and better students. So take the time to rhyme!

Here are some of my favorite rhyming books:

Over in the Jungle: A Rainforest Rhyme by Marianne Berkes

Over in the Ocean: In a Coral Reef by Marianne Berkes

Over in the Meadow by Olive Wadsworth

-posted by Miss Beth, who is wondering if you know a good rhyme for marmoset?

I believe that most moms are the ones behind the camera. For instance, Analiisa recently asked me to send her a recent picture of Hallie and me. It took me over 20 minutes to find a picture of us together and even still it was one that was over a year old. I was bound and determined to start making a presence in our family photos. It was then that I had moment of pure genius. I gave my 2 year old, Hallie, a disposable camera at the zoo and asked her to take pictures of the animals. I’d try to sneak into the shot or do the infamous, yet tricky turn-the-camera-around-and-take-a-picture-of-yourself technique. Naturally, a vast majority of the pictures are ½ of the animal, the ground, a blur, or her finger. But, the best part of this was that she looked so proud of her pictures and her independence in being able to take those photos. We later created a Hallie Did-It photo album and started filling it with all of her amazing photography. I might still not be in the photo, but I am tickled with the memories that those moments gave me.

- posted by Miss Kim, capturing a picture perfect moment with her daughter

This week my classes explored the Bilibos.  When someone asked, “What are these?”  My answer was always, “That is an empty bowl to fill with imagination!”  In one class, they were called “hats.”  Other children used them as chairs, drums, and spinning tops.

You just never know what a child will do with an object!  Sometimes we limit them.  They ask, “What is this?’  We name it and it becomes bowl.  But when they pour their imagination into the bowl, it’s a drum and a hat and more!  So, the next time you’re asked to identify an object, maybe a good answer would be, “That’s a bowl.  What else could it be?”

P.S.  Would you like a Jingle Tapper or two for your house? Perhaps for someone’s stocking? They are just $3.25 each.   How about a Bilibo, an empty bowl to fill with imagination for $28?   If your class is not at the Redmond Town Center studio, ask your teacher and he or she can bring the jingles, bilibos, or just about anything you’ve used in class to you!

- posted by Miss Anita, imagining a world full of imaginative children who grow up to be inventive, flexible adults!

Open Play at Studio3Music has been a blast! We have had games, toys and instruments for ages newborn – 4 years old. It’s a great place for little babies to crawl and walk around. It’s very safe and the carpet is well padded for those wobbles and crashes. The older children have enjoyed the puzzles, tambourines, bilibos and hot wheel cars. There’s room at Studio3Music to explore, but you don’t find a lot of running around. We’re usually shaking our shakers, putting together a mermaid puzzle or crawling through the tunnels. We’d love to see you at the next Open Play! Find our schedule online.

-posted by Stacey, Mommy of a son who loves Open Play with Studio3Music

As a Kindermusik educator I can tell you the why’s, how’s and what’s of our curriculum and where they are applicable to your child. It is not until I personally experienced the when’s though, that my professional and personal lives crossed paths and came full circle. Like many of you, I would incorporate our Kindermusik songs into everyday life. I read ‘Rhythm of My Day’ to my daughter during bath time, sing ‘Ahoy there Mates’ in the morning, and chant ‘Deedle, Deedle, Dumpling’ during diaper changing time.

My worlds intersected about three months ago when I was preparing for my winter Village class. I was playing the Dream Pillow CD when my now 2.5 year old daughter started singing ‘Deedle, Deedle, Dumpling’ in tandem with the CD. In astonishment, my jaw dropped and we sang the remainder of the song together. She had not heard that song since she was probably 9 months old and in that moment I had the biggest payoff I could have ever imagined.

-posted by Miss Kim, who is tickled pink to be able to sing along with Hallie!

The first line was for a train ride around the farm.  We had to wait 15 minutes at the station before the next steam train came puffing back.  I began singing, “Standing on the platform, waiting for the train, grab your bonnet, let’s go Liza Jane”…the boys began giggling and immediately started helping me figure out what Liza Jane should grab next.  She needed to grab a dinosaur, Xbox games, snacks, and of course train tickets!  Then an adult next to me started feeding me ideas.  He and his daughter simply could not resist the fun game we made of “Standing on the Platform”.

Going from one activity to the next proved to be crazy as well.  Each boy wanted to go somewhere different and they all would take off at the same time in different directions.  Once again, Kindermusik saved the day!  I started singing “Aha this away, aha that away, aha this away just like this, now we are walking, walking, walking…”  The boys each gave me ideas and we would make it to the next activity hopping, twirling, skipping and most definitely giggling. The best part was that we didn’t have any runaway kids.  Phew!

Pretty soon, my boys starting thinking of Kindermusik songs for everything we did that day.  I was watching the three boys take a canoe ride and as they passed I heard my oldest singing, “Oh, Lukey’s boat is painted green…”  I started chuckling and quickly took a picture of the three boys, who paused from their busy painting job to smile for me.   However, their painting job soon turned into exploring how much they could make the boat rock without falling into the water…ah, boys!

Kindermusik is a tool that provides parents with fabulous ways to bring out the best in their children’s imagination and play.  We could have spent the day frustrated at each other. Instead we made wonderful memories and had fun, even while waiting in line.  Thank you Kindermusik!

-posted by Jesikah, who is grateful to have so many Kindermusik songs running around her head!

This morning, Skip Ewing spoke to all the educators about something we are passionate about – creating community through music. He knows that when he writes music that BOTH parents and kids can enjoy together (especially in the car), they connect and build a relationship as a family. It “starts a conversation” in a way that wouldn’t happen if everyone was listening to their own music on their own ipods.

What music do you and your children enjoy listening to together? Please share it with the Studio3Music family. Visit us on Facebook and post your favorites on our discussion board.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, whose 3 little monkeys are jumping on their beds! (Alright, that signature was a blatent attempt at giving myself permission to post a picture of Natalie, and her monkey, aka “oo-oo”).

I wanted to share some of my Convention experiences with you!  I have learned lots of things, danced on a chair until we were told to get down (evidently they think safety first, too) and joined the Kindermusik Chorale (Kindercode for “Choir.”)  But it wouldn’t be fun if I didn’t acquire some useless information to share with you, so here it comes.   Put on your trivia hat and sit down.

Last night, we had dinner with the CEO and the Director of Education at a down home, traditional, southern Barbeque place called “The Pit.”  It is a nationally recognized, magazine award winning restaurant.  They specialize in barbeque the old fashioned way.  So that means a pit, right?

So I asked our waiter Brian, a third generation Barbeque-er, for a tour of the kitchen. I wanted to see the pit.  “The pit” is a brick structure on the floor with a very large steel box on the top.  The chef (you really can’t call somebody who cooks this well a cook) is called a pit master.  We just called him Ed.  Ed designed the pit himself.  It has little vents on the top so that just the right amount of smoke stays inside with the pig, which is cut in half and does not have a head. (Thank goodness!) He uses regular old briquettes to make the heat, but the smoky flavor is achieved with woodchips of alder and oak soaked in barbeque sauce. He wouldn’t tell us what was in the sauce.  It is a vinegar base.  They do serve a more traditional western sauce with a tomato molasses base that I grew up on, but we weren’t allowed to use it in Brian’s sight!

Both sauces were wonderful! I liked the western one on biscuits and the vinegar one on hushpuppies (one of my favorite secret indulgences).  Both were great on the meat- which was divine!  It takes about 18 hours for the half pig to cook.  So, the pigs they put in the pit while we watched were served at lunch today.  And the collard greens?  Oh, my! They were as good as my Auntie Rita’s… probably equal to my grandmother’s.  And yes, we had fried green tomatoes.  They were perfect.

-posted by Miss Allison who is still licking the BBQ sauce off her fingers!

So, how do you get a vegetarian to a Carolina BBQ?   Wait for it…You tell her tofu is on the menu!  I asked the waiter what was in the beans. “Beans and pork.”  “OK, how do you cook the collard greens?”……”with pork”.  I guess this little piggie went to The Pit in Raleigh, NC.  “Hmmm.  I’ll have the BBQ tofu please.”  Should this little piggie stay home?  Nope.  What a pleasant surprise to have a terrific vegetarian meal!  The tofu was grilled with an amazing Carolina BBQ sauce and came with mouth-watering hushpuppies. (I didn’t ask what was in them). J  What a wonderful southern experience with great food and friends!

  -posted by Miss Beth, saving this little piggie one black-eyed pea at a time!