Studio3Music Blog

Posts Tagged ‘music’

Nov
27

Do we have to do this again?

Posted in Child Development, Imagine That, Music and the brain, Our Time, Village, Young Child

Recently, I received a great question from one of our Studio3Music mommas. I’m sure she’s not the first person to wonder, so I thought I should share it with you all.

Question: Is it typical for each class to be very similar each week? We’ve noticed that we are singing the same songs each week and I’m hoping that the class changes a bit from week to week. Could you let me know?

Answer:
Your question was both astute and excellent. That tells me that you are paying attention in class! (Which is wonderful, since seriously, I’ve had a few mommas that text the entire class time!)

While we as adults may quickly tire of an activity, it is important that we recognize the importance of repetition to our children’s learning. Learning, or the growth of neural connections in the brain, is strengthened through repetition. A one-time experience is not enough for a neural connection to form and stabilize. It is through repetition that possibility becomes ability. That is why Kindermusik activities are repeated over and over.

We will, however, do “extensions” of activities. The brain loves to be a little surprised once in a while; a surprise causes the brain to pay extra attention. One week we might sing a song, the next we’ll sing the song and add a manipulative. We might do the same lap bounce for 5 weeks in a row, but change up the words in the 4th or 5th week. This allows children to have mastery of an idea before we add a new one.

Three interesting facts :

1. Learning requires electrical energy to create neural pathways. The less “automatic” something is, the more electrical energy is required. Think of something you do automatically – like count by 10′s. It takes very little electrical energy for your brain to travel that “counting 10′s” neural pathway, because you’ve done it a lot.

The more well-traveled a pathway, the less energy is required. That’s why you can do two things at once. Watch TV and knit, for example. When you are first learning to knit, it takes all of your effort. Looking, counting stitches, watching your needles. As it becomes automatic, you use less brain energy, so you can layer another activity on top of that without fear of accidentally turning those mittens into a hat instead.

Communicating Neurons

2. Did you ever wonder why children expect a favorite activity to be repeated again and again and again? Repetition is a necessary building block of development. Children’s brains KNOW that they need repetition. They are pretty smart little creatures! Do you remember the show Blue’s Clues? (Never the same for me after Steve left…). The creators did research while developing the show as to what preschoolers wanted to see in the show, and you can probably guess the answer by now – repetition!

3. So what about the fact that we always have a hello and goodbye ritual, a bounce, a steady beat, rocking time, and story time (in the older classes)? As my friend Heather Wiebe says (she a Kindermusik teacher in Alberta who is fascinated about the way the brain works, just like me) “Patterns make children happy. Knowing what to expect and having things happen in that way not only helps children know what to expect and feel at ease, it’s also how they mark time.” When the environment and routine is predictable, then a child feels safe and learning can naturally happen.

We know you’ll be ready to move on to another activity before your children will (believe me, I’ve been there three times with my own kids!) know that you’ll get new music and activities soon enough. And a Kindermusik Education is the most powerful tool you can give them now, for future success in school, work and life.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who would love you to email her and let her know your questions. (She can’t read your minds, you know. She does have eyes in the back of her head, but not mind-reading powers. Though now that her children are getting older, wonders if she can trade those extra eyes in for psychic abilities. Or maybe she doesn’t want to know what is going on in there!)

Tags: brain, kindermusik, Miss Analiisa, music

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Nov
24

Over the River and Through the Woods

Posted in Bits and Pieces, Family

Because Thanksgiving memories are some of my most vivid from childhood, I wanted to share the classic poem, Over the River and Through the Woods for you to pass on to the next generation. Most of us have only heard the first six verses. I’ve included all twelve verses in case your family just can’t get enough!

Written by Lydia Maria Child in 1844, this holiday poem was first published in a magazine for children called Flowers for Children, Vol. 2. A novelist, journalist and teacher, Lydia was a well-known author. When she began to write passionately about freeing slaves, her popularity waned, however she continue to write in spite of the controversy, courageously expressing her opinion that slavery was unjust. She passed away in 1880, after a rich literary life. Her published works were diverse, including her works for children, a novel about pioneer life, how-to housekeeping books, emancipation literature and more.

If you’ve forgotten the tune, here is a link to the melody: www.Christmas-Carols.net. I found many versions on YouTube. You can download the sheet music at www.free-scores.com, or download an MP3 version at www.beemp3.com/index.

A Boy’s Thanksgiving
By Lydia Maria Child

The Grandmothers at Thanksgiving

Over the river, and through the wood,
to Grandfather’s house we go;
the horse knows the way to carry the sleigh
through the white and drifted snow.

Over the river, and through the wood,
to Grandfather’s house away!
We would not stop for doll or top,
for ’tis Thanksgiving Day.

Over the river, and through the wood-
oh, how the wind does blow!
It stings the toes and bites the nose,
as over the ground we go.

Over the river, and through the wood.
with a clear blue winter sky,
The dogs do bark and the children hark,
as we go jingling by.

Over the river, and through the wood,
to have a first-rate play.
Hear the bells ring, “Ting a ling ding!”
Hurray for Thanksgiving Day!

Over the river, and through the wood-
no matter for winds that blow;
Or if we get the sleigh upset
into a bank of snow.

Over the river, and through the wood,
to see little John and Ann;
We will kiss them all, and play snowball
and stay as long as we can.

Over the river, and through the wood,
trot fast my dapple gray!
Spring over the ground like a hunting-hound!
For ’tis Thanksgiving Day.

Our pre-Thanksgiving meal hike by Lake Michigan.

Over the river, and through the wood
and straight through the barnyard gate.
We seem to go extremely slow-
it is so hard to wait!

Over the river, and through the wood-
Old Jowler hears our bells;
He shakes his paw with a loud bow-wow,
and thus the news he tells.

Over the river, and through the wood-
when Grandmother sees us come,
She will say, “O, dear, the children are here,
bring pie for everyone.”

Over the river, and through the wood-
now Grandmothers cap I spy!
Hurrah for the fun! Is the pudding done?
Hurrah for the pumpkin pie!

-posted by Donna Detweiler, who is having Thanksgiving at her house this year, but grandmother is coming over the river and through the woods to join us.

Tags: Donna Detweiler, music

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Nov
13

Glorious Together

Posted in Family, Things We Love

I can’t emphasize enough the immeasurable riches and benefits I’ve had in my life because of music and dance. My parents say that I came into the world singing and dancing, and encouraged me at an early age to study both. No matter what the ups and downs of life, I’ve had the enrichment, encouragement, outlet, and community of the arts. Now that I am a Kindermusik Educator; I am blessed with the privilege and pleasure of nurturing the development of children and their families through the same kind of musical and movement activities that have so nurtured me.

I love doing the different dances and movement activities we regularly have in class each week. Participating in open movement activities is great. I love seeing the varied and creative ways grown-ups and children find to dance to music, and of course, scarves and streamers always help.

But, one of my favorite things is group dances. Some are fairly simple circle dances and are easier to pick up; others are more complicated and take a few weeks before they really begin to click. This process is greatly helped when we dance as one cohesive group.

I never require that everyone hold hands when we dance in a circle, but I always encourage it, because, that way we truly dance as a group. This is important for several reasons. First, it is much easier to learn and participate in dancing when we have someone else to do it with. Not only do we see each other around the circle, but we can feel each other as well. We help each other dance by picking up on the collective visual and physical cues of the other bodies around us, which helps us to communicate better.

What is more, being better communicators leads us to another one of my favorite benefits; when we dance together we create community. It is my belief that group dancing is one of the fastest and best ways to create a safe and nurturing community in my classes.

Sometimes when I undertake to introduce a new dance to a class, I wonder what the outcome will be. Will I explain it well enough? Will everyone get it? Will they like it? Usually by the time everything is said and done, all my concerns have flow out the window. We all get up, we all might feel a little silly or vulnerable at first, but quickly realize that we can and will do something wonderful together, and in this place it is ok to be silly and vulnerable.

I see the confidence and courage of both children and adults take a steady climb upward when they feel the comfort and security created by dancing together. We know in that moment as we see the smiling faces of those we are dancing with all around us that we are doing this thing together as a team. It only works if we all work together to make it happen, which results in such a feeling of delight, accomplishment, and solidarity. Even if there are a few bumps and hiccups along the way it doesn’t matter, because hey, we did this thing together and it is glorious!

-posted by Miss Meresa, who thinks the world would be a happier more peaceful place if we all danced together.

Tags: dancing, kindermusik, Miss Meresa, music

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Nov
10

A New Holiday Tradition

Posted in Family, Symphony Concerts, Things to do, Things We Love

Oh, I love Christmas…the beautiful wreaths, the cookies, the carols, the bows ribbons and wrappings, the Yorkshire pudding. I love decorating the Christmas tree, and shopping and rehearsing for Christmas Eve mass, and I love going to mass on Christmas Eve, and singing all the beloved old carols and the new ones, too. I love making my lists of gifts and deciding what to get for my family (except for my husband’s dad – he is so hard to shop for!) And I still wait anxiously to open my own gifts. (Although I may have recently joined the same category as my father-in-law…)

It’s the traditions that make Christmas and any holiday or special event stand out in our memories. Would it be Easter without dyed eggs and chocolate bunnies, or the Fourth of July without hotdogs, apple pie and fireworks, or a wedding without rings? The answer: of course it would, but it might feel kinda funny, especially at first.

But every one of today’s traditions, once upon a time, were new additions to a time honored event. “Joy to the World and “Silent Night” had premiers and were the new kids on the block. They had to worm their way into the hearts of the people and become a tried and true Christmas tradition. So over time the traditions of all our beloved holidays have changed.

I’ve added a new tradition to my Christmas – the family concert at the Symphony. So a part of my Christmas preparations now is writing a script (and it’s all new this year) creating props, (all those are new, too) picking the music, (all new- well, all new old music, I guess is the better way to say that) and writing new music that none of you have ever heard before.

I’ve been deciding what kind of wacky things the Story Fairy will say and do, and wear on her head, it’ll be all new wackiness, but she’ll still be bossy (that’s traditional, after all) figuring out what Stacey and Michael will argue about and who gets to cry (Stacey is so funny when she cries…) crafting a story- yes, it’s all new and working with the arranger (he’s new!) and the illustrator. She stays the same, thankfully! I’ve grown accustomed to her style, and love her work, which will be –don’t be shocked – all new. And we are adding a new twist. We have invited a choir to join us for the story… there will be lots of voices singing out with Christmas and Hanukkah spirit.

Things are starting to move quickly now in our quest toward an all new Holiday Symphony Serenade Show. The illustrations have already been sent to the photographer. The arranger is working on the lullaby this weekend, our first read through was on Sunday, and Michael and I will begin building a very large Menorah in our garage sometime this week. The Story fairy will be welding the Shamash – you just can’t miss that!

If you’re reading this and you feel kinda mystified, then you need to add our concert series to your Holiday Traditions. Your children will love it and you will love it. It’s a great way to spend a Saturday morning. There will be group singing, of course, and a bounce, and some giggles, great harmony, a steady beat and a story and a snuggle. If you now exactly what I’m talking about, get your tickets right here…. ‘cause it’s ALL NEW…..

-posted by Miss Allison, who will see you in the lobby after the show!

Tags: kindermusik, Miss Allison, music, Things to do

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Nov
6

synCOpaTION – Tickling the Brain

Posted in Child Development, Music and the brain, Village

Syncopation means an unexpected change in an established rhythm or beat. In simple terms – syncopation means that the weak beat gets the accent or emphasis. You’ll often hear syncopation in African or Latin music, or jazz.

Take a standard American march like Stars and Stripes. A march has a steady, predictable beat. If you were to clap along, you would automatically clap on beats 1 and 3(unless you were the tuba player – who has the syncopation on beats 2 and 4).

Our brains love steady beats, because the brain loves to find patterns and sequences. In fact, if you listen to music that has a steady, predictable beat (like that march I mentioned), after a while, your neurons actually begin firing at the same rate as the beat of the march.

But as humans, we like patterns only up to a point. After that comes boredom, and we stop paying attention. But when the pattern changes, we begin paying attention again. Syncopation tickles our brains, so to speak. Our brains search for the new pattern, and the sense of unpredictability that comes with change is fun and interesting to both your brain and your soul.

Think about it – when you hear syncopated African or Latin music or Jazz – it makes you want to smile and move, right? The beat is unexpected and interesting. Take a listen to Leroy Anderson’s “The Syncopated Clock”. In Village class, we’ve been listening to the jazzy Hop to It. That’s syncopated, too.

But what does this have to do with your little one? Let me explain. You want your child to eat a wide variety of foods, to like an assortment of flavors, textures, colors and shapes. Even if they ask for the steady, predictable mac-n-cheese and chicken nuggets every night, you still want them to have a balanced diet.

The same is true for music. Our children need a variety of musical experiences. Life is richer and more interesting with a varied diet of music. And some brain tickling.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who has been feeling rather bored the last couple of days, and feels in need of a brain tickle in the form a new project of some sort.