Costumes + Music = Special Performances!

by Kathy Morrison, Director

“The best way to motivate students is through performance. “ – The Music Parent’s Guide by Anthony Mazzocchi

Halloween Costume Recitals.

Recently, two of our Music Artistry teachers coordinated Costume Recitals. Students were invited to choose a piece of music, prepare the song for performance, and create a costume to match the theme of the piece.  These costume recitals were a huge success!  One recital was performed just for parents at our Mt. Lebanon Studio, while another recital was hosted by a local Senior Living Center providing an opportunity for a community performance.

There is something about dressing up in a costume and performing a favorite piece of music that is very motivating to students.  We should not be surprised by this as it’s the basis for Musical Theatre.  Yet, somehow the idea of a Halloween Costume recital seems “fresh” and creates a lot of room for creative thinking and unique musical selection.

After all, it’s this kind of setting that begs for “The Addam’s Family” theme.

When else would you find 2 brothers dressing up like Super Heroes to play the theme from “The Avengers?”

It seems to give “Elbow Room” for collaboration.

Special thanks to Laura Mason and Laura Roberts for their extra efforts in organizing these recitals! We appreciate you!

More Performance Opportunities.

Kathy’s Music offers Fall and Spring Recitals in a formal setting to provide consistent performing opportunities.  Students are encouraged to set preparation and performance goals and take advantage of the opportunity to celebrate their accomplishments during the year.

“Parents can help by creating small performance opportunities at home – a Friday night dinner concert or a planned performance for visiting family members are great ideas.” (Anthony Mazzocchi)

Use this Halloween season as an opportunity for your student to play for friends and family.  Inviting your student to wear a costume adds to the fun and may stir up some “out of the box” thinking, especially if they decide to create a costume to match their musical selection.  And by all means – please share the pictures and the videos!

Play Stop & Go Games to Develop Inhibitory Control!

Musical Parenting Tip:  Play Stop & Go Games to Develop Inhibitory Control!

Why?

·      Activities that encourage your child to focus, listen, then react through movement of non-movement develop a strong sense of internal control.

·      Toddlers love stop and go games, because they allow the child to practice control over his body and revel in his mastery of this control.

·      Inhibitory control is important in social interactions where taking turns is involved, and, as such, is an important skill for success in school.

How?

·      Listen to the Alpine Song, from your ‘On the Town With Bear’ CD, and move to the music.  Then, each time bear is interrupted by an animal friend, STOP, look, and listen for the animal.  Then make the sign for that animal (use our video sign language guide for help) while making the animal sound to match.  Then, continue the song until the next animal appears, and repeat the sequence.

·      Play ‘freeze dance!’  Choose a favorite song, and dance when the music plays.  Freeze when Mommy pauses the music!

·      Listen to ‘A Big Black Bear,’ on your CD.  Take baby on a pretend hike into the mountains.  Be sure to pause and say ‘shh!’ after each time they sing ‘please be very quiet (shh), very very quiet (shh)’

Want to learn more?

On our blog – read:

https://www.kindermusik.com/mindsonmusic/kindermusik/fol-fridays-stop-and-go/

Help Your Child Find Their Voice!

Musical Parenting Tip:  Help Your Child Find their Voice – Notice and Copy Sounds.

Why?

·      Noticing sounds fosters your baby's phonemic awareness (the ability to hear the individual sounds in the words we say).

·      Exposure to a variety of sounds is critical to intellectual development.  Varied exposure leads to language proficiency, spatial reasoning, and temporal reasoning.

·      Copying sounds with your voice helps your child use the full range of her voice, and encourages vocal expressiveness. 

How?

·      Try adding sounds to some of these Lesser-Known Nursery Rhymes!  What would it sound  like when Aiken Drum played on his ladle, for instance?

·      Cue up your Mama Goose CD, and copy the Big Clock sound, or a Cackle Cackle sound, like Mother Goose made, or a rain sound to accompany the Japanese Rain Song.  What other ideas can you find?

·      Read Hickory Dickory Dock, and add some ticking sounds.  Slide your voice upward when the mouse runs up, and downward when he runs down.  Make a chiming sound when the clock chimes one (or two, or three… change it up if baby is interested!).

Want to learn more?

On our blog - Learn how to answer baby babble with music!

Also, read 10 reasons to give babies a daily dose of music.

Play with the Tempo (speed) and Dymamics (volume) of music.

Musical Parenting Tip:  Play with the tempo (speed) and dynamics (volume) of music.

Why?

·      When your Preschool child is asked to move to a changing tempo, it helps him internalize the steady beat.

·      Learning & development are not compartmentalized but integrated; what happens in one area affects and influences other areas much as in a domino effect.

·      Integrating tempo & dynamics into an activity creates an integrated learning experience for your child – also using his singing voice and listening skills.

How?

·      Sign into your Kindermusik @ Home account, and check out the ‘Where’s Jack’ activity.  Be sure to read the ‘Math in the Box’ comments, to see all of the ways that math readiness is integrated into the game!

·      Then, try out a game of Simon Says!  Can you add loud & quiet, or fast & slow to your game?

·      Make your own ‘Grasshopper Park’ at home!  Allow your child to discover items around your house to represent the seesaw, the swings, the slide, and the ‘walking music.’  With your child, place each item around the room.  Then, turn on the instrumental track, from your home CD, and enjoy moving to, and ‘playing on’ each of the playground toys!  Is the slide moving slower today, because of rain?  Is the seesaw moving faster after being repaired?  Is the wind blowing quietly through the swings?  How will you add dynamics and tempo?

Want to learn more?

On our blog – read Music: The Ultimate Playlist for School Readiness.

Also – 6 Ways Kindermusik Prepares Children for Formal Music Lessons

Help Your child Discover Sounds (speech & instrumental)

Musical Parenting Tip:  Help your toddler discover sounds (speech & instrumental).

Why?

·      Auditory discrimination allows us to notice and compare distinct and separate sounds in speech, as well as the unique timbre of individual instruments and instrument families.

·      Auditory discrimination is an important pre-reading skill.

·      Auditory discrimination is also an important part of learning to sort and listen for specific sounds within a field of sounds such as hearing mommy say, 'stop!' amidst the background noise of a busy parking lot.

How?

·      Check out the ‘I Hear a Sound’ game

·      Discover different sounds around your house, yard, and neighborhood. Make a Today Book, to record your child's 'sound detective' journey!

·      Cue up a favorite track from your Marvelous Me home album, and use instruments or found sounds to play along to the steady beat.

Want to learn more?

On our blog – read Kindermusik and your child:  Exercising your listening muscles.

Also – Put on your listening ears!

Dance with your Baby!

Parenting tip: Dance to the rhythms of music to build communication skills.

Why?

• As you move baby’s arms & legs, you are helping her learn how to move.  By feeling her muscles and joints move together, her brain begins to create pathways that will help her make those movements, on her own, someday.
• When you move with baby, then respond to his non-verbal cues, that’s communication!  Watch for cues from baby, as you dance.  Does he smile & kick, wanting more dancing?  Is he disengaging from the activity, needing a short break?
• We help babies experience rhythm by moving along to the sounds we hear.  Later, as preschoolers, those rhythms will be given a visual component (through pictures and icons).  As students in Kindermusik Young Child classes, your child will begin labeling those rhythms, using traditional music notation. 

How?

• Have fun with the rhythm of nursery rhymes.
• Use movement and labeling to help baby experience opposites.
• To help baby feel the rhythm of a song, tap the sound of the WORDS on his body. 
• Play with the words in nursery rhymes - like playfully saying 'cackle cackle' while moving baby's arms/legs to match the words.

Want to learn more?

• On our blog – Try these 12 musical books, with baby.
• Also, read about the connection between rhythm and language development.

Use Music to Discover and Create Patterns

Musical Parenting Tip:  Use Music to Discover & Create patterns with your child

Why?

• Sequencing is important to reading comprehension, math problems, and remembering the steps to a dance (to name a few). 
• Being able to break down a task into a sequence of steps is important in learning self-management.
• Musical form, such a ‘rondo,’ is a sequenced pattern (ABACADA).  Patterns you discover today with help your child’s understanding of musical form.
• Listening for and responding to musical patterns also expands a child’s understanding of the patterns in math.

How?

• Play the song ‘What Shall We Do,’ and act out the sequence of the song.  Walk around during the chorus (what shall we do), then act out playing on the pieces of equipment mentioned during each verse. Add your own sequences, using your child’s suggestions!
• Read the e-book ‘Golden Bear,’ and help your child notice the sequence of the story (‘what comes next?).
• Find ways to Roll That Ball!  Can you create a pattern?  Maybe rolling, then bouncing, then rolling, then bouncing?

Want to learn more?

• On our blog – read 3 ways kids unknowingly learn math through music
• Also, find tips for playing with patterns

Play with the Rhythm of Music to Develop Language Skills

Musical Parenting Tip: Play with the Rhythm of  Music to develop Language Skills for now and Musical Skills for later.

Why?

• The rhythm of nonsense words, like ‘skinnamarink,’ gives your child practice in hearing and saying basic building blocks of words.
• Each time we play with rhythms (in class or at home), we are planting rhythmic patterns in the brain. When your child is older, we will match these patterns to symbols and teach your child to read the language of rhythm.  We LOVE teaching children to read music in our Kindermusik “orchestra” class called Young Child.

How?

• Read & sing along to our e-book, Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes, while helping your child label her body parts. There’s rhythm to this song that is repetitive. While playing with the song, they will also be getting to know their own physical bodies. Learning to find, label, and point out our own arms, eyes, knees, and elbows begins to build the understanding that our bodies belong to us, and are capable of marvelous things!
• Play a ‘name game!’  Using the names of your family members (starting with your child), say a name, and clap the rhythm of the syllables, at the same time.  Make each name into a repeated chant, first with a single name, then make all the family names into a chanted list!
• Play the same type of game, using your & your child’s answers to My Favorite Things!

Want to Learn more?

• On our blog – find the connection between rhythm and language

Explore Instruments Sounds to Develop Auditory Discrimination

Musical Parenting Tip: Explore instruments and sounds with your child.

Why?

• Awareness of specific sounds (‘timbre’) is the musical equivalent of phonemic awareness (the sounds of language), and it is developed through experience and exposure to many different musical sounds.
• Exposure to a variety of sounds & rhythms is critical to intellectual development – leading to language proficiency, spatial reasoning, and temporal reasoning.  It also increases understanding of moods and emotions.  
• The ability to isolate and focus on individual sounds will become invaluable when your child needs to listen for your voice on a noisy playground, or focus on a teacher’s voice in a busy classroom.
• Singing the ‘instruments away’ song, after exploring, is a great motivator for your child to help with clean-up – and can make great parenting easier!

How?

• Start with listening to all of these different bells!
• Read our e-book, Where is Bear? With your child.  Can you add instruments & other sounds as clues to where bear is, with each page turn?

Want to learn more?

• On our blog – read ‘Can you hear me now?’
• Also, read about the connection between focused listening (auditory discrimination) and early literacy.

Kindermusik Teaches Vocal Expression

Musical Parenting Tip:  Use your voice to make sounds & sound effects!

Why?

• Vocal play is a great way to bring literature to life for children.
• Making sound effects fosters vocal exploration, and encourages children to explore timbre, range, dynamics, and expression. 
• Playing with voice sounds encourages your child’s creativity & freedom of expression

How?

• Read the e-book ‘Golden Bear.’  Explore with your child, to create sound effects for each page.
• Sing along with your Teddy Bear – and add some ‘bear sounds’ between verses!
• Play a sound game, where you make voice sounds for every way you can move:  slide your voice up when you move up high; slide your voice down when you move down low. What would make a good bouncy voice sound?  What would work for spinning around?  How many ideas can your family come up with?

Want to Learn More?

On our blog – read about Vocal Play!

Hold a Family Percussion Party!

Musical Parenting tip: Hold a family percussion party!

Why?

• Participating in group music activities fosters a sense of connectedness.
• A chance to explore instruments is a chance for your child to explore his independence.
• Instruments belong to families, just like people do!  Taking time to listen & appreciate their unique voices helps your child learn to recognize them – like faces in a family photo album.

How?

• Play I Hear a Sound!  Then, supplement the game with percussion sounds found around your house.
• Explore percussion sounds from your house (kitchens are a great place to start!).  Anything that makes a sound by being struck, scraped, or shaken is in the percussion family.
• Play your home CD, and have a family jam session!  Be sure to switch instruments as often as your child’s interest warrants.

Want to learn more?

On our blog – Read this article from USA Today’s ‘Guide to Kids Health,’ featuring Kindermusik’s Carol Penney.

No percussion instruments at home?  Don’t forget about body percussion!