Kindermusik International

Music in Our Schools Brings Harmony to Learning

(Source: National Association for Music Education)

Each March, we join with the National Association for Music Education for the observance of Music in Our Schools Month to help raise awareness of the importance of music education for all children.
With over 35 years of experience in using music to reach children of all abilities, we know without a doubt that music belongs in our schools. Why? Because that’s where our children are!

Music opens the door to learning

When young children are consistently engaged by music in an age-appropriate, socially accepting environment, they benefit at so many levels. Here are just a few…

Early Literacy Skills. They gain the phonological processing, spoken language, and comprehension skills that are the foundation of reading and early literacy skills.

Quantitative. They build the spatial-temporal and reasoning skills required for math, science, and engineering.

Social-Emotional. They develop social and emotional skills that are essential for school readiness—like the ability to regulate their responses and relate to others in complex ways.

Physical. By moving and dancing to music and playing simple instruments, children improve their gross and fine motor skills.

Creative. Activities that encourage freedom within a fun and friendly structure spark children’s creativity and provide inspiration.

And of course, they develop a lifelong love of music.

Music brings harmony to learning…and school

In the early childhood classroom, the teacher, the paraprofessional, and the children all contribute to the learning process and environment. This experiential environment where the learning process is shared by everyone in the group is called “social constructivism.” Music creates a learning environment where every participant contributes and takes away something unique based on their own experiences, both inside and outside the classroom. For example, in our early literacy curriculum, ABC Music & Me, our classes provide children with ample time to reflect, compare, make choices, express opinions and preferences, and engage in problem solving activities together. This teaches children not only the lesson focus but it also teaches them how to learn. Plus, these shared experiences create a sense of community, harmony, and even teaches empathy.

What about you?

Why do you think music belongs in our schools? Take a minute to let us know by posting on our Facebook page. In the meantime, listen to children from Public School 22 in Staten Island, New York. Yes, music belongs in our schools. Every child deserves the opportunities that music can bring. We think these children would agree!

4 ways to make every day National Read Across America (AND the World) Day

Some celebrations should last more than one day. At Kindermusik, we think National Read Across America Day is one such day. It doesn’t necessarily mean we need to dress up like The Cat in the Hat every day, but we can celebrate the joy of reading to and with children every day.
On Friday, we kicked off National Read Across America Day with LeVar Burton and Reading Rainbow to celebrate the launch of our partnership to build early literacy skills in children. With the addition of Music Mountain Island to the Reading Rainbow tablet-based reading service, Kindermusik’s music themed books and videos are featured alongside other newly produced content from Reading Rainbow and their partners. Of course, the celebration doesn’t stop there. Parents and early childhood educators can make every day National Read Across America Day with these early literacy tips:

4 ways to support early literacy development

Let children pick the books. Children will naturally gravitate towards specific books that reflect their tastes and interests. While you might not pick up a book about snakes or garbage trucks or fairies or kittens, those topics might be just the book to delight the child or children in your life.
Introduce children to eBooks and digital learning. Your little one will never remember a time before touch screens, eBooks, and digital learning. Try the Reading Rainbow app for iPad or Kindle Fire. From sing-along stories to nursery rhymes, enjoy the library of musical tales that will encourage your little one to sing, dance, and read! Plus, music-themed video field trips hosted by LeVar Burton will take your family around the world to discover interesting musicians, music, and instruments! You can try the Reading Rainbow app for free!
Play the part. Children learn through play. Encourage your little one to dress up like a favorite storybook character or act out the story using stuffed animals, Little People, or even the family pet. Pretending to be a part of the story helps children gain a greater understanding of the plot and characters, try out alternative endings, and even understand the world a little bit better. Added bonus: A child “in character” might be less reluctant to participate in certain daily routines and rituals, such as getting dressed or taking a bath.
Point the way to reading. With very young children, reading doesn’t always look like, well, reading. However, pointing to the pictures on the page, making letter sounds, talking about what you see together gives children an early understanding of reading.

As an added bonus in celebrating National Read Across America Day, we’d like to share this video where LeVar Burton reads poetry selections from “I Am the Book”. Recently filmed in the library at Thomas Edison Elementary School – where Reading Rainbow and Kindermusik hosted an energetic Read-And-Sing-Along event for the children. Enjoy!

Looking for more ideas on making National Read Across America (and the World) Day—every day? Follow Kindermusik on Pinterest.

March is National Reading Month

Yes, we know that today is February 28. But that means that tomorrow is March 1, and March is National Reading Month in the U.S. And what exactly do reading and early literacy skills have to do with music, you ask? More than you might think!
Here are just a few of the connections between music and reading – and just some of the reasons why literacy and books are an important part of our Kindermusik curricula and the musical learning that is so foundational to all we do:
• Music incorporates rhythm and tempo just like words and sentences do.
• You read music the same way you read music – from left to right.
• Patterns are as much a part of music as they are of reading.
• Music helps children learn to listen which is also an essential skill for literacy.
• In both music and reading, symbols are used when writing music and words.
In celebration of National Reading Month which kicks off with National Read Across Amercia Day on Monday, March 3, here are a few of our favorite music-themed books.
Musical Instruments from A to Z by Bobbie Kalman
Meet the Orchestra by Ann Hayes
Ah, Music! by Aliki
Music, Music for Everyone by Vera B. Williams
Hand Hand Fingers Thumb by Al Perkins
Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss
Berlioz the Bear by Jan Brett
The Musical Life of Gustav Mole by Kathryn Meyrick
And here are some additional resources to help you and your child get reading.
Also, enjoy these Read Across America printables and resources from Seussville.com.

“You’re never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book and read with a child.” ~ Dr. Seuss

Shared by Theresa Case, who has an award-winning Kindermusik program at Piano Central Studios in Greenville, SC.

Musical learning on the brain

We have music on the brain—all sorts of music. All. The. Time. We love to share music and musical learning with children and families in studios, schools, childcare centers, and more. Introducing children to a wide variety of musical genres gives them a greater understanding of what is possible through music. Today, thanks to a new study from Johns Hopkins University, we have jazz music on the brain. Here’s why.

What jazz teaches us about language development

Led by Charles Limb, M.D., the study tracked the brain activity of jazz musicians in the process of “trading fours.” Trading fours is a musical term that refers to jazz improvisation when solo instrumentalists take turns playing four measures each. The musicians respond to each other by repeating, elaborating, and altering what another musician plays.

During the study, 11 skilled jazz musicians participated. Limb and his team found that improvisation activated areas of the brain linked to syntactic processing. However, the musical exchange deactivated brain structures involved in semantic processing. In language development, semantic processing happens when the brain encodes the meaning of a word and relates it to similar words with similar meaning. Syntactic processing happens when the brain computes certain aspects of meaning from the underlying structure and not simply from the linear string of words.

“Until now, studies of how the brain processes auditory communication between two individuals have been done only in the context of spoken

language,” explained Limb in a press release. “When two jazz musicians seem lost in thought while trading fours, they aren’t simply waiting for their turn to play," Limb said. "Instead, they are using the syntactic areas of their brain to process what they are hearing so they can respond by playing a new series of notes that hasn’t previously been composed or practiced."

“We’ve shown in this study that there is a fundamental difference between how meaning is processed by the brain for music and language. Specifically, it’s syntactic and not semantic processing that is key to this type of musical communication. Meanwhile, conventional notions of semantics may not apply to musical processing by the brain,” he concluded.

5 ideas for using jazz improvisation with children at home and in the classroom

Idea #1: Go on a virtual field trip by attending a jazz concert. Try listening to one of the world’s best jazz pianists, Keith Jarrett. He improvised this entire performance.

Idea #2: Get out your own instruments or use your voices to improvise a family or classroom concert. Try your own version of “trading fours” by taking turns.

Idea #3: Learn more about the origins of jazz and play some jazz music online at PBSKids.

Idea #4: Explore various types of jazz music on Pandora, Spotify, or iTunes radio. Try jazz musicians such as Esperanza Spalding, Miles Davis, Preservation Hall Jazz Band or even one of the jazz genre stations.

Idea #5: While listening to jazz, move expressively around the room together. Movement is another way to experience the value of improvisation and emotional expression, while also gaining an appreciation of jazz music.

Interested in learning how other genres of music unlock a child’s potential, including early language development? Come visit a Kindermusik Class today.

Music & Movement Benefits: Playing with Sound

According to the authors of the book Ladders to Literacy, “…playing with the sounds of words encourages children to practice perception, production, word recognition, and memory for words, phonemes, all important foundations for phonological awareness.” Phonological awareness, the ability to recognize that words are made up of sounds, is an important first step towards success in reading later on.
So, while it may seem a little silly, playing with rhymes, parts of words, or the beginning sounds of words, will actually help your child be a better reader. And music and rhythm-based activities are a perfect way to “practice” and keep the learning fun.
Ideas for Parents and Kids: Watch the video, “Morning Sun Has Risen,” from Kindermusik International’s newest curriculum, ABC English & Me. Play with the different sounds that animals make, echoing the sounds back and forth or even making up silly rhythm patterns or songs with the animal sounds. If you happen to have a different Mother Language other than English, have a little fun making the animal sounds in both your native language and in English. And if anyone asks, it’s Mother Language Day today!

Educators in Italy speak the language of music and learning

With educators in over 70 countries, you can imagine we speak a lot of languages when we get together! Thankfully, we do share one common language: music and learning. A group of VYL ELL teachers in Italy recently experienced this common language at a one-day training session hosted by Kindermusik.
Danny Berryman and Laura D’Abbondanza, Kindermusik project leaders and Teacher Trainers in Italy, brought together this group of VYL ELL teachers from Lingua Point in Reggio Emilia and The Victoria Company in Recanati and Jesi for a one-day training session using ABC English & Me, Kindermusik’s English Language Learning curriculum. Lingua Point and The Victoria Company are both authorized Cambridge ESOL examination centers, recognized by the Italian Ministry of Education and Members of the Italian Association of Language Schools (AISLI), founded in 1979 to promote excellent teaching standards.
And, even though we know “We Love Kindermusik” Week officially ended last week, we didn’t want to wait until next year to share with you why these VYL ELL teachers in Italy love Kindermusik! Here’s what some of them had to say about the experience.

Why VYL ELL teachers in Italy love Kindermusik…

“I’ve really enjoyed this ABC English & Me Training day. It was very informative and gave us many opportunities to try out this comprehensive and effective way of teaching. I was pleased to see that it is based on strong research and feel it is something that will surely help me develop, both professionally and personally. I am confident that this method of teaching will successfully bring a whole new way of language learning to this school that can only benefit our students.” ~ Kate Letts – Lingua Point
“During the workshop, we learned an innovative method for teaching English to children aged 2 to 7 years old. This method, Kindermusik, combines music and movement for language acquisition; and is loaded with lots of fun! We also had a great time by emerging ourselves in the method with the techniques learned in class during role-play sessions.” ~ Julia Stegmann – Lingua Point
“Danny Berryman and Laura D’Abbondanza, Kindermusik project leaders and Teacher Trainers here in Italy, gave Lingua Point the opportunity to get to know and experience an engaging and alternative teaching approach for our most precious clients: kids! The training combined didactics, marketing, and the sharing of ideas. The above, along with a nice lunch and many laughs, were the ingredients of a day that was full of ideas and energy. It is always nice to invest in projects that make you grow! From now on, English learning for our kids from 3 to 6 is going to be set to music.” ~ Enrichetta Antichi, school co-founder – Lingua Point
“This day gave me a new perspective when it comes to teaching English to young children. This method is dynamic, rich and most importantly, fun! It offers structure and more material than a teacher could desire while at the same time not limiting the teacher’s imagination in the education process. It is truly interesting and one to try out!” ~ Oana Alexandra Samolia –The Victoria Company
“This training was very useful. In reality, putting the method into practice is much simpler than it seems with the help of the Kindermusik site and digital teachers guides. I have no doubt that the children will find the lesson activities engaging and fun. On the other hand, the teachers can find all the support necessary on the website and through the music provided.” ~ Sara Verducci – The Victoria Company
“It was a beautiful experience that not only answered questions with words, but in a concrete and practical way also. This training has motivated me even greater and I am certain that both the teachers and children are going to be enthusiastic about this project. Parents will have a real chance to take part in the development of their children as they see the method and fall in in love with it just like myself. ~ Ilaria Mandolini – The Victoria Company

Learn more about bringing ABC English & Me to your school!

Tips for Reading e-Books with Young Children

When it comes to all things technological, today’s kids seem to be genetically predisposed to easily understanding and assimilating anything tech related. They usually know which buttons to push before their parents do, even if it’s the first time they’ve had the remote control or device in their hands!
A new study finds that a staggering two-thirds of kids between the ages of 2 and 13 years are now reading e-books, an increase of over 50% from a similar study conducted just about a year ago.
We’re proud to say that Kindermusik International, the world’s leader in early music and movement learning, is already ahead of the curve. They’ve been publishing musical e-books to complement their @Home Materials for several years now. Kindermusik is a huge advocate of parental choice about the amount of screen time and have aligned themselves with that of the highly respected NAEYC and the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning, recognizing that children can benefit from a responsible and age-appropriate use of technology in combination with hands-on experiences and in partnership with an actively involved caregiver.
With that in mind, we’d like to share these excellent tips from the Reading Rockets website for reading e-books with young children :

“Recognize the novelty factor. The first few times your child is interacting with a new e-book, allow time for exploration of the features. Once your child has spent some time exploring, set out to read or listen to the story without too many non-story related interruptions.
Enjoy the features, but don’t forget to focus on the story. See if you can help your child find a balance between having fun with the games and sticker books and really enjoying and understanding the story. As with all books, engage your reader in conversations about the story. ‘What do you think will happen next? What is your favorite part of the story?’
Stay present with your child and the book experience. It’s tempting to let the device do the work — read the story, play a game and interact with your child. But there’s no substitute for quality parent-child conversation. Keep talking, commenting on interesting words and ideas, and sharing your love of literacy with your child.”

Learn more about Kindermusik and the delightful Home Materials that are part of every enrollment! Start with a free Preview Class today.

Leading Education Brands Reading Rainbow and Kindermusik International Partner to Build Early Literacy Skills in Children

Partnership Combines the Power of Music with Digital Reading For Music in Our Schools Month and Read Across America Day

LOS ANGELES, CA & GREENSBORO, NC – February 18, 2014 – Reading Rainbow and Kindermusik International, two of the most trusted brands in childhood education, today announced a partnership that combines Kindermusik International’s research-based musical learning curriculum with Reading Rainbow’s award-winning mobile reading service in a digital library available on tablet devices. New digital content will launch March 2, 2014, in time for Music in our Schools Month (MIOSM), and National Read Across America Day (RAAD).

“This partnership with Kindermusik emphasizes the important, proven connection between literacy and music,” said LeVar Burton, RRKidz/Reading Rainbow co-founder. “We know that when young children are engaged by music in age-appropriate ways, they can build skills that are the foundation for reading. By integrating the other arts and sciences, we aim to further inspire a lifelong love of learning.”

Reading Rainbow’s tablet-based reading service, hosted by Burton, guides children on a reading adventure to themed “islands,” each filled with hundreds of children’s books and video field trips. More than ten million books have been read and video field trips viewed since the mid-2012 launch. With the addition of Music Mountain Island, Kindermusik’s music-themed books and videos will be featured alongside other newly produced content from Reading Rainbow and their acclaimed partners.

“Our collaboration with Reading Rainbow reinforces what our own experience and the growing body of research clearly states, that there is a clear tie between music and literacy and language development,” explained Michael Dougherty, CEO at Kindermusik International. “We are thrilled to put our research-based content into some of the best development hands and are excited this new content area within Reading Rainbow will arrive in time to celebrate Music in Our Schools Month.”

While the partnership between these two brands is new, the links between music and reading are not. Research has shown music supports a child’s literacy development in many ways, including phonological awareness, vocabulary building, listening skills, reading accuracy, and prosody. Results from a 2012-2013 study of nearly 300 preschool children by independent research firm, SEG Measurement, indicated that students who utilized Kindermusik’s ABC Music & Me curriculum for just 30 minutes each week showed greater gains in literacy. The treatment group who utilized the music and movement curriculum showed a 32% higher gain in Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) scores over the control group.

The Music Mountain Island featuring Kindermusik’s content will be available in the Reading Rainbow app and the Kindle Fire app by March 2, 2014. The app is free to try and for an unlimited reading experience, parents can subscribe for $9.99 per month or $29.99 for a six-month subscription. Additional information about the Reading Rainbow iPad app can be found by visiting the iTunes App Store here.

***

About LeVar Burton:

Best known for his Reading Rainbow stewardship as well as his other

distinguished TV roles (most notably Kunta Kinte on Roots and Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation), LeVar Burton comes from a family of educators and is widely recognized for his lifelong advocacy of children’s literacy. He speaks passionately on the topics of early learning and technology and has been a keynote speaker at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, South by Southwest (SXSW) Edu and received the Eliot-Pearson Award for Excellence in Children’s Media from Tufts University as well as The 2013 Children’s Media Award from Common Sense Media.

About RRKidz, Inc.:

Respected by millions and one of the most watched children’s television series in PBS history, Reading Rainbow has been connecting families to the joy of reading for over 30 years. In 2011, famed actor/producer/educational advocate LeVar Burton and his business partner, Mark Wolfe, formed RRKidz. They hold the global rights to the Reading Rainbow brand through a partnership with series creator, WNED/Buffalo. RRKidz’s flagship product, the award-winning Reading Rainbow app, is a reading subscription service filled with a library of quality ebooks, kids videos, and educational games. New children’s books and reading activities are added every week encouraging children to “go anywhere, be anything.” Free to try, the educational app is available on the iPad (http://bit.ly/10sgjbs) and Kindle Fire (http://amzn.to/14tOPzY).

About Kindermusik International:

Kindermusik International is the world’s leading provider of music, movement and literacy programs for young children, enjoyed by more than two million families in over 70 countries. For more than 35 years, Kindermusik has helped children and their families discover how music can enrich their lives and lay the foundation for a lifetime love of learning. Kindermusik offers developmentally-specific educational programs for children ages newborn to seven. Kindermusik curriculum is taught by the best educators in the best schools and studios world-wide. Visit Kindermusik.com to learn more about Kindermusik early childhood programs and music classes for kids.

Connect with Reading Rainbow:

Facebook: Facebook.com/ReadingRainbow

Twitter: @readingrainbow

YouTube: Youtube.com/readingrainbow

Blog: readingrainbow.com/blog

Connect with Kindermusik:

Facebook: Facebook.com/Kindermusik

Google+: Plus.Google.com/+Kindermusik

Pinterest: Pinterest.com/Kindermusik

Twitter: @Kindermusik

YouTube: Youtube.com/KindermusikRocks

Contacts for Reading Rainbow:

Julie Nathanson Teri Weigel

310.854.8191 310.854.8290

jnathanson@rogersandcowan.com tweigel@rogersandcowan.com

Contacts for Kindermusik

Jamie Sterling Lauren Burke

336.543.6218 410.975.9638

jsterling@kindermusik.com Lauren@kehcomm.com

Love… From Top to Bottom and Bottom to Top!

This week, Kindermusik educators all around the world have been celebrating “We Love Kindermusik” week. Helen Peterson, Kindermusik educator extraordinaire and owner of Kindermusik of the Valley in Minnesota, turned We Love Kindermusik into an extra special week that celebrated not only the love she shares for Kindermusik, but also gave the Kindermusik families in her program a tangible way to show their love and care for others. Helen asked her families to donate warm hats and diapers as part of the We Love Kindermusik Week celebrations. Here’s part of her sweet note to her families:

We are embarking on a beautiful time of year, dedicated to love, love love!

Share the love by giving to our service project, sharing warm ears and dry bottoms. Show your little ones how to give by picking out a hat and/or a package of diapers to pass along to children who need them. We will take donations through February.
Nothing like a little show of love… from top to bottom and bottom to top! Helen’s caring act of organizing a service project is just one of the many very special ways our generous, loving Kindermusik community has celebrated We Love Kindermusik Week; and it’s just one small example of why Kindermusik teachers and Kindermusik families worldwide should be celebrated every day.
Come feel the love in a Kindermusik class near you! Try a Free Preview Class today.

Employee-Owners Love Kindermusik Because…

I love Kindermusik because…

“My kids, now college students, took Kindermusik classes before I started to work at KI. I love Kindermusik because it instilled in my children a love for music that continues today. And, as an Employee Owner at KI for 20 years, I know I have had a small part in sharing that same love for music with hundreds of thousands of children and families around the world as well.” ~ Scott Kinsey, Vice President/Chief Financial Officer/Owner
“…it brings families together and is FUN!” ~ Debby Pool, Vice President, Product Development/Owner
“I love hearing the multi-generational stories from families whose children—and now their children!—have benefited from Kindermusik. It’s very gratifying to work for a company that has made, and is continuing to make, such a positive impact on so many lives.” ~ Kelly Green, Vice President /General Manager Schools Division/Owner
“… around here, people know that children are children, people are people, and we all (including parents!) absorb, react, and engage according to our own personalities. Dancing is learning, sitting is learning, clapping is learning. Active children are learning! Shy children are learning! Giggling, bouncing, even distracted children are learning! Everyone is welcome, and every musical experience is offered with open arms and warm intentions. There is no negative here. Kids plus music, just good, good, good.” ~ Molly Dumbleton, Editorial Director/Owner
“…every day I get to help bring laughter and music into children’s lives, and that’s not bad for a day’s work.” ~ Adina Zoltan, Managing Editor/Owner
“… of what we do for children all over the world. Music is something REALLY special — and it’s hard to imagine that music isn’t part of the lives of some children. I truly hope that one day we will, indeed, bring the gift of music (Kindermusik) into the life of every child — amazing things would happen — of that I am certain. I also <3 Kindermusik because of my fellow employee-owners and our educators. Working with and getting to know such talented and strong individuals is awe-inspiring — and — so many friendships have been made over the years — friendships that remain constant for the rest of my life — of that I am certain, as well.” ~ Connie Schor, Manager, Educator Communication/Owner Continue reading “Employee-Owners Love Kindermusik Because…”