How a Violin Teaches Kids to Read

Matching sounds to a visual image is an extremely important early literacy skill. It is, in fact, the precursor skill to the alphabetic principle, or the understanding that there is a relationship between letters and sounds. Before children can explore letter-sound relationships and learn to decode words, they must first understand the connection between a sound they hear and an image they see.

This fun early literacy game from Kindermusik@Home features violins and provides kids lots of practice with associating a specific bit of audio with a specific bit of visual. While kids have no idea that this game is actually preparing them to read, YOU will know!

Kindermusik@Home Listening Game: Which Violin?

This game also supports other important early childhood cognitive competences, including:

Selective Attention: The ability to selectively concentrate on one aspect of the environment while ignoring distractions.
Auditory Working Memory: The ability to retain information that has been presented orally (e.g., listening to a target sound and then matching the sound to its image).
Auditory Discrimination: The ability to discriminate between similar sounds.

Looking for more fun, musical learning ideas? Follow us on Pinterest.

How Scarf Play Amps Up Early Development

Mom uses sheer yellow scarf to practice scarf play with 3-year-old daughter in a Kindermusik class.

Swish. Twist. Float. Twirl. Bounce. Wave. Scrunch. Toss. Peekaboo…there are a thousand and one ways to promote early childhood development with scarf play.

That’s precisely why scarves are such a valuable prop at home, in a school setting, or in a musical play class. Surprisingly, what looks like just fun and games is actually enhancing brain, body, and social-emotional growth, especially when you combine scarf play with a song, chant, or rhyme.

So, what exactly happens when you take out those scarves?

6 Benefits of Scarf Play

Imagination Building. “Can you move your scarf like the wind?” That connection between our mind’s eye and an animate object is powerful, so children not only get to imagine how the wind might flow, they get to demonstrate it. That satisfaction spurs more and more curiosity.

Try this: Grab a lightweight towel, blanket, or scarf and follow the prompts with your child(ren) in “Wind and Rain” in the free Kindermusik App. Watch how they “bounce like rain drops” and put their imagination to use.

Directional Tracking. For babies in their first year, swaying a brightly colored scarf back and forth and tossing it up and down to the music is a safe and easy way to maintain their gaze and monitor progress for this important milestone.

Object Permanence. Another baby-specific benefit of scarf play is the demonstration of object permanence. Scarf peekaboo with babies helps them understand that something can exist without them seeing it (like a parent!).

Eye-hand Coordination. For babies, reaching out and grasping a scarf is a big deal! They can clench it, pull it, and swish it around while building up those motor skills. For older toddlers and preschoolers, tossing and catching scarves is an ideal exercise to increase eye-hand coordination needed for everything from brushing their teeth to catching a ball.

Early Handwriting Skills. Trace it. Pinch it. Twirl it. For preschoolers, scarf play can help build the directional and fine motor skills needed to write. Kiddos can easily practice the pincer grasp with something like a lightweight scarf—it’s a great brain break from and supplement to traditional practice workbooks.

Try It: Check out these three no-cost musical scarf play activities to help prep your little ones for handwriting success.

Vocabulary Enhancement. Verbally describing actions during scarf play (like “Up!”, “Down!”, Toss!”, “Float!” ) helps build vocabulary and comprehension skills.

Aside from the developmental benefits of scarf play, one of the pluses to incorporating it into your activity rotation is that it’s transferrable from class to home and back, and it’s full of joy.

Try scarf play in a group setting.

The best kind of learning happens with repetition, play, and support. Scarf play is a big part of our grownup-and-me studio classes and within our curricula kits for schools and other learning environments.

Join a Kindermusik class near you (in-person and virtual options available) or check out our teach-along solutions for your early learning space!

Musical Hacks that Help Kids Be a Good Friend

Happy Friendship Day today!! Just wishing you “Happy Friendship Day” probably made you think of certain people you’ve been blessed to know and who have made your life better just by being your friend. A good friend is someone who is caring, supportive, understanding, interested, kind, and giving. It’s a joy to not only have a friend, but also to BE a friend!

But have you ever wondered how to help your young child learn to be a friend? Music classes are a great place for children to gain the skills they need in order to be a good friend. Skills like…

Learning to share
Practicing the skill of sharing usually happens around a box of assorted instruments, books, or puppets.

Try this at home: Before your next play date, talk with your child about what it means to share their toys or favorite stuffed animal. You might even try a little role play to practice sharing.

Taking turns
During instrument demonstrations, children learn to wait for their turn. And oh the joy when the resonator bars finally get around to them!

Try this at home: The concept of taking turns seems so obvious, but it might really help the light bulb go on if you explain to your child what taking turns is – and is not. You could even do a mini demonstration of taking turns.

Speaking kindly
We parents do try to teach this at home, but there’s something about having another adult (the music teacher) model and encourage this in class too.

Try this at home: When your child’s tone starts to escalate in the wrong direction, ask them to use their low and quiet voice. This is a good example of getting the results you want by being very specific and concrete in what you ask.

Being empathetic.
Music puts kids in touch with their feelings, but the group experience of a music class helps kids learn to consider the feelings of others, especially when it comes to watching out for our friends and missing them when they miss class because of sickness.

Try this at home: Talk to your child about how they feel, and also how they think their friends might feel. With a younger child, this might take the form of telling. With older children, this will likely have the most effect if you are asking questions and taking time for the give-and-take of a healthy discussion.

Becoming a good listener
To really enjoy music, you have listen. Not just hear the sound, but listen to it – the nuances, the contrasts, the instrumentation – everything that makes music what it is. This is why focused listening activities in music class are so beneficial.

Try this at home: Encourage your child to pay attention to the sounds around them – a bird singing, a train whistling, baby brother giggling. And then help them understand what it means to be a good listener with others – giving attention, focusing, and making eye contact.

And as a word of encouragement to parents… Think of how long it has taken you as an adult to develop the skills it takes to be a good friend. Likewise, it takes years of positive reinforcement, good modeling, and patient practice for a child to gain these skills too. Starting them off young and giving them social experiences, such as those found in a music class, where they can learn and practice these skills means that they might learn these skills even sooner maybe than you did. And that’s a good thing because there’s nothing quite like the life-enriching gift of friendship.

Looking for a close-knit group of friends for your child and YOU? Join the Kindermusik community of families! Find a class near you today.

The 9 Best Kindermusik Activities to Do at Home

From class to home and back again! The value and impact of a music class increases exponentially when the music, concepts, and activities enjoyed in class are also incorporated into everyday family life. It’s easier than you might think to make the connection between class and home even stronger.

The 8 Best Kindermusik Activities to Do at Home

#1 – Sing Hello and Goodbye (Good Night).
Sing the Hello song each morning when your child wakes up. Change the word “goodbye” to “good night” and the goodbye song becomes part of a sweet, soothing bedtime ritual.

#2 – Dance together.
After a diaper change, on a rainy day when you’re stuck inside, or while you’re waiting on supper to cook, turn on your Kindermusik songs and dance together. You can also do a slow, cuddly waltz together just before nap time or bedtime as a way to connect and relax before putting your child to sleep.

#3 – Try an indoor hammock.
Save out one big towel from the clean laundry you’re folding and before putting it away, rock your child in a towel hammock (two adults required) as you play some gentle music or sing a loving lullaby. For more about hammocking, click here.

#4 – Take your child on a hayride.
That same towel you hammocked with easily transforms into a swervy-curvy, silly-willy kind of indoor hayride. Simply have your child sit or lay on the towel, then pick up the end closest to his/her head. Then pull them down the hall and around the room. Add some music for a little extra fun and movement inspiration.

#5 – Sing in the car together.
If you want your child to love being in the car or running errands, turn car time into singing time. Your child can teach you songs he/she learned in music class, or you can both enjoy a sing-a-long with your music download or CD from class.

#6 – Do the “Johnny & Katie” fingerplay.
This one is fun! Starting with the pinky, say “Johnny, Johnny…” while tapping each finger. Say whoops as you slide down from the pointer to the thumb, tap the thumb (saying “Johnny”), then head back to the pinky saying “Johnny” every time you tap a finger. Next say “Katie” on each finger. The fingerplay can go on from there with Daddy, sister, brother, Grandma, Grandpa, aunt, cousin, and more!

#7 – Start a family band.
Pots, pans, bowls, wooden utensils, cups, and spoons can all be the instruments for an impromptu band. Accompany yourselves as you sing, or do a play-along with the recordings your favorite Kindermusik songs from class.

#8 – Read together.
The Kindermusik library stories your child hears in class during Story Time are available when you login to your @Home Materials. You’ll enjoy the common shared experience, having something new to read, and knowing that you’re doing a world of good for your child’s literacy,

#9 – Rock together.
Nothing says “I love you” quite like being cuddled and sung to, and those lullaby-laced memories will put an emotional bond around your child’s heart that they will remember forever. We highly recommend a lullaby and some rocking before bedtime every night! (And if it’s hard for your child to get going in the morning, singing and rocking together can ease that transition too.)

These are 8 simple ideas with big emotional impact – ideas that also connect class to home and make the learning that much more powerful too.

Kindermusik teachers all around the world love helping families make the class-to-home connections every week. But did you know that Kindermusik also offers a curriculum for schools that intentionally includes parent materials to easily connect the classroom to the living room? Find out more.

– Shared by Theresa Case whose award-winning Kindermusik program is located at Piano Central Studios in Greenville, SC.

Popular Pinterest Pins for Summertime Fun

Looking for a few new ideas for summertime fun to add to your family’s list? Here are a few of the most popular Pinterest Pins from our Kindermusik boards.

Favorite Kindermusik Pinterest Pins for Summertime Fun

1. Create a Ball Maze. A great activity for shape identification, predictions, cause and effect, and fun!

2. Hula Hoop sized bubbles. What is this beautiful concoction? Hula Hoops AND bubbles?! Yes, please!

3. Books for young children to get them moving AND reading.

4. Five favorite Kindermusik ways to get up and move.

5. Classic Hand-Clapping Games for Kids. No worries. Adults can play, too!

6. Teach Your Child the Letter P. Turn down the summer heat and learn about penguins and the letter P.

No matter how your family chooses to celebrate summer, fall, winter, or spring, we know that you will be creating memories together!

Looking for more ideas for your family’s summer (or winter, fall, and spring) list? Be sure to follow us on Pinterest!

Contributed by Lisa Camino Rowell, a freelance writer (and Pinterest pinner!) from the Atlanta, Georgia, area.

4 Musical Ways to Entertain Young Children While Lying Down

You need a break. I don’t even know you, but if you are a parent like me, well, you need a break. Of course, no law states that parents are entitled to one 15-minute break for every four hours on duty much less an hour-long lunch break.

A break from parenting is best taken in small increments throughout the day. It’s the real reason why parents of young children claim they need to go to the bathroom so often. It’s one of the few places where we can create the illusion of solitude (if you block out the sound of the child banging on the bathroom door asking for a snack or the little fingers reaching under the door, of course).

If you find yourself needing a break—outside of the potty—try one of these musical ways to entertain your kids while sitting (or lying down):

4 Musical Ways to Entertain Young Children While Lying Down

Put on some music and invite your child(ren) to create a musical variety show. While they dance, play instruments, or participate in a parade, you head to the couch for the best seat in the house! Your kids will burn off some energy without YOU chasing them all around the house (or playground, cul-de-sac, or grocery store)! For older children, you can buy some extra “down time,” by suggesting they rehearse beforehand so you will be surprised! Here’s a Kindermusik child playing her dulcimer for her mom!
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M25eG7ZXqxs[/youtube]
Engage in a Call-and-Response singing game. You hum a tune or clap a rhythm. Your child repeats it back. Increase the complexity of the patterns. Take turns being the leader. You can even invite your child to lightly tap out the beat on your back.
Play freeze dance. Put on some music. While the music plays, your child dances. When the music stops, your child stops dancing. Young children love creating silly poses when the music stops. Plus, you can control the music from any relaxing position! As an extra bonus, children gain practice with inhibitory control or the ability to stop oneself and wait.
Guess the song. Take turns humming a familiar tune while the other person tries to guess the song.

Looking for more ideas on how to use music to make parenting easier? Be sure to follow us on Pinterest!

Contributed by Lisa Camino Rowell a writer from the Atlanta area. She often ~~used~~ uses these musical tips with her own children!

Music Paves the Way to Literacy

Improve Listening Skills with Kindermusik

Listening to and identifying sounds is the earliest phonological awareness skill and one of the most important pre-literacy competencies. Without this skill, there will be no progress toward phonics, spelling, or text comprehension.

How Children Become Phonologically Aware

Children become phonologically aware in a specific developmental sequence, beginning with the larger sound units (e.g., tapping each word in a sentence), then focusing on parts of individual words (e.g., blending two words to make a compound word, such as cup-cake), and finally focusing on smaller sound units (/b/-/ig/) within words.

This developmental sequence is universal…meaning that children who are English language learners are able to transfer phonological awareness skills from their first language, even when the two languages are very different! And children who speak other alphabetic languages also progress through the same sound-awareness sequence, from larger to smaller units.

Kindermusik@Home Activity that Supports Phonological Awareness

There is such a thing as training an ear. Parents can extend the application of a listening activity like this one from Kindermusik@Home to pre-literacy by gathering a variety of sound-making materials and playing with different pitches, paces, and lengths of sound. The more experience children gain in learning to identify the subtle nuances between musical timbres and pitches, the more prepared they will be to recognize and identify the distinct sounds within words.

Kindermusik@Home activity: “Which Woodwind?” Give young children’s listening skills a workout with this fun, musical game. Kids will learn to identify a piccolo, flute, oboe, bassoon, and bagpipe.

Learn more about how music supports early literacy development.

5 Things Not to Do in a Music Class

We’re not too shy to say that we’re the experts when it comes to creating a one-of-a-kind experience in our music classes for kids. In fact, Kindermusik has been the world’s leader in music education programs for young children for over 30 years now.

In all that time and with the help of thousands of licensed Kindermusik educators all around the world, we’ve learned a few tips of what NOT to do in a music class, but especially in a Kindermusik class. We are happy to share five of those “what not to do” tips with you here.

5 Things Not to Do in a Music Class

Stand off to the side.
All of the fun and memories come from your active and joyful participation, so yes, please do join right in. You’ll be surprised just how much you enjoy letting your inner child come out—both in class and at home when you and your child “play” Kindermusik!

Look at, but don’t touch, the instruments.
(Remember we’re talking about what NOT to do in music class with your child. Those double negatives can mess with your mind.) Seriously, you are your child’s first and best teacher, and when it comes to Kindermusik class, the one who can really help them explore and enjoy the instrument play to its fullest.

Leave your singing in the shower.
There’s no more beautiful sound to your child than your voice, even if you’d never make it on stage. And there will be nothing more special to your child than hearing you sing along in class. You might even find that singing in the car together will become a new favorite pastime!

Sit out any of the dances.
In class, we keep things moving – literally – with happy dances interwoven throughout many other delightful activities in each weekly class. You’ll love the endorphin rush of dancing with your child and the joy of doing so in a group where everyone else is simply enjoying just being with their children like you are.

Limit your music time to just the class time.
The real value of your Kindermusik enrollment is that you get to enjoy the music, the moments, and the memories throughout the week at home. So go ahead, stream your class music or pop in that CD. Sing out loud with your child in the car or dance around the kitchen while supper’s cooking. You’ll be glad you did!

Find a local Kindermusik class so you can practice NOT doing these things with your child!

Shared by Theresa Case who has spent the last 20 years sharing the joy of Kindermusik at Piano Central Studios in beautiful upstate South Carolina.

How to Raise a Child Who Cares for the Environment

Today officially marks Earth Day! However, for young children, every day is Earth Day. After all, they discover something new and wonderful about the outside world each time they encounter it. It’s one of the reasons a walk with a toddler takes 30 minutes just to make it from the front door to the sidewalk. Flowers, leaves, rocks, grass, worms, butterflies, birds, clouds….there are so many beautiful parts of the environment that cause children to pause and investigate further!

While on this Earth Day it may be too early to introduce concepts of pollution, habitat, or species protection, it’s NOT too early to talk to children about the amazing things that the Earth can do. Children must first learn to understand and to love nature and the environment before they can be weighted with the challenge of trying to “save” it. At this age, just concentrate on establishing an emotional connection, awe, understanding, and respect for what nature is and how it works when its systems are working properly. Young children will naturally respond to nature this way!

Earth Day Activity: Composting with Kids

Composting is an ideal and child-friendly place to start teaching children about the environment! It involves dirt, digging, and water–three things children already love! And the idea that, left to their own devices, recyclable food and plant materials can turn back into dirt, and then grow more food and plant materials, is an ideal first lesson about why the Earth is incredible. Try this step-by-step composting guide specifically created with young children in mind:

Looking for more ideas on living green with kids? Check out our Pinterest Board.

Contributed by Lisa Camino Rowell, a freelance writer living green with kids (or trying her best!) in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.

This game also supports other important early childhood cognitive competences, including:

Looking for more fun, musical learning ideas? Follow us on Pinterest.

6 Benefits of Scarf Play

Try scarf play in a group setting.

The 8 Best Kindermusik Activities to Do at Home

Favorite Kindermusik Pinterest Pins for Summertime Fun

No matter how your family chooses to celebrate summer, fall, winter, or spring, we know that you will be creating memories together!

Looking for more ideas for your family’s summer (or winter, fall, and spring) list? Be sure to follow us on Pinterest!

4 Musical Ways to Entertain Young Children While Lying Down

Looking for more ideas on how to use music to make parenting easier? Be sure to follow us on Pinterest!

How Children Become Phonologically Aware

Kindermusik@Home Activity that Supports Phonological Awareness

Dancing the way to understanding cultures

5 Things Not to Do in a Music Class

Earth Day Activity: Composting with Kids

Looking for more ideas on living green with kids? Check out our Pinterest Board.