For three generations, Kindermusik has helped millions of children around the world build a strong foundation for a lifetime of learning.
“Music training can alter both the structure of the brain’s white matter, which transfers signals through the brain, and gray matter, which has most of the brain’s neurons that are active in processing information.”
Continue reading “Science Center Stage: Music Changes the Brain”
One of the great things about musical activities is that they make really great indoor activities. When it’s too hot or too cold to be outside, you can make musical fun indoors with a little creativity, a little inspiration, and these five simple ideas.
Continue reading “5 Simple, Easy Ways to Enjoy Musical Fun Indoors”
It’s that time of year when everyone is talking about resolutions. Losing weight. Exercising. Working less…but when it comes to parenting resolutions, those are little harder to navigate.
Here’s the thing—changes you make for the sake of stronger development for your child(ren) and easier communication between everyone are WORTH it. So, here are 4 practical musical resolutions you can start right away and stick to.
Continue reading “4 Musical Parenting Resolutions for the New Year”
It’s that time of the year again. Gifts, egg nog, and mistletoe are everywhere. But along with the drinks and decorations, Christmas music is everywhere. To celebrate the season, we turn to the the folks over at Vox. In this video, Vox tells the tale of that secret chord that shows up in so many Christmas songs, from Bing Crosby to Mariah Carey.
In this book review installment, we look at Your Hand in My Hand, a sweet story of togetherness through the seasons that celebrate the simple moments and experiences that bond a child and their special grown-up even more closely – those times when life can truly be enjoyed at its fullest.
You don’t plan for it to happen, but sometimes the stress creeps in over the holidays. And your children, being the sensitive little souls that they are, often feel it too, whether they can articulate it or not. So how can you make the holidays a little easier and more enjoyable? We’re delighted to share seven musical ways to make your holidays less stressful – for you and your child.
Continue reading “7 Musical Ways to Make Your Holidays Less Stressful”
Lovingly known as “Mrs. Marie” or “Madame Marie” to the children in her Kindermusik classes, Marie Kusters has been bringing Kindermusik into the hearts and homes of children and families in Ottawa, Ontario at Mieke Musike Music Studio for over 24 years now. Marie is a dedicated educator and accomplished musician, with a heart not only for her own Kindermusik families, but also for her Kindermusik colleagues. She has served as a Kindermusik Faculty Member, a Kindermusik Mentor, and is a member of the Suzuki Association of the Americas as well as the Suzuki Association of Ontario. She is passionate about sharing her love and knowledge of music in a way that her families describe as loving, nurturing, and encouraging. Anyone who has been around Marie Kusters for very long at all will agree — to know Marie is to be inspired by her…. and “Mr. Marie” too (aka, Marie’s husband, Doug)!
Looking for a holiday or Christmas gift? Well, look no further! Kindermusik has you covered for the holiday season. Continue reading “Looking for a Christmas Gift? Kindermusik Classes to the Rescue!”
Study after study after study in respected, peer-reviewed journals in a variety of fields tell us the same thing over and over, and we don’t mind pointing it out each time a new researcher adds to the heap of science telling us what we already know: if you make music, it positively impacts other areas of learning. In other words, music makes you smarter!
Play it again! Read it again! Again!
Repeating the same songs in the car or reading the same stories at night can be cumbersome for adults, but humans are rooted in repetitive structure. And it’s that structure that catapults brain growth in the first few years of life. Continue reading “Why Repetition Matters in Early Childhood Development”