For three generations, Kindermusik has helped millions of children around the world build a strong foundation for a lifetime of learning.
For many of us, Labor Day is associated with the bittersweet emotions that accompany the end of summer. It’s the unofficial harbinger of fall, an excuse for retailers to hold massive sales, and traditionally, the rather arbitrary national deadline for wearing white. But Labor Day has far more significance—and a more sobering history—than its present-day observance would imply.
Continue reading “Labor Day: Wait, What Are We Celebrating Again?”
We wait all year for summer—our annual celebration of bare feet, beach outings, barbecues, and bathing suits—but no matter what, it always seems like it’s just too short. Making things worse is the fact that the better part of August—which should occupy prime summer real estate on our calendars—is spent preparing for summer to end! City pools are drained and locked. Summer camps shutter their cabins. The long, languorous, lightning-bug-filled days give way to frantic back-to-school preparations and end-of-summer closeouts.
From July 25 to July 29, 2018, the city of New Orleans—always up for a party—was brimming with even more music than usual. That’s because more than 250+ Kindermusik educators gathered at Loyola University to sing, dance, and celebrate their shared passion for enriching children’s lives through music. The occasion? The 40th Anniversary Kindermusik Educator Conference—three jam-packed days of bonding and professional development for Kindermusik’s remarkable community of licensed educators.
It’s summer! Time to kick off your shoes, feel the grass beneath your toes, bury your feet in the sand, and do the scorched-foot tiptoe-dance on your way into the pool.
As the weather heats up and boots get shoved to the backs of closets, those pale feet that only a short time ago were in socks and closed shoes suddenly emerge on the scene, sporting new pedicures and refusing to be constrained by more than a flip-flop. For kids, running around with nothing but dirt, rocks, and grass underfoot is a time-honored summer tradition; the extra callouses and scrapes are just a small price to pay.
Continue reading “Sun’s Out, Shoes Off: Why Barefoot Is Best”
Water slide, playground slide, Slip N Slide…nothing more perfectly conjures the feeling of summer fun and freedom. The smiles, the giggles, the breeze whipping through wild hair…
But for some parents, summer slide invokes less positive feelings. That’s because the term refers to the dreaded loss of school-based learning that occurs from the end of one school year to the beginning of the next. The phenomenon has led to calls for year-round schooling and intensive summer educational programs to combat the effects of this particular (and decidedly less delightful) slide.
But before we get all hot and bothered, let’s take a look at the facts.
As July 4th approaches, and Americans prepare to celebrate the red, white, and blue, those of us at Kindermusik are pondering independence—our country’s, certainly, but also our children’s independence. (We can’t really help it; we’re all about die kinder.) Most parents would agree that independence is vitally important to cultivate in children. After all, isn’t the goal of parenting to produce a fully realized human—someone who can function and thrive independently in the world?
Continue reading “Celebrating Independence in Young Children”
Since the early 90s, early educators have been keenly interested in “emotional intelligence” (the awareness of our emotions, how to manage them, and use them) and its connection to wellness and success. What we know now is that a child’s brain is primed for nurturing emotional intelligence, and there are scientifically proven reasons why shared music-making is the best nurturing tool out there.
Continue reading “How Shared Music-Making Nurtures Emotional Intelligence”
There are two dates on our calendar that celebrate parents, but one seems to get far more attention than the other. While Mother’s Day arrives with flowers, fanfare, and marketing campaigns galore, Father’s Day seems to get short shrift.
Continue reading “Fathers Are Important Every Day; Not Just On Father’s Day!”
Have you always wanted to become a children’s music teacher but don’t know where to start?
Are you already a children’s music teacher but don’t have time to research new ideas for the classroom?
Are you a different kind of childhood practitioner (like a preschool teacher, social worker, or music therapist) who is searching for helpful and enjoyable ways to boost development?
Music education training can fulfill all of these needs, but it’s a daunting task.
That’s why we created our new on-demand Kindermusik Training Program.
It’s a way for busy educators, child advocates, and entrepreneurs to incorporate the power of music on their own terms, at their own pace, and tailored to their own needs.
Continue reading “Become a Children’s Music Teacher with Kindermusik”
Kindermusik is thrilled to be presenting at the 45th Annual National Head Start Association (NHSA) Conference and Expo in Anaheim, California, from April 23-27, 2018. We’ll be sharing our expertise on all things music and movement in four fantastic sessions. We hope to see you there, but if you can’t make it, here’s a sneak peek at some of what we’ll be talking (and singing!) about: Continue reading “NHSA Preview: Using Music Rituals to Create Calm”