Parents Archives - Page 15 of 15 - Minds On Music

Good taste in books

Literacy begins early, with nothing more than simply spending time with a book. Even if your baby puts the book in her mouth while you read, she absorbs the sounds of your words, the action of you turning the page, and the pleasure you derive from reading.

The first time your little one points to a picture in a book, she’s understanding the concept of symbols – the idea that the words and pictures represent objects and ideas. A child’s motivation to learn about and use symbols grows as she realizes that this is how she can make her needs and thoughts known to others.

When it comes to choosing books, recent research shows that children who have been exposed to nursery rhymes and lyrical stories in their younger years become better readers and are more successful in school.

Here are some of our favorite tips for developing good taste in books.

Your baby: Spend time with your baby and an open book. Point to the pictures and talk about what you see. Even if your child doesn’t understand a single word, she’ll absorb your love of books and reading.

Your toddler: Now your child can start adding sound effects when you read together. Choose stories with animals so your toddler can imitate their sounds and movements.

Your preschooler: Your little one is now ready to make up his own stories. He can also use a favorite story as the basis for his own pretend play. Help your preschooler make his own book using a favorite song or family photos. Share this “published” work with the whole family!

Again, again!!

Again, again!! There’s a reason why those are two of your child’s favorite words – repetition is the way your child learns best. Repetition also provides children with a sense of security and predictability, setting the stage for optimal learning. Kindermusik takes full advantage of a learning environment that capitalizes on the comfort of repetition, both in class and at home – especially through the Home Materials.

Childhood is all about learning. And while it’s tempting to indulge in all the latest learning trends, videos, or technology, for a child, the single best learning tool is repetition. Each time a child is exposed to a new object or experience, new neural connections are made in his brain. Through repetition, these connections are strengthened. Add a little twist to the repetition, like when we add a new verse to a song or a new prop in class, and these neural pathways strengthen and become super-highways of learning.

Repetition is not only good for your child’s brain; it’s highly beneficial for your child’s overall development. Repetition helps your child learn and remember new information, thus giving her a boost of joyful self-confidence because she can predict what comes next. Then there’s also the immense satisfaction of mastering something. Repetition is the way that your child reminds himself of a newfound skill, and the way he experiences a great deal of pleasure through a sense of completion and mastery. Parents can use this love of repetition to their advantage by establishing predictable routines and rituals in the morning or evening, thus helping their child feel secure and in control – something that’s very important to a small child!

Each Kindermusik curriculum from Village to Young Child is deliberately designed to repeat certain activities, in part because of this important connection between repetition and learning, but also because repetition of activities promotes bonding and nurtures a sense of community and belonging. With the Kindermusik experience, ritual and repetition are key components of a predictable and nurturing environment in which learning, bonding, and a love for music naturally and beautifully unfold.

Benefits of repetition in a nutshell:

>Repetition fuels your child’s memory, confidence, and motor skills.
>Repetition expands your child’s understanding of the world around him.
>Repetition contributes to your child’s intellectual development by reinforcing her understanding of the way the world works.
>Repetition spurs motor development.
>Repetition helps your child feel good about himself because it reminds him of what he can do.
>Repetition builds a sense of trust, helping a child develop healthy relationships with others.
>Repetition is one way your child can exert some control over his environment, which is extremely gratifying for someone with such limited control over her world.

Posted by Theresa Case, whose Kindermusik program at Piano Central Studios is proudly among the top 1% of programs worldwide.

11 Ways to REALLY Listen to Your Child

The follow post was shared with Minds on Music from Kindermusik educator Vanessa Cabrera’s Language, Music & More blog.

A few days ago I read this: “We were given two ears but only one mouth, because listening is twice as hard and important as talking.”

Well, it’s true! It made me think about how much children have lot to say… a lot! Sometimes adults don’t think that children have anything important to say or that they can’t learn from children. So often times the adult does all the talking. They lecture, preach, or, worst of all, ignore the child. Listening to your children will help them grow up to be adults with increased self-esteem because you made them feel that what they have to say is important.

That said, children are not always sure how to communicate their feelings, so they might say something or act completely different from how they actually feel. Active listening can help you to help them figure it out! Here are some tips to REALLY listen to your child:

1. Stop what you are doing. Don’t be distracted doing something else.

2. Look at your child. Sit at his/her level.

3. Pay attention to your child’s nonverbal language. Does the child look happy, sad, afraid?

4. Be silent. It might be hard, but it is important that they have time to express themselves. It will also give you time to understand the situation before reacting.

5. Use simple acknowledgement responses that show you are listening. “I see.” “Oh.” “Uh-Huh.” or “Hmmm.”

6. Use “door-openers”: phrases that encourage further talking. “Tell me more.” “What else?” “Go on.” “How do you feel about that?” “Then what?”

7. Listen for and name the feelings you think you hear from what your child is telling you. “That made you pretty mad, didn’t it?” “You seem really happy about that!”

8. Use problem-solving phrases when needed. “What do you wish you could do?” “What do you want to happen?” “What do you think will happen if you do that?”

9. Don’t feel that you must advise or help your child come up with a solution all the time. The value of listening is in the listening itself.

10. Let them know you are available.

11. Don’t try to deny, discount, or distract the child from the feelings they are expressing.

Listening helps parents and children avoid the power struggle cycle. Instead of arguing or disagreeing, listen. Show your understanding while maintaining your position. Listening builds stronger relationships, shows respect, and helps the child explore his/her own feelings and thoughts on a deeper level. It builds their sense of empathy.

So, are you ready to listen to your child?

Special thanks to Kindermusik educator Vanessa Cabrera for sharing this post from her Language, Music & More blog. Information about Vanessa’s Maryland Kindermusik program can be found at her blog.