Parents Archives - Page 9 of 16 - Minds On Music

How Music + Emotion Bridging Helps Toddlers Navigate BIG Feelings Early On

Toddler has tantrum at playground. How music plus emotional bridging can help pacify this situation.

Toddlers can be gloriously happy one minute and extremely upset the next. Their little brains are undergoing so much growth in those early years, and they don’t yet have the vocabulary, context, or life experience to identify and process all of those emotions.

Helping toddlers understand and articulate their feelings can ease the chaos, but how?

Researchers at Michigan State University found that a simple strategy, called “emotion bridging,” can do just that, with the end result of fewer behavioral problems.

Emotion bridging is a straightforward, three-step process:

Labeling the emotion: sad, happy, upset, mad, etc.
Putting it into context: feeling this because of that
Making a relevant connection: “Remember when you felt [emotion] because of [situation/experience]?”

One way to help the learning stick? The connective, transformative power of shared musical experiences.

Continue reading “How Music + Emotion Bridging Helps Toddlers Navigate BIG Feelings Early On”

The Importance of Intentional Play & Loving Connections in the Early Years

It’s hard not to goo and coo and tickle and cuddle and play peek-a-boo with a cute little baby. But science is now discovering just exactly how important those goos, coos, tickles, cuddles, and peek-a-boos are, demonstrating that while Nature has a hand in how the brain is pre-wired, the brain depends very heavily on environmental input, or nurture – those tickles, cuddles, and peek-a-boos we keep talking about – in order to wire itself further. (Read more here.) How intricately the brain gets wired has long-term impact on all seven areas of intelligence, how well a child does in school, and how they function socially and emotionally.

So how can a parent be intentional about the play and loving connections that are so crucial in the early years? Here are some simple suggestions:

Make time for play. It’s easy to get caught up in the busyness of daily life. So maybe your playtime with your child is just before leaving for work or just after supper before bath time. Whatever time is best for you, make it a non-negotiable part of your day.
Get down on the floor with your child. You can’t help but be a lot more engaged when you’re at their level. The play and interaction will come more and more naturally as you spend more and more time in play with your child.
Be silly! No one else is watching, so go ahead, and just take delight in what delights your child. YouTube is full of silly parent-child videos that have gone viral. You know the ones where the parent does something silly and unexpected only to be rewarded with the best belly laugh ever.
Talk to your child. Tell her about your day. Describe what you’re doing, even if it’s a mundane activity. Or just try some nonsense baby talk. Even if they can’t talk back, they’ll still be enthralled with hearing your voice. And if you take a few conversational pauses, you might even get some goos and coos in response.
Dance with your child. Your music or theirs. It doesn’t really matter. What does matter is the eye contact, the full attention, the love, and the joy of moving together.
Cuddle and sing lullabies. There’s nothing that invites more loving connections than cuddling and singing to your child. And don’t worry… to your child, your voice is the most beautiful sound in the whole wide world.

Need some inspiration for playing, singing, and interacting with your child? Try a Kindermusik class. We have tons of ideas and resources to share!

When It Comes to Baby Talk, Moms Matter

Sometimes it seems that a mother knows what a child is thinking and feeling even before that little one can verbally communicate. That’s because even brand-new moms are somehow inexplicably endowed with this special ability to be tuned in to their little one’s thoughts and feelings. Some may call it maternal instinct. It might be better called the “mom thermometer.” Dr. Elizabeth Kirk, from the University of York, called it “maternal mind-mindedness” or “tuning in.”

What kind of “reading” a mom gets on her “mom thermometer” then often translates into not only she cares for her baby, but more importantly to Dr. Elizabeth Kirk and her research team, this instinctive tuning in is the basis for how a mom interacts and talks to her little one. Dr. Kirk’s study found that a “…a mother’s ability to tune-in to her baby’s thoughts and feelings early on helps her child to learn to empathise with the mental lives of other people. This has important consequences for the child’s social development, equipping children to understand what other people might be thinking or feeling.” Pretty amazing!

Well since we here at Kindermusik are all about using music, movement, and the weekly Kindermusik class to help make great parenting a little easier, we have some “talking points” for all parents as you are interacting with, tuning into, and bonding with your babies and young toddlers by identifying and labeling their emotions.

Emotional Talking Points

When Mommy sings your favorite lullaby, you feel all better.

You love cuddling with Daddy, don’t you?!

I can tell when you smile that you are happy.

Are you feeling frustrated because you can’t fit that into the box?

Does it make you feel upset when your beans fall off your spoon before you get them in your mouth?

Emotional Activity Ideas

Listen and/or dance to “emotional” music. (You can define what “emotional” means at any given moment.) Talk to your child about how the music makes them feel.
Use simple songs or rhymes at routine points throughout the day – waking up, getting dressed, going down for nap, bath time, or bed time. The songs or rhymes can not only help the transitions go more smoothly, but you can talk to your baby about their reaction. Upset? Happy? Sad? Frustrated? Contented?
Deliberate eye contact will help you tune-in more to your baby and his/her emotions. Look into their eyes as you talk to them and love on them.
Take time for some gentle baby massage. This is a great time to “converse” with baby and make that all-important eye contact.
Sing or hum a lullaby as you rock your child. You might use rocking as a nap time or bed time ritual. But rocking is also a great time to really focus on your child, saying “I love you,” and getting a good “read” with your “mom (or dad) thermometer.”

We get that some of these examples might sound just slightly cheesy when written out, but don’t worry – they won’t come across as cheesy when it’s just you and your little sweetie one-on-one. And later on, when your child is growing to be happy, self-confident, thoughtful, and sensitive towards others, you can give yourself a big pat on the back. It was your intuitive connection, tuning in, verbalization, and yes at times, one-sided conversations, that made all the difference.

Want more insight into your child’s social-emotional development? Follow us on Pinterest!

Shared by Theresa Case who has loved every minute of helping parents connect with their children through music at Piano Central Studios in Greenville, SC, for over 20 years now.

School Readiness Begins at Birth

9-month-old baby engages in scarf play with mom during a Kindermusik class designed to support early school readiness.

School readiness for babies? Sounds a little extreme, but did you know an infant’s brain doubles in size during the first year? This window of learning opens wide in those first 12 months, and the easiest way to boost school readiness is to amplify bonding moments, joyful age-appropriate play, and rich multisensory activities that support those critical brain leaps.

Shared musical play is the perfect tool.

Continue reading “School Readiness Begins at Birth”

Why Your Child Needs Routines and Rituals

Routine. Ritual. Often the words are used interchangeably, but they have slightly different nuances. Routines are every day. More commonplace. Things we do at the same time in the same way. Rituals are special and meaningful, memory builders, if you will. They have purpose and are carried out with intentionality. Your child needs and thrives on both. Here’s why.

Routines give your child predictability, and with predictability comes a great sense of security for your child. Routines are the defining structure of a day or a week and provide a certain organization that prevents chaos. They are comforting and reassuring, helping your child know what to expect.

Rituals define us. They help us bond and connect. Rituals are enjoyable and repeated shared experiences – a certain way you celebrate life’s happy occasions or that special way you put your child to bed each night. They contribute indelibly and inextricably to a happy childhood, making for a lifetime of the best of memories.

Here’s a good example of the difference between routines and rituals. Attending a weekly Kindermusik class becomes a favorite routine, something you and your child both look forward to. You have a familiar and predictable structure to each week’s class (with a little new coming in with new themes, songs, and activities), and the same wonderful Kindermusik educator year after year.

What you learn in class and the Home Materials you receive then become the inspiration for memorable, heart-warming, bonding rituals at home. Like the toe-tickle you do each morning to chase away the morning grumpies. The way you cuddle up and read your Kindermusik story before naptime. The happy dance you do around the kitchen together when daddy walks in the door. Or the sweet lullaby that calms and quiets your child before bedtime… the very same one he’ll sing to his own little one someday.

Routines. Rituals. They are beautiful things, especially when they are set to music.

Make Kindermusik a part of your weekly – and daily! – routine. Find a class near you today.

Shared by Theresa Case whose award-winning Kindermusik program at Piano Central Studios in Greenville, SC, has been helping families enjoy delightful routines and special rituals for over 20 years now.

5 Easy Ways to Boost Early Reading Skills

Dad boosts early reading skills by reading a board book to his baby.

My nine-year-old daughter CAN NOT put down Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Her eyes gulp down the words while her imagination dives into the depths of the wizard world. It’s the 11^th time she’s made the same journey, not counting the first time we read the book out loud together. So when did her reading skills take flight?

She wasn’t a born reader—no one is—but a love of reading can develop early (and the earlier the better). My daughter’s love of reading began practically at birth, certainly long before she heard the name Harry Potter, and it 100% had to do with integrating these easy reading development tips…

Continue reading “5 Easy Ways to Boost Early Reading Skills”

To the Mom Who Showed Up Late to Music Class

I saw you today.

Yes. You!

Did you really think that you could slip in unnoticed after class already started? We had finished all the rounds of the “Hello” song and just transitioned into rhythm sticks when you and your child walked into the classroom. You held your head down trying to avoid eye contact, but your little one didn’t even think about feeling embarrassed for arriving late. Instead, she burst through the door ready to make music with her friends.

But I saw you.

Did you see me?

I smiled. Big Time. Could you guess that behind my smile I said a cheer for you: “You made it! Woo-Hoo! Good for you!”

It doesn’t matter what time the clock reads. It matters that you came. After all, time takes on a different meaning when a child enters your life. Every parent learns that lesson sooner or later. We’ve all experienced one or two (or all of these!) reasons for being late somewhere:

A Few Reasons Kids Make Us Late

As soon as you dress your infant and strap her in the carrier she experiences her first diaper explosion—the kind your BFF warned you about—and the one you didn’t believe because she tends to exaggerate. After the shock wears off, you spend the next 30 minutes cleaning up your baby, your car, and yourself.
Your child refuses to get dressed in anything other than his Buzz Lightyear pajamas, except said PJs are stained with who knows what and two sizes too small. After 20 minutes of intense negotiations, you arrive at a compromise of last year’s Scooby Doo Halloween costume, which is only a slightly better option.
It takes your toddler 13 minutes to walk 10 steps to the car. She keeps stopping to investigate something spectacular—a rock, an old piece of chalk left in the rain, an ant. When you attempt to spur her on down the path, it sparks an epic meltdown on full display of the elderly couple next door. After 8 minutes, your child forgets the root of her despair and happily gets in the car.
Ten minutes before you need to leave for class your child FINALLY decides to take a nap. You debate letting him sleep to help ward off the evening drama guaranteed to happen on “no nap” days. You opt to shorten the nap by letting him sleep 20 minutes instead of his usual 30 minutes…which means you are 10 minutes later for class. You hope a short nap is better than no nap, but only time will tell.
YOU take a nap. Hey! Parenting is EXHAUSTING…as in “will-I-ever-sleep-again exhausting.” You needed that nap because you know you will be up three times between your child’s bedtime and 630am.

So, while your reason for arriving late may not be listed above, it’s okay. You are welcomed whether you show up early, on time, late, or not at all on some days. We understand. It’s why I wasn’t the only one who noticed you arriving late. The other parents did, too. We all widened the circle to include you. After all, we are a family and that’s what family does.

Do you want to join a community of other families who understand what it’s like to be a parent today? Find a class near you!

Contributed by Lisa Camino Rowell, a freelance writer in the Atlanta area. Through the years, she arrived late countless times to Kindermusik class (for all of the reasons listed above).

The 8 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.

4 Lesser Known Young Toddler Milestones Worth Celebrating

Young toddler pushes toy school bus outside.

Developmental milestones exist for good reason and help with everything from growth tracking to early prevention, but constant focus on checking off every item on the pediatric checklist only causes stress for everyone. When it comes to young toddlers (or really any age), there are some key positive behaviors that you might not realize are already happening.

4 “Minor” Young Toddler Behaviors that = Major Growth

Your child…

Pretends to have a snack with their teddy bear.

What it means: Exhibiting pretend behaviors may seem like no big deal, but they’re actually early signs that your child has acquired symbolic reasoning (e.g., putting an empty spoon to your mouth is not eating, but represents eating.)

Deliberately turns a bowl of cereal upside down.

What it means: Your child is developing wrist control, which is necessary for just about everything we do with our hands.

Is obsessed with pop-up toys.

What it means: Your child has figured out, When I push that button, something will pop up! In other words, cause-and-effect, or I can make something happen.

Follows commands (like “Don’t touch!” And they actually don’t touch.)

What it means: Your child is learning self-control! At long last, they understand that they are in charge of their own wants and actions, and can exercise (some) control over their impulses.

Is obsessed with pushing, pulling, and throwing.

What it means: Your child is discovering the properties of weight, size, force, and mass. They are investigating questions of science, including which things do what and how.

Search for a Kindermusik class near you or check out our early learning kits to learn more about how to spot, celebrate, and encourage these important young toddler behaviors!

Happy Hammock Day!

Today is a special day… it’s Happy Hammock Day! A time to celebrate the feel-good joy of hammocking. No hammock, you say? We have a simple solution. A solution if you’re under the age of 5, that is. Two adults holding a beach towel or thick blanket makes for the perfect kid-sized hammock.

But why exactly would you choose to celebrate Happy Hammock Day today or any day? That’s because there are all kinds of benefits to hammocking, which is actually just a type of rocking.

There are many reasons why it’s good to rock, and by rocking, to stimulate the vestibular system. We talk a lot about the vestibular system’s function in controlling balance and coordination. But the vestibular system also coordinates information in the ear, eyes, muscles, hands, feet, and skin. It also helps adjust heart rate, blood pressure, and immune responses… just to name a few! And when the vestibular system is activated, it helps the brain make new learning connections. Who knew rocking – and the vestibular system – could accomplish all that??!!

Happy Hammock Day to all, and to all some good rocking!

We’d love to see how your family celebrates Hammock Day! Post a photo on social media with the tag: #KindermusikHammockDay