music apps for kids Archives - Minds On Music

Tips for Reading e-Books with Young Children

When it comes to all things technological, today’s kids seem to be genetically predisposed to easily understanding and assimilating anything tech related. They usually know which buttons to push before their parents do, even if it’s the first time they’ve had the remote control or device in their hands!
A new study finds that a staggering two-thirds of kids between the ages of 2 and 13 years are now reading e-books, an increase of over 50% from a similar study conducted just about a year ago.
We’re proud to say that Kindermusik International, the world’s leader in early music and movement learning, is already ahead of the curve. They’ve been publishing musical e-books to complement their @Home Materials for several years now. Kindermusik is a huge advocate of parental choice about the amount of screen time and have aligned themselves with that of the highly respected NAEYC and the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning, recognizing that children can benefit from a responsible and age-appropriate use of technology in combination with hands-on experiences and in partnership with an actively involved caregiver.
With that in mind, we’d like to share these excellent tips from the Reading Rockets website for reading e-books with young children :

“Recognize the novelty factor. The first few times your child is interacting with a new e-book, allow time for exploration of the features. Once your child has spent some time exploring, set out to read or listen to the story without too many non-story related interruptions.
Enjoy the features, but don’t forget to focus on the story. See if you can help your child find a balance between having fun with the games and sticker books and really enjoying and understanding the story. As with all books, engage your reader in conversations about the story. ‘What do you think will happen next? What is your favorite part of the story?’
Stay present with your child and the book experience. It’s tempting to let the device do the work — read the story, play a game and interact with your child. But there’s no substitute for quality parent-child conversation. Keep talking, commenting on interesting words and ideas, and sharing your love of literacy with your child.”

Learn more about Kindermusik and the delightful Home Materials that are part of every enrollment! Start with a free Preview Class today.

Two fun (and free!) ways to use digital learning to learn English

ABC English & Me - Teaching English to Children through Music

Kindermusik International’s English Language Learning (ELL) curriculum, ABC English & Me, is a fun, musically-based way for ELL children to learn English. As with all of Kindermusik’s newest curricula, the class experience is supported and enhanced by @Home Materials which are accessed digitally and conveniently available to families at any time, anywhere.
The Kindermusik @Home Materials that come with every ABC English & Me enrollment provide fun activities for kids learning, including English songs for kids as well as other ELL activities. We’ll spotlight two of those educational activities for kids here as a free sneak peek!

Just Me!

Just Me! is a delightful music video from the ABC English & Me unit also entitled Just Me! Children can’t help but move, giggle, and learn as they learn the English words for head, shoulder, knees, and toes! (And yes, parents can join the fun too. After all, you’re helping your children learn, right?!)

Find & Count

In Find & Count, featured in the unit called Leap Frog, children learn to count as they find the frogs, ducks, and fish in the pond. This activity is enhanced by the colorful, engaging graphics, lively instructions, and sweet music.

So, go ahead. Try one – or both! – of these activities for yourself. It’s okay if the kids aren’t around! We think you’ll be amazed at the way Kindermusik International is yet again proving itself to be the world’s leader in music and movement curricula, now supported by digital learning through their exceptional @Home Materials.

2 educational benefits of digital learning and mobile apps for kids

Back in October, Common Sense Media published a report that indicated the usage of mobile apps for kids more than doubled in two years. In fact, the report showed that 75 percent of children under the age of 8 had access to mobile devices at home. However, with the holidays recently behind us, we can make an educated guess that the number of children with access to mobile devices only increased in the few months since the publication of that report.
Of course, access to mobile devices and mobile apps for kids doesn’t necessarily equate to educational activities for kids. In fact, one of the great parenting challenges of raising digital natives involves finding the right balance of screen time for families, including young children. At Kindermusik, we align our stance with the NAEYC and the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning, recognizing that children can benefit from a responsible and age-appropriate use of technology in combination with hands-on experiences and in partnership with an actively involved caregiver.
In early childhood, the most effective educational activities for kids involve multi-sensory learning, such as talking (or singing!), interacting, exploring, building, pretending, and manipulating. New research on mobile apps for kids (or those used by kids) sheds some positive insight on how technology can be used as a tool to support language development and teach social skills to young children.

2 educational benefits of mobile apps for kids that use video

Five or 10 years ago, video chat was used primarily for business purposes. Now, families Skype or FaceTime with loved ones all around the world as a means to stay connected. When children—even older babies and toddlers—engage in communicating with loved ones via video chat, they learn social skills and support language development in much the same way as if the conversation happened within the same space.
“We’re finding pretty consistently — in fact, two recent studies with actual Skype [calls] — that children do seem to learn better when there is social interaction from a person on video. So it’s kind of encouraging with FaceTime or Skype for parents and grandparents to know that [with] that interaction, the children might actually be willing to learn from a person on a screen because of the social interaction showing them what’s on the screen is connected to their lives,” Georgene Troseth said in an NPR interview, “What You Need To Know About Babies, Toddlers And Screen Time.”

(Source: The News Tribune DEAN J. KOEPFLER/Staff photographer)

Other classroom-based research shows that with preschoolers, video modeling can teach children positive social skills, such as sharing, taking turns, or using kind and polite words. One preschool in Minnetonka, Minnesota, uses Flip cameras to record students during their daily rituals and routines. Children can then watch the videos on an Ipad individually or on the SmartBoard as a class to see how to handle certain situations, talk to peers, and even where to go and how to act during circle time.
“Video modeling is just a really easy and effective way to teach children within and without special needs how to do something,” explained Brenna Noland, an early childhood special education teacher, in a news report.

Kindermusik@Home: More than a music app for kids

Enrollment in Kindermusik includes access to Kindermusik@Home a robust, web-based site that supports active engagement and playtime between a parent and a child while also providing an age-appropriate introduction to digital learning. Each month families receive access to the songs and stories from class, virtual field trips and video modeling, and ideas for taking the learning away from the computer, smart phone, of other device.
For more information about Kindermusik@Home and enrolling in Kindermusik, contact your local educator.

4 Simple Ideas for Indoor Musical Fun

When the weather keeps you indoors or you just need something to relieve a certain little someone’s boredom, here are a few fun and easy suggestions for keeping your child occupied and making a few memories along the way too! These are just a few simple, tried-and-true things to do with kids – at home and out and about.
Suggestion 1: Try a Kindermusik class!
Of course we couldn’t resist a small plug here! But we happen to think that Kindermusik classes are one of the very best things you can do with – and for! – your child newborn to 7 years. Not only do you get to enjoy a weekly class together, but you also receive Home Materials (now available digitally!) that help you enjoy and extend your Kindermusik experience at home throughout the week. With Kindermusik @Home, you can take your Kindermusik with you wherever you go!
Sign up for a free Preview Class here.
If you’re already enrolled in Kindermusik and need a little extra inspiration, take some time to explore the myriad of downloadable activities and music at play.Kindermusik.com – a great music app for kids AND their parents!
Suggestion 2: Sing a song and play along.
For example, remember the song “Hickory, Dickory, Dock” from your childhood? With a simple song like “Hickory, Dickory” as your inspiration, you can explore the sounds that different materials make when struck together. Try familiar materials such as wooden blocks, pots and pans, and cardboard tubes. Which sounds most closely mimic the ticking of a clock? Kids of all ages will also enjoy accompanying themselves with simple rhythm instruments while they sing.
Suggestion 3: Create some cool art.
Here’s a three-ingredient recipe for Pretty Puffy Snow. You will need 1 cup flour, 1 cup salt, and 1 cup water. Mix all ingredients and place the mixture in a squeeze bottle (try recycling an empty honey bottle or mustard container). Draw a wintery scene on a piece of stiff paper, then squeeze on your puffy “snow” for some really cool 3-D highlights.
By the way, art projects are always more enriching and more inspired when you’re playing a little music in the background… or when you choose this for one of your family activities!
Suggestion 4: Try these learning games for kids. (And get a sneak peek at one of the fabulous ideas available exclusively through Kindermusik @Home!)

Here’s a free music learning game that’s perfect for toddlers, but fun for all ages too: Finding Family

This adorable “get up and move” activity from Kindermusik provides opportunities for toddlers to be active, to engage in looking-and-finding, to follow directional cues (e.g. ‘under’, ‘behind’, ‘up’), and to identify (and open conversation-opportunities about) family members.

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