We have had such a wonderful semester! I hope you had as much fun as we have! What great groups of little ones we have! (The cutest classes on campus for sure!). Our time together always goes so fast. It is so fun to see how the little ones grow and change throughout the semester! Such wonderful progress has been made!
Here are some fun memories from this semester! Practice these at home this summer!
1. TALL AS A TREE!Tall as a Tree! (Stand up tall, arms up...tip toes if possible!)
Wide as a House! (Arms out wide, feet spread wide!)
Thin as a Pin! (Arms and Legs together)
Small as a Mouse! (crouch down low...pretend to eat cheese!)---Did you know that when we do our balancing squat (like the mouse eating cheese) we are working on our developing VESTIBULAR SYSTEM? This is the inner sense of balance. Kiddos should balance on the balls of their feet, fannies off the floor, knees out front. We pretend to eat the cheese to get their hands off the floor, increasing the balance on their feet!
Tall As a Tree!!
(Some are even going for the yoga pose, "tree" by balancing on one foot! Bravo!!)
Wide as a HOUSE!!
(Some are even going for the yoga pose, "warrior" by lunging to one side and twisting at the waist! So cool!!)
Thin as a PIN!!
(Some are even going for the yoga pose, "mountain" by grounding the feet to the floor and pressing palms together. Way to go!!)
Small as a MOUSE!! (Some are even going for the yoga pose, "rock" by curling up on the ground, face down. Awwww, so cute!!)
2. ROLY POLY!
Roly Poly Roly Poly UP UP UP! (Arms UP HIGH!)
Roly Poly Roly Poly OUT OUT OUT! (Arms out WIDE)
Roly Poly Roly Poly CLAP CLAP CLAP! (Clap 3x)
Roly Poly Roly Poly Lay them in your LAP! (Quietly rest hands in lap)
3. The MORNING SONG (do it at home with various stuffed animals or even the animals in a picture book!)
When DOGS get up in the morning, they always say good day!
When DOGS get up in the morning, they always say good day!
WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! That is what they say, they say!
WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! That is what they say!
When DOGS get up in the morning, they always say good day!
WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! That is what they say, they say!
WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! That is what they say!
****Then switch to a different animal!
Did you know---Making animal noises help little learners to make lots of phonemes (individual sounds) needed for proper pronounciation and articulation of speech! Varying the pitch--like "me---ow!" and doing high sounds of the mouse, and low sounds of the cow help with inflection!
4. LENTO and RAPIDO
Tip: Use the words at home to do different things SLOWLY and QUICKLY! A game my own kids made up using these words during bathtime is they run their hands through the water smoothly and slowly saying "Lento, Lento" and then they go crazy splashing saying "Rapido, Rapido, Rapido!" (They think this is a riot).
In class we used our ribbon wands to watch LENTO and RAPIDO in action! Keep practicing these new words at home!
5. Bouncy Ball FUN!
Bouncing on the bouncy balls is not only fun, it is also working on two important things---Developing the "vestibular system"--the inner sense of balance, and also FEELING the steady beat in music! Before kids can hear the beat, they can FEEL the beat. This is such an important basic musical skill that is the basis for every other musical skill!
In class we also used our bouncy balls to feel SMOOTH (called "legato" in music) and BUMPY (called "staccato" in music)! They swayed to the legato parts and bounced to the staccato parts! Good listening skills!
6. Oopsie Daisy!
Using the hoops was a fun way to do Oopsie Daisy! We went round and round on "Oopsie Daisy Fiddle-Dee-Dee" and we held hoops up HIGH on "Fiddle-de-high!" and LOW on "Fiddle-de-low!" The kids had fun dancing with moms and dads and even grandmas and grandpas! You can continue to sing this song holding hands and holding hand up high and down low!
7. Circle Dances: "Go Round the Mountain" and "Sonata For Flute" (a.k.a. "The Flower Dance")
It is fun to join together for a circle dance! We loved moving in different ways in our circle dance songs. We walked, ran, stomped, tip-toed, crouched down low, went up high, traveled in curvy and straight pathways, and varied our tempo, going fast and slow! WOW! So many ways to move!!
8. Instrument Play Alongs!
We have been using eggs, jingles, rhythm sticks, and drums to pat out the beat during our songs. The kids hear, feel, and CREATE that rhythmic, repetitive beat! Feeling the beat is the base of all musical activities, but did you know that having experiences with hearing and feeling a steady beat will help with walking, dribbling a ball, and even cutting with scissors? It all starts with a good steady beat!
We added a little difficulty to our drumming by doing the poem, "Loud Sounds/Soft Sounds". In this poem, we drummed loudly or softly to the words of the poem. When we said, "Now Let's STOP!" we had to STOP and Wait.....sssshhhhhhh! They did such a great job using their "INHIBITORY CONTROL" to stop and wait, doing such a great job of following directions!! :) Very impressive!
9. Goodbye Rituals!
We ended our classes each week with some kind of celebration! Whether it was our "golf game", boucy balls, parachute, or bubbles, we love to end with fun! And a music stamp and our special goodbye song where we wave, shake hands and give hugs is our special way to say goodbye!
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| The Parachute! |
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| Bubbles! |
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| Showing Mom his "Music Stamp!" |
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| Shaking Hands Goodbye |
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| Giving Hugs Goodbye! |
Thank you for a wonderful semester! We have enjoyed your little ones so very much! Please join us again this summer (starting June 20) or fall (starting August 6) for more fun and learning with music! If you haven't reserved your spot in class, I encourage you to do so. It is a small deposit, and will ensure you get the spot you want in class. Don't miss out!
Click here for Summer registration link: Summer Registration Link
Click here for Fall registration link: Fall Registration Link
Have a great break! We will miss you!
