A New Year's Wish by Miss Sunny

Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us. ~Hal Borland

In a classroom of Kindermusik babies, toddlers, sisters and brothers,
we've created a musical learning experience like no other.
It has been my privilege to partner with each Kindermusik family,
to be in the company of each child and to witness her amazing growth and development.
Your committment to your child's early education,
highlights your beliefs, values and personal dedication.
As the New Year approaches and brings forth a new resolution,
my New Year's wish is that we may continue to delight in the celebration of each child's unique expression.
I look forward to building upon the wisdom and experience we've gained together,
so we may lovingly support our children's full learning potential and musical exploration.

A warm Musikandmotion thank you for your support in 2006. Happy, healthy and harmonious New Year, Kindermusik families!

What is Music?

Author Unknown

Music is a Science.
It is exact, it is specific and it demands exact acoustics. A conductor's score is a chart, a graph which indicates frequencies, intensities, volume changes, melody and harmony all at once and with the most exact control of time.

Music is mathematical.
It is rhythmically based on the subdivisions of time into fractions which must be done instantaneously, not worked out on paper.

Music is a Foreign Language.
Most of the terms are in Italian, German or French; and the notation is certainly not English - but a highly-developed kind of shorthand that uses symbols to represent ideas. The semantics of music is the most complete and universal language.

Music is Physical Education.
It requires fantastic coordination of fingers, hands, arms, lip, cheeks and facial muscles in addition to extraordinary control of the diaphragmatic, back and stomach muscles, which respond instantly to the sound the ear hears and the mind interprets.

Music is all these things, but most of all,

MUSIC IS ART.
It allows the human being to take all these dry, technically boring(but difficult) techniques and use them to create emotion. This one thing science cannot duplicate: humanism, feeling emotion, call it what you will.

That is why we teach music!
Not because we expect you to major in music.
Not because we expect you to play or sing all your life.
But, so you will be human, so you will recognize beauty, so you will be closer to God beyond this world, so you will have something to cling to, so you will have more love, more compassion, more gentleness, more good - in short more life.

Lullabies are Love Songs

There's something sacred and ceremonial about nighttime rituals, and our children thrive on rituals. Whether your child is the one who refuses to give way to bedtime or is the one who cooperatively welcomes it, the time you spend with your child just before she falls asleep is a bittersweet one. There's a sense of a day's work done as you lovingly tuck her in at night. And at the same time, there's hope for tomorrow as your child experiences yet a new day's growth, development and learning.

As you tuck your child in tonight, I hope you'll take advantage of the bonding experience of nighttime rituals, and include singing a song or two of lullabies from your Kindermusik CD collection.

"I believe it is important for us to reflect upon the value of singing before sleeping. Giving children a rhythmic, regular organisation to their day, then bringing them to the threshold of the night with songs that carry a lilting rhythm within their melodies, sets the stage for healthy, peaceful sleep. In addition to the harmonising effect that all rhythm and singing has on our physiological processes, a softly sung, love-filled lullaby supports a child emotionally, helping him or her toward balance and peace," Michaela Glöckler, M. D.

If you'd like to read more of what Dr. Glöckler has to share, you can read the full article here: Lullabies are Love Songs. It's beautifully written and presents some interesting perspectives on the phsiological and emotional benefits of singing lullabies to our children, including the "positive influence of music, especially the music of Bach and Mozart, upon brain development, health and intelligence."

Happy dreaming!

A Kindermusik Child’s Wish List by Miss Sunny

"I learn best when I can feel, see, and hear things. Can you make that sound again and label it for me? Though I can’t make that sound yet, my brain is making important connections because of it! What I love most is when you sing, dance and rock with me. I feel safe when I can feel your heartbeat and hear your sweet voice." I am a Village Baby.

"I learn best when I can watch, listen and imitate you. Can you make that sound again so I can copy you? Though I like to explore on my own, I need you close by. What I love most is when you encourage me to try things on my own and celebrate what I can do. I feel happy when I can listen and sing my favorite songs over and over." I am an Our Time Toddler.

"I learn best when I can talk about what I see, feel, hear and experience. Can you listen to the sounds I make and copy me? Though I love to pretend play and make believe, I need you to explain what is and isn’t real. I feel confident when I can experiment on my own without being right or wrong." I am an Imagine That! Preschooler.

"I learn best when I can think, create and make things happen! Can you tell me what you think of the sounds I make? Though I love to practice on my own, I need you to encourage and motivate me when I feel discouraged. I feel special when I can contribute to my group and be a part of an ensemble." I am a Young Child.

Wishing you Happy Holidays!!!

When's the best time for my child's private instrumental lessons?

Are you ready for the answer? According to Liza N. Burby of Parenting.com, October 2000, the best time for private instrumental lessons is between ages 7 to 9 years when children have better control over those fine motor skills, are able to sit, concentrate and practice for a longer periods of time and can process information more abstractly. In the meantime, Lewis P. Lipsitt, Ph.D., research professor of psychology at Brown University recommends that parents, "foster your youngster's music appreciation by exposing him to live and recorded music. If your child likes listening to music or singing, present the lessons as an extension of the fun he or she already has with music."

Zoltan Kodaly, the famous Hungarian composer, was quoted: To teach a child an instrument without first giving him preparatory training and without developing singing, reading and dictating to the highest level along with the playing is to build upon sand.

Hmm, sounds a lot like the Kindermusik philosophy, doesn't it?

You can read the full article here: Parenting.com

Rock-a-Bye Bilibo Babies

Kindermusik Village babies rocking at Musikandmotion!!! Aren't they precious?

Shelley's Sweet Cornbread

Here's Shelley's killer cornbread (sweet) recipe she shared with us at Family Kindermusik Night last Saturday!

3 eggs
1 1/2 cup milk (I used nonfat milk but any milk is fine)
1 cup + 2 Tbsp butter (melted in microwave)
3 cups Bisquick
1 1/2 cup sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
3 heaping Tbsp cornmeal

Beat eggs, milk and melted butter with a whisk until mixed together.
Mix all dry ingredients then add to liquid. Fold in until just mixed.
Pour into greased 9 X 13 glass baking pan.
Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

Enjoy!

Shelley Williams
Saturday's Our Time: Milk & Cookies

P.S. Thank you to all the families who shared their family recipes for the Milk & Cookies Family Recipe Book. Our Time families will receive a copy just in time for the holiday dinner parties and festivities!!!

Kindermusik Family Time

Family Kindermusik Night 12/9/06

Ever consider Kindermusik Family Time for your only child or baby? Last two Saturday evenings, our Kindermusik room filled with such incredible energy and richness in musical and learning experience afforded only by the diverse age groups and developmental levels of children from babies to 5 years old! In this multi-age setting, the older children instinctively and gently slowed their pace to accommodate the younger "siblings" in class. The babies and young toddlers naturally took cues from their older "siblings" and played harder and bolder!

About a year ago, Kindermusik came out with a program specifically designed for families with multiple siblings. This was in stark contrast to the past 30 years of curriculum design for four developmentally targeted programs: Village, Our Time, Imagine That! and Young Child. Having now offered Family Time this fall semester and having had many visitors come to make up a class or preview the class, I'm noticing that Kindermusik Family Time isn't just for families with multiple siblings. It's actually a fantastic program and place for families who want to introduce their first born or only child to other children in a "family" setting with music, movement and fun in mind!

Won't you consider joining our Kindermusik Family Time this spring 2007 semester? Your child will have lots of Kindermusik brothers and sisters to sing, dance and play with!

Family Time is offered every Fridays at 10:15am at Musikandmotion with Miss Sunny!

Together in Harmony with Bach

Thank you Merri Williams, Kindermusik educator in Decatur, GA for sharing this great techno-musical tool-- Songspot is awesome! I'm going to have loads of fun with this!!!

The Staying Power of Kindermusik

Family Kindermusik Night 12/2/06

As we celebrate and begin to wrap up our fall semester of Village Dream Pillow, Our Time Milk & Cookies, Imagine That! Hello Weather, and Family Time Our Kind of Day, please consider yet another reason why you should continue your child's Kindermusik experience at Musikandmotion in spring 2007!

The following experiment was lead by Adam Winsler, Ph.D, and Lesley Ducenne at George Mason University on the effects of repeated vs. sporadic participation in Kindermusik on children ages 3-5. Here's what the researchers found:

The longer you stay in Kindermusik, the better.

· Children currently enrolled in Kindermusik showed higher levels of self-control than those never enrolled and those previously enrolled. …This suggests that in order for children to reap the benefit of increased self-control as a result of Kindermusik participation, it is important to have repeated and recent Kindermusik experiences and remain enrolled in the program.

· Four-year-old children who had been exposed to Kindermusik for longer periods of time are better off in terms of self-control—namely a child’s ability to plan, guide, and control their own behavior—than similar children with less Kindermusik history.

· These experiences, stop-go, high-low, fast-slow, short-long, and loud-soft, whereby children’s motor behavior is guided by the music, appear to be good exercise for young children’s emerging self-regulatory skills.

Editor’s note:

Study results were made available to Kindermusik in May, 2005. The study was conducted by Adam Winsler Ph.D and graduate student Lesley Ducenne in the Department of Psychology at George Mason University.

Kudos to Lori Burhart (you can read her full article) and Beth Frook (whose class was the subject of the study) for sharing the information with your fellow Kindermusik educators and families!

Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra

I'm so excited to share that last week, I auditioned for The Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra (SCSO) with Dr. Donald Kendrick, and was accepted as a soprano 1 singer! I start rehearsing with this highly dedicated and talented choral group next month in January-- I must admit that singing weekly in our Kindermuisk classes has helped me tremendously as I did not have any time to prepare for the audition. From part singing and ear training (Our Time: Milk & Cookies song!) to sight reading music (Young Child!) and singing expressively (vocal play in Village), I was practicing even when I didn't know it!

The award-winning Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra will hold in its 11th annual Home for the Holidays concert performance this Sunday, December 10th, 2006 at the Mondavi Center. I will be there in the audience to cheer them on, but come next March and I will be singing with them in Verdi Requiem and in May, A Broadway Salute-- I can't wait!!!

Bach and Baby

This week in class, as Village moms and babies joyfully dance in and out of our colorful maypole, consider that the guitar, flute and harpsichord piece (Gavotte in G) that accomanpies our social dance was composed during the Baroque period in the early 1700's by J.S. Bach.

Johann Sebastian Bach is herald as one of the most complex and dramatic composers of our times. In fact, Rebecca Shore, Ed.D., author of Baby Teacher, combines research and theory to present neurological benefits of Bach's music on the baby's brain. According to Shore, Bach is even better than Mozart in helping babies seek out patterns in music because of the mathematical nature of his composition. Bach is most famous for 'counterpoints'-- his gifted ability to compose more than one melody at once. Click here to find out more about how counterpoints work!

The jury may be out, and while I enjoy listening to Mozart, I love Bach and the Bourrée or Suites he composed particularly for the cello. Listening to Bach is like taking an emotive as well as a mental flight. You just want to go where he takes you and each time, it's a beautiful journey.

Hope you enjoy your dance with your baby this week!

Musically,
Miss Sunny
www.musikandmotion.com

If You Can Talk, You Can Sing

“If you can walk, you can dance. If you can talk, you can sing.” – A Zimbabwean proverb

Just as this ancient African proverb reminds us, as long as one has the vocal mechanisms and breadth support to articulate sounds and words, one is capable of singing a song. In fact babies in Kindermusik Village classes sing all the time! They spontaneously coo, babble or vocalize the “resting tone” which is typically the last note of the song they’ve just heard. Sometimes, these babies will sing one of the “resting tone chords,” (the third or fifth note from the resting tone) which means they are already harmonizing with us!

In Kindermusik, we nurture children's musical aptitude first and foremost by singing to and with our children. In fact, we specifically sing many songs a cappella (without instrumental or recording accompaniment). This practice is taken from the famous Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly’s strong belief that singing needs to be an integral component of a child’s early music education. He believed that in this way children can better internalize music while developing their musical ear, audiation (the ability to hear a song in one’s mind even when there’s no music playing), and tonal awareness which are essential components of music study and vocal training. After all, the human voice is the most natural, personal and accessible instrument as it provides a pure model for children to develop their own musical voice.

Here are Kodaly's basic philosophies taken from Kodaly (1882-1967):

1.All people capable of lingual literacy are also capable of musical literacy

2.Singing is the best foundation for musicianship

3.Music education to be most effective must begin with the very young child

4.The folk songs of a child’s own linguistic heritage constitute a musical mother tongue and should therefore be the vehicle for all early instruction

5.Only music of the highest artistic value, both folk and composed, should be used in teaching

6.Music should be at the heart of the curriculum, a core subject used as a basis for education

According to Kodaly himself, “it is the richness of both the musical experiences themselves and the memory of them that makes a good musician. Individual singing plus listening to music”… “develops the ear to such an extent that one understands music one has heard with much clarity as though one were looking at a score; if necessary—and if time permits—one should be able to reproduce such a score.” From Preface to Erzsebet Szony, Musical Reading and Writing (New York: Boosey and Hawkes, 1954), p. 8

Happy singing!

Musically, Miss Sunny
www.musikandmotion.com

Follow Me to Kindermusik

Thanks, for sharing Molly of i am Kindermusik!

Musically,
"Miss" Sunny
Sunny Kira, M.A.
Licensed Kindermusik Educator
For class info, http://www.musikandmotion.com
For Do-Re-Me & You, http://www.drmy.net/sk/
916.419.6999