We all benefit from music in our lives. If we are exposed to music and given the opportunity to explore than no note will be out of reach. Just as a child needs to be exposed to books for literacy, children need to be exposed to live music to play it, enjoy it and try it.
Music education is similar to other early childhood classroom curriculum, it must be joyful and playful. Children play to make sense of their environment, the world they are socialized into and through play children begin to understand how they influence it.
Children need to be able to move their bodies -- and the Recess playspace is a great place to do so. It is important to allow children to feel the rhythm of each song or chant and feel the beats in their bodies. All of the activities she leads include fine and gross motor activities that are both suggested and guided.
Musical classes assist in the development of all of the developmental domains as well as overall health and wellness. Music is calming, relaxing and soothing to any soul no matter the age. During music class children utilize cognitive and language skills whenever they listen to song lyrics and repeat them back. If given a shaker and asked to repeat back a rhythm children must listen and count the beats to copy the rhythm.
When in class with others, children have an opportunity to practice using social/ emotional skills to wait for their turn to dance in the middle of the circle, or to add a silly word to a song or to bring a movement idea to the group, as well as when the classroom group sings together to create a beautiful melody.
Children use physical skills to do gross motor activities like hopping, jumping, stomping, twisting, etc as well as using fine motor muscles to hold a shaker, to hold hands, or to copy small body movements. Children will be active participants!
Mega Bloom began working with young children as a Naturalist ten years ago. Over the past decade, Mega has held many positions in various teaching environments from outside the classroom, teaching in gardens and the forest teaching environmental science to most recently teaching in early childhood education classrooms. Mega has taught toddlers and preschool aged children for the past three years in Oakland, California. When interacting with young children, Mega takes notice of each child's individuality and emphasizes their creative strengths. Mega loves to facilitate music and movement activities with young children!
Hope to see you and your children for the first class March 16th!
Free for Anytime members - Included in Day Passes
