Kindermusik and Your Child:
Spatial Awareness in Four Parts

Posted on October 24, 2012 by Kindermusik International

The four parts of spatial awareness are: 

• Distance
• Form (shape)
• Direction
• Position (in relationship to others)

How many of you absolutely LOVE GEOMETRY?  If you want your child to love it and be good at it, then you will love learning how for the first seven years of your child’s life, Kindermusik and you will be teaching spatial orientation skills through play.  Among other benefits, spatial awareness is the basis for success in Geometry and Higher Math.

Spatial awareness is the knowledge of where you are in relationship to other people and objects in your environment.  To develop spatial awareness, children learn concepts such as direction, distance and location.

In the Kindermusik classroom, a child with spatial awareness will understand that as she walks, hops, skips or jumps toward another person in the classroom, she is coming closer to that person.  She will be able to judge how much space she and her hoop require to navigate around the room without bumping into others.  Or she will be able to tap a woodblock or drum with a mallet.

Studies have suggested a link between a well-developed sense of spatial awareness and artistic creativity, success in math, and the development of abstract thought.  The ability to organize and classify abstract mental concepts is related to the ability to organize and classify objects in space.

The key to promoting spatial awareness in your child is to encourage and allow them to explore their surroundings.  And there’s no better way to inspire that spirit of exploration and learning than in the Kindermusik classroom!

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

The benefits of early music

 

 

The benefits of early music Learning and performing music strengthens the synapses between brain cells, positively impacting the sensory and perceptual systems, cognitive abilities, fine and gross muscle action and coordination, the motivation or pleasure system, and learning memory. Group music activities encourage social awareness, and learning and remembering a song's nuances or memorizing a piece for performance engages memory. Music performs all of these tasks in an atmosphere of enjoyment, enthusiasm, creativity, and participation--the four essential elements for optimal early educational development. Good pitch discrimination has long been shown to help children learn to read, as it helps with the critical process of sounding out words. Researchers report that children taught with games and songs at the preschool level tend to test higher in reading all the way up to age 15, and that an IQ advantage of 10-20 points has frequently been observed. Studies have shown that playing an instrument as a child literally makes the brain grow, with certain neural regions expanding through frequent use just as muscles develop through exercise...The corpus callosum is significantly larger in musicians--particularly among those who began music studies before age seven. Listening to music, making music alone and with others, moving to rhythmic sounds, and ideally participating in early childhood music-instruction programs will help guide your child through all areas of development. Music as an activity engages nearly all sectors of the brain, positively impacting childhood development, cognitive abilities, and brain function. Excerpted from Healing at the Speed of Sound by Don Campbell (also of The Mozart Effect) and Alex Doman

Kindermusik@Home
Enjoy the Fun & Learning Anytime!

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Kindermusik International

We are excited to announce our new product, Kindermusik@Home.

Extend the magic and learning of a Kindermusik class into your own home. Kindermusik@Home delivers your favorite Kindermusik songs and activities, music, books, and lyrics—as well as recipes, learning games for kids, crafts, and more in a green-friendly digital format.

See for yourself…

Kids (and parents) can interact with videos, printable activity pages, stories, music, games and more! The digital home materials are built specifically to make it fun and easy for parents to connect class-time to home-time, and to enrich both experiences. Access from your iPad, tablet, laptop, computer, or smartphone – and enjoy at home, or on-the-go.
Learn how Kindermusik@Home digital products are the Green Future for Kindermusik and support our mission to be a sustainable company.

Sneak-Peek of Kindermusik@Home

Want to see what it’s all about? Check out one of our new online learning games for kids. This sneak-preview is a memory game you can play with your children – and share with others!

Educational Activities for Kids include:

• Music downloads: songs, rhymes, stories and sounds from class
• Literature book in e-book format, flip through pages, turn audio on or off
• Activity buttons lead to a variety of different activity types
  • dance and movement instructions
  • fingerplay demonstrations and instructions
  • together-in-the-kitchen activities
  • music time
  • listening games
  • vocal play activities
  • video field trips
  • find-it/count-it style activities
  • ideas for pretend play
  • and more!
• The Why It’s Good for Your Child area provides parents info on why these educational activities for kids are useful, important, or developmentally significant.
• Download Center provides Printable Activity Pages and, for the first time, Printable Lyrics Pages for all of the songs in the unit.

Ask your local Kindermusik educator if these digital options are available to you!

Time flies when you're having fun in Kindermusik!  I can't believe this summer session is almost over.  We've been having a great time with Creatures in My Backyard  and Peekaboo I  Love You games.  Between all of that Shoo Fly and Island Paradise dancing, Alye and I are completely tuckered out!  

But before we lock the door for our break, we are giving you a chance to try a Kindermusik class for just $10.00!  Thursday, August 16 at 10:00am you and your friends are invited to join us for a trial class (un-enrolled families only, please)!  If you love the class and want to continue this fall, I will apply your $10.00 to September's tuition.  All participants will receive an child friendly instrument and 10 free songs to download from play.kindermusik.com.  Sign up for the class on my facebook page! (click here)  Space is limited to the first 8 families, but I'd be happy to need a second Playdate.  See you in class! 

Ready for some little friends!

There are still some tiny details to be worked out (I need a clock!) but I am SO READY for summer classes!!  My new and super fun GATHERING DRUMS came in today - look for pictures tomorrow -  and I can't wait to share them with you.  My kids have been playing on them like crazy people. 

If you haven't registered for a class yet, go ahead and do it now!  Who knows if a space will still be available tomorrow???

See you in class!

The Joys of Moving!

Wow!  Moving is hard work.  Forget the packing, loading, unloading and unpacking - it's the phone calls and running around town to get this and that accomplished that's wearing me out!  Today's agenda includes a trip to Woodway's city offices to pull a water permit and getting the yellow paint out of my hair.  Maybe not in that order!

Kindermusik Director of Education Featured in USA Today’s “Guide to Kids’ Health”

Carol Penney, Kindermusik's Director of Education

Carol Penney, Kindermusik International‘s Director of Education and Kindermusik educator for 30 years is featured this week in the USA Today “Guide to Kids’ Health” Summer 2012 issue in the article, “Music & Learning in Perfect Harmony” by Mara Gorman.

The article talks about why we should teach our children to love music and why playing music now means a higher GPA later. This is something we at Kindermusik have been known for 30+ years, prior to the first evidence supporting the benefits of music on cognitive development in young children, released only six years ago in 2006. This issue is near and dear to our hearts, being that our mission is to bring learning through music to children across the world, and is especially important as schools continue to cut back on arts & music program, leaving a hole in education that parents must fill. We wanted to share a recap of the article, along with some of our favorite quotes and features to bring attention to why music is one of the best learning methods for child development.

The article begins with a question:

“What if someone told you that from the moment your child was born, you could do something to improve her self-esteem, confidence, social skills, eye-hand coordination, and eventually her grade point average? Of course, you would sign up, maybe even if it meant extensive training or expense.”

As a parent, we all want to do what’s best for our children. As we at Kindermusik have known and the theme echoed throughout the piece: early and meaningful exposure to music in a family’s life is one of the best gifts we can give our children! As we discuss on this music education blog, early music exposure for children has infinite benefits. Kindermusik classes primarily focus on early childhood development – for children age newborn to seven. As research has shown,  the earlier we begin to share music with children, the better:

“Children are never too young to start experiencing music. In fact, the most fertile time for music learning is between birth and 5 years old.”

This guide also points out that being musically inclined is not a requirement to be able to incorporate music into your child’s life.  As parents, we can bang on pots & pans to a steady beat, play our favorite lullabies at bedtime or radio station for a dance party, have a good ol’ fashioned family jam session with homemade instruments, or try a Kindermusik class together! All of these things will set your child on the right path to early learning. The article suggests finding music classes in your area through programs like Kindermusik, citing the benefits of music. In class, we use instrument play, repetition, special songs for every day chores, soothing rituals, audiation,sign language, books, and more foundations of learning through music to give children the tools they need to develop cognitive, physical, and social skills.

“Music makes a great teaching tool. “Everyone knows their ABC’s because of the melody,” says Carol Penney, director of education for Kindermusik, a music education program. ”Traditional children’s songs are perfect learning devices for turning sounds into words and words into creative thoughts.”’

Here are some additional fun “Did you know?” moments from the article:

• Children who engage in musical activities from infancy end up with stronger literacy, language, and math skills. They also typically have higher SAT scores and are more likely to graduate from college.
• Studies show that early and consistent exposure to music improves children’s academic performance. The explanation lies in music’s ability to affect brain
  development.
• “Music education actually rewires the brain in the same area where you develop math, language, and spatial reasoning skills.” ~ Jill Todd, president, Music Intelligence Project
• Kindermusik classes use percussion instruments like the Japanese den-den drum, seen here, to encourage rhythm and movement.
• The top instruments for young children are: 1) Voice. 2) Percussion and 3) Keyboard. Many kids start lessons at 7 or 8, so look into a music education program if you think your child is ready for daily practice.

*All quotes in this post from Mara Gorman’s article in the USA Today Guide to Kid’s Health, Summer 2012 issue.