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Montessori Baby-Ed: Three Really Good Reasons For Making Music With Your Baby!

WHY DO BABIES NEED TO HEAR REAL LIVE MUSIC BEING MADE BY EVERYDAY PEOPLE? 



OKAY, WE KNOW THAT BABIES BENEFIT FROM EARLY MUSIC EXPERIENCES IN MANY WAYS.


Here are some reasons cited in an article from PBS Parents: "The Benefits of Music Education"

  • Provides auditory stimulation that leads to auditory discrimination skills
  • Fosters language development
  • Increases spatial intelligence (necessary for math/engineering tasks)
  • Nurtures the aesthetic sense
  • Sharpens memory abilities
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE AGE-OLD BENEFIT OF A SWEET SONG FOR SOOTHING A FUSSY BABY!

REASON #1. Singing and playing music for your baby can be calming for your little one!


Check out this darling little video of "Baby Ivy" being charmed by Elizabeth Mitchell's lovely singing. Youtube "Ivy Loves Elizabeth Mitchell."






Listening to a beloved family member simply singing and playing sweetly can calm an upset infant and also give the infant a boost in brainpower as well! 


Amanda Cuartas is a wonderful mom from one of the families that has been collaborating with me on my upcoming Montessori Baby-Ed eCourse. She tells me that her little one is not only "soothed" when he hears her play the mbira, but he is also stimulated by his big brother's musical entertainment. Amanda says that her baby just wiggles with joy when his big brother plays or sings for him!


REASON #2. Singing and playing music for your baby can stimulate baby's sensory learning and motor development! 


Check out this fun little video I just recently published that features Amanda's family making music for their baby. Here is the link: Youtube Montessori Baby-Ed and Making Music with Your Baby


 


Did you notice the little voice in the above "Three Little Birds" video ("Ivy loves  Elizabeth Mitchell") that was echoing the chorus? That little voice belongs to Story, Elizabeth's daughter, who has been playing and singing with her parents since babyhood. 


REASON #3. Singing and playing music with your baby can contribute to your little one's development of musical skills!


In the video below, you can see Story when she was a little older and performing "Three Little Birds" on stage with her parents.  Here's the link: Youtube "3 Little Birds" Elizabeth Mitchell



And, in the video below, you can see Story more recently performing a Bill Monroe bluegrass song, "Walls of Time", with her parents. This time Story is singing the high harmony in a challenging bluegrass standard. Making music with her family is something Story is very comfortable with...from babyhood! Here is the link: Youtube Elizabeth Mitchell Walls of Time.




There's another wonderful reason to make music with your baby...sort of a BONUS REASON...


REASON #4 It's just about the best family fun ever!


Yes, actually, there are 4 really good reasons here for making music with your baby. 


Making music with your baby is an important part of the curriculum I present in my upcoming Montessori Baby-Ed eCourse. Here is that link if you would like to get on the wait list: Montessori Baby-Ed at Magical Movement Company.com.





In my opinion, there are gazillions of really good reasons for making music with your baby. What are your reasons? 


I would love to hear them, so feel free to leave a comment at the end of this article!


This post is one of many wonderful Montessori articles and resources at the Montessori Monday Link-up at Living Montessori Now. 



Advertising Disclosure: Magical Movement Company may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. Thanks for your support!







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Artfully Montessori: Having Fun With Dots And The Study of Yayoi Kusama

MONTESSORI CHILDREN TAKE THE FUN OF ART SERIOUSLY! How about an "interview" with a famous artist, complete with paint palette, beret and microphone!


Last week when I was teaching music in one of the Montessori preschool classrooms, I discovered a famous artist that I wasn't acquainted with: Yayoi Kusama. This group had been studying about the artist and had a display of their own art work based on Kusama's art style. As you can see from the youtube video below, the artist is obsessed with polka dots...what could be more appealing to young children! 



This Montessori group has really been having fun creating their own dot art after learning about Yayoi's work:








This study of Yayoi Kusama reminded me of one of the favorite activities I learned during my AMS training, many years ago. Sarah Zimmerman, who is an icon in the "Montessori world" of the San Francisco Bay Area, is also one of my mentors and I am so fortunate to have studied with her!

She taught me the following activity.

"INTERVIEW" WITH A FAMOUS ARTIST
  • After introducing the children to a new artist (or composer!) you can conduct an "interview" with the artist. You will need to explain to the children what an interview is! 
  • I like to use a toy microphone and have the child dress up with an artist's beret or some sheet music if s/he is a famous composer.
  • Next, I ask the child a question that can be answered with a "Yes" or "No"
  • For Yayoi Kusama it might go something like this:
Me: "Today, I am here interviewing the famous artist, Yayoi Kusama. Yayoi, is it true you love polka dots?"

Child: "Yes."

Me: "Were you born in the United States?"

Child: "No."

Me: "Were you born in Japan?" 

Child: "Yes."

Me: "Did you make your first dot picture when you were 10 yrs old?"

Child: "Yes."

Me: "Do you like to paint polka dots on everything?"

Child: "Yes."

Me: "Do you like to paint with water colors?"

Child: "Yes."

Me: "What is your favorite color?"

Child: (This answer can be left up to the child!)

Me: "Thank you very much for this interview, Yayoi."

Child: "Your welcome."

I have offered this lesson, often, to my groups when I was a teacher in the Montessori classroom and I always started out with one of the older children playing the role of the famous artist. 

You can also "role play" the interview, first with your co-teacher, then with a child volunteer. 

Later, you can set up the microphone and props (artist's beret, etc) in a basket and place it on the shelf for the children to work with during work time.

My groups have always had a lot of fun with this activity and learned a little about the artist too!


You can read more about Yayoi at this link: Wikipedia






It's wonderful to have you visiting my blog today and I hope you found something interesting to offer your own group!

My article is part of a wonderful linkup at Living Montessori Now where you'll find lots of resources and many are free! Here is that link: Montessori Monday.



Advertising Disclosure: Magical Movement Company may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. Thanks for your support!
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Let's Explore "Presto" from Musically Montessori eCourses!

IF YOU WANT TO OFFER A REALLY FUN MUSIC LEARNING EXPERIENCE TO YOUR GROUP, WATCH MY VIDEO FOR LOTS OF IDEAS FROM MUSICALLY MONTESSORI eCOURSES LESSON #7!

Recently, my thirty groups of Montessori Music Classes have all really enjoyed learning about the concept of "Presto", especially with the fast and fun music from Rimsky-Korsakov that you'll hear in the following video. Here's a little glimpse of what we've been up to musically! Click to see my newest little video: " 'Presto' from Musically Montessori eCourses" 




I hope you are enjoying my "Vlog" posts lately, and I always love to hear what you are doing musically with your children, so please feel free to leave a comment, too!

Speaking of "Vlog" posts, I know you will enjoy the Montessori Monday Linkup that I just added this post to...where you will find lots of Montessori resources, videos, and articles from around the world! Here is that link: Living Montessori Now.


Advertising Disclosure: Magical Movement Company may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. Thanks for your support!



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Musically Montessori: Let's Play the "Sunflower" Musical Scale Game!

WANT A GUARANTEED SUCCESS IN YOUR PRESCHOOL MUSIC CIRCLE? I'VE CREATED A LITTLE VIDEO OF ONE OF THE ALL-TIME FAVORITES FROM THE MONTESSORI MUSIC ROOM!


"THE CYCLE OF THE SUNFLOWER"  


We've been so enjoying this activity in my Montessori music classes throughout the week! Here is a little excerpt from Kiran's Montessori Preschool featuring Lesson #6 from my eCourse, Musically Montessori: First Twelve Weeks.  



In the video, I demonstrate the activity using an Orff-Schulwerk style glockenspiel. However, in the Montessori classroom, you can use the lovely Montessori brass bells.

It may be a bit of a surprise to hear that even my Kindergarteners through Lower Elementary groups enjoy this sweet little musical scale activity! With the older groups, one of the children actually played up and down the Glockenspiel and the other children sang with me. 

Of course, the younger groups (even the 2 yr olds) responded with: "Again!" 

Later in the lesson, we played bells and moved them upwards while singing up the scale and then downwards while singing down the scale.



Would you like to learn more about setting up your Montessori Music Curriculum for young children? 

Please visit  my eCourse site at this link: Musically Montessori "First Twelve Weeks". 

I'd love for you to join me, along with Montessori educators from all over the world, who are having fun with music in their groups and learning a lot, too!



Not only will you have 12 weeks of lesson videos, printables, and lesson plans at your finger tips, you will also have the wonderful mp3 downloads from Classical Fun SingAlongs that are an exclusive just for the students in this eCourse!

Looking forward to singing and playing music with you!

This article is part of the Montessori Monday Link-up at the Living Montessori Now site, where you'll find resources from Montessori educators all over the world! 

Advertising Disclosure: Magical Movement Company may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. Thanks for your support!



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Montessori People, You Do Make Music and The Arts An Everyday Happening!

CALLING ALL MONTESSORI EDUCATORS...HOW ABOUT THE "ART" OF LEARNING AS AN EVERYDAY OCCURRENCE?


We all believe that Montessori is just about the best environment for children to learn how to read, how to scrub a table, how to creatively solve problems, how to build math equations...the list goes on! 

Have you ever reflected upon how much your Montessori children develop the "artful life" by merely experiencing the Montessori prepared environment? 

It's full of art in its many forms!

Here is a pictorial slice of the "artful life" that I observed the other day in the lower elementary group classroom where I teach music on Friday afternoons.  Most of the children in this program have been in the Montessori environment since their Preschool years...what a rich experience!     













This is the same Montessori classroom group that I have written about before. They've not only learned how to "write music", "paint like Picasso", and "garden like a pro"...they've also gotten really good at cooking Korean food, doing yoga, and simply enjoying life in their classroom. 

That is what I call an "artful life!"
"The environment must be rich in motives which lend interest to activity and invite the child to conduct his own experiences." Maria Montessori from The Secret of Childhood
I am sure that you have many examples of the "artful life" in your Montessori group, and I would love to hear about them. Please leave a comment or two and tell us about them, so we can all be artfully inspired even more! 

This article is part of the Montessori Monday Linkup at Living Montessori Now, where you'll find an amazing array of Montessori resources from Montessorians all over the world!

Advertising Disclosure: Magical Movement Company may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. Thanks for your support!
















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