Good Morning! Today is Wednesday and I begin with a heartfelt THANK YOU to every family who welcomes us into their homes via zoom for Music Together with Music and Me classes. You see, for me, and I know Nini, Dulce, Adrienne, Joy, and Alexandra agree, we take the curriculum of MUSICAL PLAY very seriously.  Yes, the Bongos song collection is based in INFORMAL music and movement education because that is developmentally appropriate, and it is also very DELIBERATE! Deliberately fun, deliberately based on the modelling and engagement of primary caregivers, encourages free movement, and literally helps build pathways in your child's brain on which information may then travel.  

I see it in your child's eyes, I see it in their movements, I hear it in their voices. 

You see it too! So, what to look for? What is a musical behaviour?  Look at how their bodies move to the music, listen for when they sing the resting tone. Play with them musically throughout your day.

Your child's rhythmic development and tonal development, are uniquely their own.  You, are actively nurturing that development towards - basic music competence, the ability to sing in tune with accurate rhythm, every time you make music with them.  I encourage you to read chapter 3, Music and Your Child, A Guide for Parents and Caregivers by Kenneth K. Guilmartin and Lili M. Levinowitz, Ph.D. You already have this book if you have been taking our classes.

Today, after class, a Mom stayed on Zoom to talk to Dulce and me about how their child started to match the slower rhythm of the lullaby in class with their gentler sway side to side, while holding their shakers.  Brava to Mom for noticing and recognizing that that is a major milestone in the shift of rhythmic development that happens separately from tonal development.  It is thrilling to behold.  It is organic. Your child initially is stimulated and excited by music which is the the time you may first notice their characteristic gesture. Do they bounce, move their arms, bop their head, kick their legs, shake their torso? Rhythmic development will then reveal itself  as your child moves more in time to the music for part of the song, or are able to feel the tempo and slow down or speed up. That is the beginning of feeling rhythm.  During class notice all the different ways we help you support your child's rhythmic development through your actions!

What is your child's characteristic gesture? Thank you. ~Wendy