First Fall Classes at Minuet Studio

The Doors are Open!

 Last week we opened the studio doors for our Kindermusik Fall session.  I was amazed to see the changes that 3 ½ months had brought.  There were walking babies, pregnant mamas, preschoolers that have doubled in size,  and preschoolers who have doubled their vocabulary.  Some children had mellowed, while some came back with an extra bounce in their step (or jump, or run or tackle).  All of these changes went along very nicely with our studio focus for the week.

If you were in one of my classes, you may remembering me rambling on about the different areas of growth that our activities help to accelerate.  I made a point of mentioning that most children with or without Kindermusik will move on to acquire these skills.  For example, my daughter Amelia had her first Kindermusik class at age 4 1/2.  Was she already able to keep a steady beat?  Imitate sounds?  Dance with joy?   Yes.  Did she have a good sense of balance, special awareness, and her place in a group?  Yes.   Did she need Kindermusik to learn those skills?  No.  Most likely, musical instruction at this young age will not teach skills that will not be learned otherwise.  But, that doesn’t mean that it is not important.

It will, however, make learning age appropriate skills easier and less stressful.  By using song, movement and sound awareness, children are able to accelerate the rate of learning of skills.  This is important not because we should push our children to be at the top of their preschool class.  Instead, it is important because it can relieve a great amount of frustration. 

We all know well that infants, toddlers and preschoolers are easily frustrated.   They are still learning how their bodies work.  Simple movements and concepts that have long been second nature for us can be very challenging for a child .  Having your child participate in activities like Kindermusik helps them to develop in a fun, safe. and loving way.  In addition, music itself reduced stress.  Practicing skills like rocking, snapping, jumping, skipping and communicating to music is a perfect fit. 

If your child is past the Kindermusik age, group musical instruction has many of the same benefits.  In case you haven’t seen the signs in the studio or in our literature, here are the areas of development that Kindermusik focuses on:

Musical Ability

Literacy

Movement

Social Interaction

Communication

Cognitive Development

As I was reminded this week, our children grow and develop at lightening speed.  As parents we do our best to support them.  I whole heartedly feel that Kindermusik classes can be a tremendous aid and resource as you both grow and learn together.  If you know of someone with a young child who would enjoy a Kindermusik class visit www.kindermusik .com for local class listings.  If you are in Tacoma, find me here:  www.minuetstudio.com.