Wednesday, February 26, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #8

Sound Beginnings curriculum consists primarily of American folk songs and chants, nostalgic songs, nursery rhymes, and well-known classical pieces. You likely recognized a few of the songs or rhymes on our album!

Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Ten Little Pennies
• Hey! Hey! Look At Me!
• DO Pentatonic Scale
• My Little Rooster
• To Market
• Zoodeo
• Count Your Blessings

Tuition is due next week, and March is SPIRIT MONTH! We'll have lots of prizes you can win by showing your class spirit! (See the separate email with details.) 

1st Year Registration & Enrollment
If you have a child you want to go through 1st year and aren't on my waiting list, or you know someone who wants to do Let's Play Music, email back and let me know their name and email address so they can get registered ASAP. After next week I'll open registration up to the general public.

Enrollment for next fall begins this SATURDAY at NOON! There is a $20 registration fee, but you won't need to pay it if you register by March 28th! (You can earn 10 extra tickets for the Spirit Month drawing by registering before March 15th!)

Folk music is rich in history and became an informal way to pass on traditions, commemorate personal or communal events, and bond communities. Because it originated with common folk, untrained in the musical arts, it’s melodies are easy to learn and sing. By incorporating folk music into the curriculum, Sound Beginnings is keeping tradition alive and helping preserve the stories of those that came before us. It is believed that the tradition of reciting nursery rhymes began for similar reasons, an oral tradition meant to preserve and pass on stories. Our use of them in class promotes listening to speech patterns, understanding rhyming words, increased vocabulary, and preparation for further literacy skills.

Optional home fun activity: Color the ‘Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks’ on page 16            
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

While this isn't actually one of our semester instruments, I think this is a very fun video of playing rocks. Yes, I said rocks. The instrument is called a Lithophone and it is similar to the xylophone, but made from rocks, rather than wood! If you would like to see the difference between other barred percussion instruments, here's a link to some good info!

Sound Beginnings is education through musical play! It prepares children for success in Kindergarten and Let’s Play Music. Sound beginnings provides research-based elements that stimulate growth in the areas particularly crucial to the development of the young child. These elements make up the foundation of the Sound Beginnings curriculum.  Here is just one:
	A child learns when he or she feels loved. In class, purposeful touching, eye contact, partner activities, and generational nostalgia help develop the all-important parent/child relationship.

Have a musical day!          
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, February 19, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #7

Play is powerful! Research shows that play is the most effective pathway to learning. Playing feels natural and safe to children because:

• failure is not a deterrent to trying again
  
• there is ample time to problem solve through testing and evaluation
  
• repetition is encouraged and expected
  
• it engages the body and the brain
  
• playing is joyful!

Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Let's Count Our Money
• DO Pentatonic Scale
• Hey! Hey! Look At Me!
• How Much is that Doggie in the Window?
• Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks
• To Market
• Polly Wolly Doodle
• Zoodeo
• Count Your Blessings

Registration for next fall begins IN JUST A COUPLE WEEKS! You’ll want to get your registration complete quickly because classes fill up fast! I want to make sure you have the class time that works best for you. If you have not filled out the survey for when you can do classes next year, PLEASE do that as soon as you can:
https://forms.gle/sTUmc4MuPGf9NBAo7

I'm planning to teach a 2 week summer session of Sound Beginnings May 12th-22nd, Monday-Thursday. Help me decide which class I should teach, whether you sign up for one or not: https://forms.gle/Z5zcFJVwSx88Gwdz9 

Pointing to the beat mat, using the body, and playing simple instruments give children numerous opportunities to experience the steady beat in a piece of music. Learning to feel and keep a steady beat is an important part of musicianship. It has also been shown to have a positive impact on foundational mathematics concepts, early literacy skills and fine- and gross-motor skills. So, keep on keeping the beat!

Optional home fun activity: Make the ‘To Market’ cutouts on page 27             
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Here's a different (fast) version of our Zoodeo song. I dare you to try the dance with this one! :) Check out this video!

Sound Beginnings is education through musical play! It prepares children for success in Kindergarten and Let’s Play Music. Sound beginnings provides research-based elements that stimulate growth in the areas particularly crucial to the development of the young child. These elements make up the foundation of the Sound Beginnings curriculum.  Here is just one:
	Research has shown that singing improves reading. Our classes prepare children for kindergarten by exploring concepts and skills such as name recognition, alphabet and phonetic awareness, counting, identifying colors, rhyming, telling time, and sequencing.

Have a musical day!           
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, February 12, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #6

Sound Beginnings is built on the premise that everyone is capable of developing musical talent and that the early years are the perfect time to start building a musical skillset. The meaningful and purpose-filled class activities provide a foundation for further music study. Parents can foster a child’s musical development by participating in class, listening to the album at home, and encouraging children to explore other music experiences.

Next week we'll sing these in class:

• Ten Little Pennies
• Hey! Hey! Look At Me!
• DO Pentatonic Scale
• Little Turtle
• How Much is that Doggie in the Window?
• A Rum Sum Sum
• To Market
• Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks
• Zoodeo

The syllables and hand signs we use in class are part of a pitch-learning method called solfege. It is widely taught at all levels of music education and has numerous benefits. Learning solfege:

• strengthens pitch relationships and develops relative pitch
• improves sight singing abilities
• aids in transcribing (writing down) music
• improves improvisational and composition skills

Optional home fun activity: Use your paper coins for the sorting activity on page 4          
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Here's a different song about the value of coins. Check out this video!

Sound Beginnings is education through musical play! It prepares children for success in Kindergarten and Let’s Play Music. Sound beginnings provides research-based elements that stimulate growth in the areas particularly crucial to the development of the young child. These elements make up the foundation of the Sound Beginnings curriculum.  Here is just one:
	Peek into a Sound Beginnings class and you will see skipping, crawling, dancing, and jumping! Full body movement builds large muscle strength, hand-eye coordination, aids brain-hemisphere function, and develops balance in young children.

Have a musical day!        
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, February 5, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #5

In today’s busy world, Sound Beginnings provides an opportunity for meaningful interaction and purposeful connection with your child. As you laugh, play, hug, sing, and dance with your children, you are bonding them to music and nurturing a stronger relationship with you!

Next week we'll sing these in class:

• Let's Count Our Money
• Hey! Hey! Look At Me!
• DO Pentatonic Scale
• Little Turtle
• How Much is that Doggie in the Window?
• Polly Wolly Doodle
• Palo Palo
• Uno, Dos Tres
• Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks
• Hush Little Baby

This semester we will focus on the pentatonic scale. This scale is comprised of only 5 notes, and contains no semi-tones (or half steps). The absence of half steps makes it easier to sing in tune and produces music that is easily layered over many chords and other scales. Some consider the pentatonic scale a “universally pleasant sound” and a “naturally occurring phenomenon” because music based on this scale is found in virtually all parts of the world. It is common in traditional folk music and widely used in jazz improvisations.

Optional home fun activity: Cut out the coins on page 25          
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Want to know just how cool the pentatonic scale is? Check out this video! (This one is more for the parents, but the kids might still find it entertaining.)

Sound Beginnings is education through musical play! It prepares children for success in Kindergarten and Let’s Play Music. Sound beginnings provides research-based elements that stimulate growth in the areas particularly crucial to the development of the young child. These elements make up the foundation of the Sound Beginnings curriculum.  Here is just one:
	Our classes teach intelligent listening and understanding of classical form in a fun and interactive way. Each semester we study the timbre (tam'-ber) of various instruments and our 'smart moves' dances involve the whole body in an enjoyable, classical music experience.

Have a musical day!        
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, January 29, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #4

Even young infants benefit from the interactive nature of Sound Beginnings classes. A baby’s hearing is fully developed and the brain is highly sensitized and wired for learning. Studies indicate multiple benefits of interactive musical play in very young children:

• better developed early communication skills
• earlier and more sophisticated brain responses to music.
• earlier ability to imitate and match pitch
• accelerated language acquisition

To name just a few!

Next week we'll sing these in class:

• Ten Little Pennies
• Picaflor
• DO Pentatonic Scale
• Little Turtle
• How Much Is That Doggie in the Window?
• March of the Toreadors
• Uno, Dos, Tres
• A Rum Sum Sum
• Hush Little Baby
• This Little Piggy

In order to develop muscle strength, balance, and hand-eye coordination, children need opportunities to practice these motor skills, and to have interested adults and other children participate with them. Smart Moves dances provide an optimal whole-body movement experience with the added bonus of exposure to classical music. While increasing their physical capabilities, children are also training their ear to hear musical elements such as theme, dynamics, and phrasing.

Optional home fun activity: Color the ‘March of the Toreadors’ on page 15          
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Want to see the instruments that play our Bullfighter's Dance song? Check our this video!

Sound Beginnings is education through musical play! It prepares children for success in Kindergarten and Let’s Play Music. Sound beginnings provides research-based elements that stimulate growth in the areas particularly crucial to the development of the young child. These elements make up the foundation of the Sound Beginnings curriculum.  Here is just one:
	Little hands need to be strong in order to perform life and learning skills such as dressing oneself and writing. In class, students gain finger dexterity and hand strength as they participate in finger plays to favorite nursery rhymes and manipulate tactile props and instruments.

Have a musical day!        
-Ms. Bethany :)