Wednesday, April 23, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #15

Sharing instruments was a great way to end our semester. Thank you for your participation today and for the many ways you contributed to our class throughout the past weeks. I hope to see you all back for White Horses (or Red Balloons, if your child is old enough) next semester. 

Summer classes are coming up and I can adjust the schedule if necessary to accommodate more people. Please let me know what will and won't work for you!

Please let me know how this class was for you. This really helps me to be a better teacher. You can remain anonymous on this very short survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeMgtWOsjDkR4AXS7IceugrayEtKezeqCx6oylucRCEwe9hyg/viewform

Recent studies suggest that moving to music with your child triggers the release of oxytocin -- the "bonding" hormone. Babies whose experience with music also involves movement smile more, are easier to soothe, and are more willing to explore their environment. Sound Beginnings purposefully includes opportunities to move with your child, and we hope that in addition to a musically rich experience, you and your child have bonded and enjoyed your time together!

Optional home fun activity: No activity this week. If you missed any activity during the semester, you may want to complete it now.             
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Check out this version of Zoodeo from Haiti.

And in honor of Instrument Day, here's an awesome video of the world's longest xylophone! (It was made for a phone commercial (totally outdated), but it's still pretty impressive!)

 

Have a musical day!           
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, April 16, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #14

Next week is instrument day! We would love to have several people share an instrument or vocal talent! Of course, performing is optional, but we would enjoy hearing from you, your child, or another family member or friend. They can play an instrument (one of our semester instruments would be amazing!) or sing a solo (a song from this semester would be fabulous!). We welcome any and all performers! If your child wants to bring a homemade instrument, that's fine too! Each family will have a turn to share something. Please let me know what you will be sharing (and please let me know if you have any questions).

Our Sound Beginnings/Let's Play Music 1st and 2nd Year Showcase will be Friday, April 25th @ 5:30pm at the church at 2750 North 800 East. Please put it on your calendar! Sound Beginnings kids will be singing 2 songs at the start of the showcase. Sound Beginnings students will wear Sound Beginnings t-shirts. If you don't already have one, you'll get one if you are going to be at the showcase! If you'd like to see the 3rd Year and Bridge Recital, it will begin @ 6:15pm.

Do you have a favorite instrument we listened to this semester? It’s likely that you and your student prefer one instrument to another. Exposure to various instruments allows your child develop a ‘taste’ for a particular sound that may turn into a desire to study a specific instrument. By listening to a solo instrument your child is learning about it’s timbre and tones. Timbre (pronounced "tam-ber") is the unique and distinctive sound that belongs to a specific instrument and distinguishes it from any other instrument. Tone refers to the quality and frequency of a sound as compared to itself; the difference in frequencies of low sounds (“bass”) and high sounds (“treble”).

Optional home fun activity: Do the Instrument Day activity on page 18           
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Check out this fun video of the Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks!

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, April 9, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #13

As we approach the end of the semester, I just wanted to remind you that you can keep the fun going at home until our next class. Continue to use this semester’s materials (album, workbook, instrument activities you learned). Your child will think you are just having fun, but you will actually be strengthening his newly acquired musical skills!

Instrument Day will be in 2 weeks and I want each family to bring an instrument to share with the class. We'll get to see several real instruments and even get to play a few!

Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Let's Count Our Money
• Name the Instruments
• Grandma's Glasses
• De Colores
• Palo Palo
• Bow Wow Wow
• My Little Rooster
• March of the Toreadors
• Hush Little Baby

Our Sound Beginnings/Let's Play Music 1st and 2nd Year Showcase will be Friday, April 25th @ 5:30pm at the church at 2750 North 800 East. Please put it on your calendar! Sound Beginnings kids will be singing 2 songs at the start of the showcase. Sound Beginnings students will wear Sound Beginnings t-shirts. If you don't already have one, you'll get one if you are going to be at the showcase! If you'd like to see the 3rd Year and Bridge Recital, it will begin @ 6:15pm.

Little brains are wired for repetition. Your child may have found a favorite activity they insist on repeating again and again. They probably think they are just having fun, but this innate desire for repetition is really their brain’s way of helping them process and master skills. When engaged in an activity, the brain and body send electrical signals back and forth along the nerve fibres The more practice the nervous system has at receiving and sending messages, the more efficiently it operates and the more effectively a child acquires a skill. So, as you keep singing and moving to the music, you are watching the growth of a musician!

Optional home fun activity: Color ‘The Happy Farmer’ coloring page on page 17           
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Check out this fun video of 5 dogs and 5 bones!

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, March 26, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #12

No class next week because it’s spring break! Final tuition is due when we come back in 2 weeks.

Lesson 15 will be an "Instrument Day"! This class gives families a chance to share an instrument. Of course, performing is optional and you are welcome to just listen, but we would enjoy hearing from you, your child, or another family member or friend who plays an instrument. We welcome any and all performers! Let me know if you have any questions.

Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Ten Little Pennies
• Name the Instruments
• Grandma's Glasses
• Doggie, Doggie, Where's Your Bone?
• Take Me Out to the Ballgame
• Bow Wow Wow
• To Market
• The Happy Farmer
• My Little Rooster
• Uno, Dos, Tres
• De Colores

Two of the songs we sing this semester, Picaflor and Hey! Hey! Look at Me!, have only two pitches, SOL and MI. A third song, Doggie, Doggie, Where’s Your Bone?, adds LA for a total of only three pitches. This is because the SOL-MI interval is the easiest interval for the child to learn to recognize, imitate, and sing in tune, therefore allowing children to have successful singing experiences. We also use these songs to expose children to the musical staff and pitch relationships.

Optional home fun activity: Make the doggie and bone puppets on page 29          
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Here's a fun video of "Grandma's Glasses" for you!

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, March 19, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #11

Have you enjoyed the singable books we have shared in class this semester? Your local library is likely to have a few. (Also, Let's Play Music has printed several of their own that you can purchase!) Even if books are not ‘singable’, they are still a great way to connect with your child at home. Fun Fact: if you spend just 20 minutes per day reading with your child, during the course of the year you will have accumulated over 120 hours of quality time with him.

Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Let's Count Our Money
• Doggie, Doggie, Where's Your Bone?
• Bow Wow Wow
• DO Pentatonic Scale
• Grandma's Glasses
• Take Me Out to the Ballgame
• The Happy Farmer
• To Market
• My Little Rooster
• Zoodeo
• De Colores

I still have openings in Sound Beginnings and my 1st Year Let's Play Music classes. I've also got an evening Sound Beginnings class for working parents! Register today and get the early bird special: no $20 registration fee! If you know of anyone who might be interested, I'm holding a free preview class Monday at March 24th @ 5:30 for LPM and 6:30 for SB. PLEASE share this link to any friends you think might be interested in music classes! 
https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/free-preview-classes-at-musik-me-studio-1756869 Also, I LOVE having current students at my preview classes. Please sign up if you are able to come to either or both of the classes. I can't do "make up" classes, but you can think of this as being a bonus class if you ever missed one... or even if you didn't!

Are you still working on your Spirit Month BINGO worksheets? I will have drawings for a MINI YOTO PLAYER, an mp3 player, egg shakers, cage bell set, tambourines, singable storybooks, CASH ($20, $10 & $5), and MORE! You can download the BINGO worksheet from your student portal if you need another one. They will be due on lesson #12, where you or your child get to decide which prizes you want to put your tickets toward! I'll do the drawing the following Friday.

Children are known to sing spontaneously because it is joyous, playful, personal, expressive, and creative. Their natural desire to imitate can help develop their singing voice, and even very young children can learn to match pitch and sing simple melodies correctly. Sound Beginnings’ activities are designed to foster the desire to sing and the repertoire purposefully falls within a comfortable singing range for children—typically the pitches from middle C to treble C (just like our tone bells!).

Optional home fun activity: Do the Grandma’s Glasses activity on page 21            
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Did you know that animals can "speak" in a different language also? Watch this video to learn the names of other farm animals and what they say in Spanish!

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 :)

Wednesday, March 12, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #10

It’s hard to believe but we are just 5 classes away from the end of the semester. If you are ready for even more fun, you can register for the next round of musical adventure--White Horses! Remember, if you register by March 25th, you will get 5 entries in the drawings for Spirit Month! You can find more information on my web site: www.musikandme.com  Please let me know if you have any questions!

Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Ten Little Pennies
• Doggie, Doggie, Where's Your Bone?
• Name the Instruments (maracas, Baritone, Piccolo, Xylophone, Ukulele)
• Grandma's Glasses
• Take Me Out to the Ballgame
• Polly Wolly Doodle
• The Happy Farmer
• My Little Rooster
• Count Your Blessings

I still have a few openings in Sound Beginnings and my 1st Year Let's Play Music classes. I've also got an evening Sound Beginnings class for working parents! If you know of anyone who might be interested, I'm holding a free preview class Monday at March 24th @ 5:30 for LPM and 6:30 for SB. PLEASE share this link to any friends you think might be interested in music classes! https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/free-preview-classes-at-musik-me-studio-1756869 Also, I LOVE having current students at my preview classes. Please sign up if you are able to come to either or both of the classes. I can't do "make up" classes, but you can think of this as being a bonus class if you ever missed one... or even if you didn't!

Are you still working on your Spirit Month BINGO worksheets? I will have drawings for a MINI YOTO PLAYER, an mp3 player, egg shakers, cage bell set, tambourines, singable storybooks, CASH ($20, $10 & $5), and MORE! I have attached the worksheet again, if you need another copy. They will be due on lesson #12, where you or your child get to decide which prizes you want to put your tickets toward! I'll do the drawing the following Friday.

Learning music in a group setting has many advantages. Sound Beginnings classes naturally encourage participation and exploration in ways a private setting does not. Groups provide opportunities for repetition that is fun and engaging, expose children to teamwork and collaboration, and allow children to meet and learn from a peer group. Besides all of that, making music with others is just plain fun!

Optional home fun activity: Practice counting pennies in the piggy bank on page 23           
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

What do you think of our new dance song "The Happy Farmer"? Watch this video to see our song being played by real instruments!

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:
	In class we experience steady beat and imitate rhythmic patterns with our voices, bodies, and through hands-on use of instruments. We incorporate Eurythmics, which is movement-based rhythm training that is perfect for toddlers!

Have a musical day!         
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, March 5, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #9

Sound Beginnings curriculum incorporates activities based on seven elements considered crucial to the development of the young child: Literacy and Kindergarten Skills, Rhythm and Beat, Vocal and Pitch Development, Fine Motor Skills, Gross Motor Skills, Classical Music Experience and Parent Bonding. Together these elements provide a rich foundation for further music study, school, and life.

Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Let's Count Our Money
• DO Pentatonic Scale
• Hey! Hey! Look At Me!
• In My Class I Have Some Bells
• Take Me Out to the Ballgame
• The Happy Farmer
• My Little Rooster
• Zoodeo
• Ten Little Pennies
• Count Your Blessings

SPIRIT WEEK IS UNDERWAY! Let me know if you need any substitutions for any of the squares. The BINGO card is in the Student Portal, if you lose yours and need to make a copy! As a reminder, some of the drawing prizes are some instruments and an MP3 player that you can put your class music on!

Show everyone in your neighborhood how you feel about Sound Beginnings! Host a yard sign to easily earn tickets to the Spirit Week drawing!

One of the items on the BINGO card is to leave a Google review. I'm striving for a 5 star rating. If you don't plan to give me 5 stars, please talk to me BEFORE you post a review so I can address any issues you may have. Unfortunately, negative feedback has much more impact than positive feedback does, so please give me the chance to earn 5 stars if I'm not already there. Thanks! Here is the link to post a review on Google: https://g.page/musikandmebethany/review?gm

Registration is now open for current students! Please go to https://www.musikandme.com/Registration for instructions of how to enroll your student for a summer class or White Horses in the fall. There is a $20 registration fee, but you won't need to pay it if you register by March 28th! (You can earn 20 extra tickets by registering by March 15th!)

Tuition is due this week if you are making payments. Thank you!

Consonants in the English language are either ‘voiced’ or ‘unvoiced’. Both types use the breath, lips, teeth, and upper palate when producing sound, but unvoiced consonants require no vibration in the vocal cords. An easy way to determine whether a consonant is voiced or not is to place a finger on your throat. As you pronounce a letter, feel the vibration of your vocal cords. If you feel a vibration the consonant is a voiced one.

Optional home fun activity: Make the My Little Rooster puppets on page 29 of your workbook            
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Sign language is so fun! Here are the signs for the animals in My Little Rooster!

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:
	Sound Beginnings channels the young voice into beautiful, in-tune singing by providing proper vocal modeling in the correct range. Solfege hand signs teach pitch relationships; the minor 3rd (SOL-MI) pattern is used to develop in-tune singing and pitch matching.

Have a musical day!          
-Ms. Bethany :)

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 :)

Wednesday, January 22, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #3

All "Home Fun Activities" are optional, but if you choose to do them, please keep the materials in your tote bag and bring them to class each week. We may not use them at every lesson, but when we do, your child will be thrilled to participate with their own creations!

Be sure to listen to the class music! Next week we'll sing these songs in class:

• Ten Little Pennies
• Picaflor
• In My Class I Have Some Bells
• Little Turtle
• Fiddle-I-Fee
• March of the Toreadors
• Palo Palo
• Polly Wolly Doodle
• A Rum Sum Sum

This semester a few of our songs will help us explore the Spanish language. A recent study found that exposure to other languages had the surprising effect of making children better communicators in their own language! Exposure to other languages means exposure to different social perspectives, giving them “intensive training in perspective taking, which could make them better communicators in any language.”

Optional home fun activity: Color and cut out the Spanish counting cards on pages 31 and 33          
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

How are you liking our "Fiddle-I-Fee" book? Here is a video with our class story! Feel free to sign while you sing! Here's the link to the ASL signs for the animals, if you missed it last week!

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:
	In class we experience steady beat and imitate rhythmic patterns with our voices, bodies, and through hands-on use of instruments. We incorporate Eurythmics, which is movement-based rhythm training that is perfect for toddlers!

Have a musical day!        
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, January 15, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #2

Some more reserved children are hesitant to participate fully in class. Parents can encourage participation (though never force/bribe) by simply engaging in and enjoying class activities themselves, and listening to the music at home. In doing so you are demonstrating how fun music can be and inviting your child to participate in a safe, non-threatening way.

Next week we'll sing these songs in class, so please listen to them at home:

• Name, Name, What's Your Name?
• Let's Count Our Money
• Picaflor
• In My Class I Have Some Bells
• Fiddle-I-Fee
• Palo Palo
• Uno, Dos, Tres
• Polly Wolly Doodle
• This Little Piggy

The voice is a child’s first instrument and, like any other instrument, it’s skills can be developed and mastered through practice. Sound Beginnings utilizes ‘Echo Edie’ to train the voice through meaningful vocal play. Echo Edie experiences are designed to help children extend their vocal range, match pitch, learn to sing in tune, feel the beat, and repeat rhythms.

Optional home fun activity: Color the bells on page 9 of your workbook         
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Here is a video that you can play your maracas along with! (The link starts at the beginning of the play-along song, but you can start the video at the beginning if you want to see the brief introduction to maracas!)

I made a sign language video for the animals in the "Fiddle-I-Fee" book! Check it out!

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:
	Sound Beginnings channels the young voice into beautiful, in-tune singing by providing proper vocal modeling in the correct range. Solfege hand signs teach pitch relationships; the minor 3rd (SOL-MI) pattern is used to develop in-tune singing and pitch matching.

Have a musical day!       
-Ms. Bethany :)

Wednesday, January 8, 2025 | Pink Piggies Lessons

Lesson #1

Our first Pink Piggies class was a great start to a semester of fun and learning! These simple reminders will help make class a successful and enjoyable experience for all:
 

• Please keep all materials (workbook, finger cymbals, and class manipulatives) in your tote bag to bring to class each week.
• Please leave food, drinks and toys at home, in your car, or upstairs. They are a distraction to your own child as well as others in the class.
• Please turn off your cell phone during class. Remember, parent bonding is one of the best features of this class!
• Please utilize the “break area” (the hallway by the bathroom) if your child becomes fussy or disruptive.
• Feel free to contact me with any questions you may have throughout the semester.
• Please be sure to download and listen to your class music on the LPM app! The more familiar you and your child are with the music, the more you can both participate in class!
• Tuition is due this week. I prefer payment via Zelle (just use my phone number) because I don't have to pay fees for that, or you may pay with Venmo (@musikandme), which does charge me a small fee, but either one is fine. Tuition is $180 for one student and $220 for a family with more than one child. If you have to make monthly payments, it is $45 for one student and $55 for a family with more than one child.

What songs should you listen to at home each week? I'll let you know here in case you want to be ready with the ones we'll use next class. The more familiar you and your child are with the songs, the more fun you will have in class! Each week we will sing these songs:

• Everybody Say Hello
• ABC Song
• The Letter of the Day
• Everybody Say Goodbye

Next week we'll sing these:

• Name, Name, What's Your Name?
• Let's Count Our Money
• In My Class I Have Some Bells
• Picaflor
• This Little Piggy
• Fiddle-I-Fee
• Uno, Dos, Tres
• March of the Toreadors
• A Rum Sum Sum
• Hush Little Baby

Throughout the semester, Sound Beginnings will introduce several kindergarten concepts. We begin with name recognition because children’s names have more meaning and importance to them than other words. Name recognition is foundational to further literacy skills, and your student will have an opportunity to practice this important concept each week.

Optional home fun activity: Do the Name Recognition activity on page 20 of your workbook       
(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)  

Here is a video that will help you to know what Sound Beginnings is all about and how it will benefit your child. This was created by another teacher and she was generous enough to share it!

https://youtu.be/IxZrTdk0pVk

Here's a fun video for ideas of how to interact with your baby during class (if applicable):

https://youtu.be/8nyS_nQlpE0

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 :)