Category: Music and Movement
Spinning, Twirling, Swirling
Did you know that spinning helps to develop effective integration between both sides of the brain? There is an important developmental reason behind why your kids love to twirl. It enhances vestibular stimulation. When stimulated through spinning, it can help a child’s nervous system mature and organise information. Additionally, spinning may help your child self-soothe and…
Down in the Jungle – Music & Movement
We’ve turned one of our favourite books into a movement song filled with all the puppet friends. Bring your scarf and came and play in our imaginative world. Pay attention to the accent note that we place emphasis on in each verse when we throw our scarves up into the air. Can you help you…
Ring-a-ring O’ Roses
Many know and love this traditional folksong but are unfamiliar with its many other verses. Most commonly, the sung dance involves falling down or jumping up at the end of each stanza. I recently stumbled across this version I share with you here when children may explore body percussion and accents within the music. Below…
Show me how you Smile
I wrote this intimate movement song as a way to focus and calm big energy. The song works to develop listening skills and the ability to follow directions as we exploring the upper body, with particular attention to the face.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear
Rhymes are a lovely way for children to explore and master language. Here E and I demonstrate two ways to play with the rhyme Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear. We have a full-body movement play where we provide each word with a more profound meaning through accompanying actions. Then we have a focused instrument play with…
Sally go Round the Sun
Sally go Round the Sun is a simple song that offers many engaging ways to play and learn with various materials. Our musical focus in this play is the accent on the lyric “boom” and an understanding of form in music. One example of exploring form is demonstrated when Andrew and E change the direction…
Monster in the Garden
This powerful song offers more than just the opportunity to vocalise and team movement with beat and rhythm. It is one of my favourite songs in my “tool kit” for redirecting undesirable behaviour. Whether you have a group of children or just one, approaching behaviour with the songs playful “Stop, wait, no” phrase is an…
Bell Horses
Bell Horses is powerful play and one of my favourite songs to sing in classes and with my son. The music is in 6/8 time which allows us to introduce children to a “waltz” feel. The movement of this play strengthens the relationship between adult and child and engages many different regions of the brain…
Way up High in the Apple Tree
I love this song’s ability to use dance and movement as an expression of beat-keeping and dramatic play. In addition to our musical goals, we’re developing our child’s imagination and abstract thinking by encouraging them to think using symbols. This concept of thinking in symbols is linked to maths and literacy development as it forms…
London Bridge
Come and learn three ways to create a meaningful musical play experience using this classic nursery rhyme. Our first play presents steady beat work, the second supports destructive play and our third promotes bonding while exploring anticipation.