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Fun with Music: Voices

September 15, 2013 by Mama Carmody 28 Comments

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Fun with Music: Voices




This post, “Fun with Music – Sting Instruments”, is written in collaboration with Shannon Wijnker, who used to blog on Mamamusing. Shannon is a music teacher and mother of four.

Shannon writes:
Many parents want to give their children the gift of music, but don’t know where to start. I think that teaching children how to explore their voice and singing is so easy and something that every parent can encourage. And it doesn’t have to cost a cent!

Content:

Playtime
Craft
Musical Outings
Story Time
Games Online
Related Posts

Playtime

More from Shannon:

I wrote a post about Music at an Early Age, and in my post I touch on my philosophy about educating our children to be musical.

It is never too early to start building a foundation that facilitates musical proficiency. Babies and toddlers learn about music by first learning about sound. They experiment with their voices make different sounds of varying volumes. While many parents will recognize this as ‘noise’ it is a great first step. Encourage them to explore various ways to make sounds with their mouths and talk about how to modulate their volume.

A tip: I teach my students to put their fingers against their windpipe. If they whisper they don’t feel a vibration. If they are talking or shouting, then they will feel a vibration. This helps to build the concept of volume.

Also, let them experiment with their voice. Children will naturally do this, so let them feel free to explore. Though some encouragement, they will create their own songs about random subjects. (The other day my daughter sang about how she was sorry for hitting her sister after she was let out of time out).

Visit my blog I mentioned earlier to watch a video of my 18 month old experimenting with her voice in the car.

Children learn best thru example and modeling. That means that you need to show them that you enjoy listening to music and/or singing. If you aren’t prepared to sing with your kids, then make sure to play a CD or two repetitively so they can learn the songs. Children need to hear songs that only have a few notes. Not pop songs! Learning these songs also helps with language acquisition, because they are learning rhyme. Don’t overwhelm them with too many songs. They will only feel comfortable trying to sing, once they know a song inside and out. You cannot play a song too much for a child. If you’re getting sick of it, they are just beginning to memorize/internalize it!

Echo songs are also a great idea. Small pieces of melody are easier to learn, and they foster a musical independence. Many children will only sing with a recording, and they need to be confident with their own voice. (eg. Down By the Bay)

A common complaint by many adults is that they are simply ‘tone deaf’. I disagree. They are not tone deaf, but did not develop the proper muscles to sing in tune. Trying to sing up a scale is very difficult for a child. It is much easier for them to start high and sing down. If you pay attention, many children’s songs have a lot of descending passages because of this. Until the muscles develop (you can work on these muscles by singing, and by starting from a high note and singing to a low note), singing outside of a notes which are naturally comfortable will result in ‘out-of-tune-ness’.

Some exercises:

· Sigh from the top of your voice to the bottom (test how high/low you can go)
· Use sounds such as “mmmm” “zzzz” “vvvv”
· Sing lying on the floor
· Make “siren” noises without straining
· Teach them to match pitch by singing back the note you are singing
· Have them follow your hand up and down with their voice (or draw their name while following the hand with their voice!) – this may take some practice
· Have them hum and get them to recognize that sensation when they sing

Remember that kids learn best by doing, not by being told how to do something. When they lose interest, move on and try again another time. Children learn best by repetition. Also, songs are much more fun with movement and actions. Have fun!

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Craft

Microphone

Love to Laugh and Learn: Materials Needed for Microphone Craft
Love to Laugh and Learn: Materials Needed for Microphone Craft
Materials Needed:

Empty paper towel roll or toilet paper roll
Small styrofoam ball – 2 1/2 inches (63 mm)
Fancy scrapbook paper, construction paper or paint
White craft glue
Decorations (sparkly stickers, foam stickers, markers, etc)

Instructions:

1) Cover the workspace. I used parchment paper because I was able to get it cheap at the Dollar Tree Store. And cover the child. I found an old tee shirt.

2) I cut a ring from a toilet paper roll to set the styrofoam ball on so that it wouldn’t roll away.

3) Paint the styrofoam ball black or silver. I like to use foam applicators for painting large surfaces. The most difficult part of painting the ball was learning that its okay to get your fingers messy.

Love to Laugh and Learn: Microphone Craft - Fun with Music: Voices
Love to Laugh and Learn: Microphone Craft – Fun with Music: Voices

But he got used to it and enjoyed the painting.

Fun with Music: Voices - Microphone Craft
Fun with Music: Voices – Microphone Craft

4) We are making two microphones; one from a paper towel roll and one from a toilet paper roll. I couldn’t decide which would be better for a 2 year old so we made both.

5) You can decorate the rolls however you like. You could paint them but I decided to use a fancy piece of scrapbook paper. I cut it to fit each roll.

6) We glued the paper and then applied it to the rolls. Jeremiah used the glue stick and then I added some white craft glue for extra adhesion.

Love to Laugh and Learn: Gluing Paper for Microphone Craft
Love to Laugh and Learn: Gluing Paper for Microphone Craft

7) Jeremiah added some stickers because stickers are fun and they are a great fine motor exercise.

Love to Laugh and Learn: Applying Stickers
Love to Laugh and Learn: Applying Stickers

8) Finally we attached the balls to the top. Make sure to use a thick craft glue. I ended up adding some super glue but super glue should be used with caution and by adults only.

9) Now we can enjoy using our voices by singing into our microphones. The toilet paper size was better for little hands but the paper towel roll was a great size for older kids.

Love to Laugh and Learn: The microphone craft is a hit! Fun with Music: Voices
Love to Laugh and Learn: The microphone craft is a hit! Fun with Music: Voices

This microphone craft was adapted from itmom.

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Musical Outings

Take your children to any place that live music is being played. In Indianapolis, you can find many places that give free outdoor concerts during the summer. Maybe you have the same opportunities in your area. Outdoor concerts are a great way to introduce your children to live music because they can sit in their own lawn chair, on a blanket or even get up and dance around a little. Maybe you have older children or neighbors that participate in a school band. Take your children to see them. Expose your children to many types of music. Take the time to talk about what they are hearing, how it makes them feel and the different instruments they are seeing and hearing.

Shannon from Mamamusing wants you to know: “In London, there are several outdoor concerts and festivals in Victoria Park during the summer. One of the best is Sunfest (beginning of July). You can check out a video of my kids enjoying the multicultural music and dancing byclicking here.”

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Storytime

Freddie the Frog® and the Flying Jazz Kitten – 5th Adventure: Scat Cat Island by Sharon Burch
Reading Level: Ages 4 – 9 yrs old
Freddie the Frog meets the Flying Jazz Kitten and learns about wonderful new ways to use his voice. The Flying Jazz Kitten teaches Freddie the Frog the swingin’ beat and excitement of jazz scat singing. There is also a CD with the dramatized story, sing-along songs and an instrumental blues track to create your own special scat.

The Voice and Singing (Let’s Make Music) by Rita Storey
Reading Level: Ages 6 yrs old and up
Each person carries around a special instrument with them wherever they go; their voice. Your child will enjoy learning about their voice in this cute informational book. In simple descriptions, they will learn how their voice works. They will learn about many different styles of singing and different ways they can enjoy singing. Whether they are listening to others sing or using their own voices, singing is fun.

Voices (Instruments and Music) by Daniel Nunn
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
An instrument that we don’t discuss very often is the voice. This book describes how people use their voices to make music. Sometimes they are accompanied by another instrument or other voices. Sometimes they sing all alone. Share this book with your child and help them learn how their voice is an instrument to enjoy.

Voices and Singing (How the World Makes Music) by Anita Ganeri
Reading Level: Ages 6 and up
This book covers voices as a musical instrument. Your child will learn about many styles of singing from all over the world. The way people use their voices from other parts of the world can sound very different than what we are used to hearing. Along with reading this book take some time to look on the internet and find examples of the different ways people use their voices, such as jazz singing, gospel singing, throat singing and yodeling. How do you and your children use your voices to make music?

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Games Online

Shannon from Mamamusing shares some fun online games:

Now that you have introduced your children to some of the various instrument families in the orchestra, you may want to visit The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra. This is a website created by Carnegie Hall which is a wonderfully FREE interactive online game for young children to explore and learn more about the various instruments of the orchestra. You will need to use a computer, because the game requires Adobe Flash, which you can download for free (if you don’t already have this utility installed on your computer).

There is also a wonderful set of books for children ages 4 to 8 years old that helps them learn different musical concepts. Along with the books the author, Sharon Burch, has a website with coloring pages and games for your child to enjoy and enhance their learning experience: Freddie the Frog Games and Coloring Pages

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Related Posts

Music at an Early Age by Shannon at Mamamusing
Fun with Music – Overview
Fun with Music – Percussion Instruments
Fun with Music – Brass Instruments
Fun with Music – Woodwind Instruments
Fun with Music: String Instruments
Fun with Music: Keyboards

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Filed Under: Learning Activities, Music Tagged With: children and music, educational activities, fun learning, fun with music, laugh, learning, learning fun, learning opportunities, love to laugh, love to laugh and learn, love to learn, making learning fun, music fun, singing, voice, voices

Comments

  1. yanique says

    April 9, 2015 at 5:46 am

    What great resources. I had to test out the wind pipe experiment and it worked like a charm. The kids got a blast out of it and continued doing it for 20 minutes! We love music in our house and we like making instruments. Recently we made a tissue box guitar, a drum with a can and masking tape, and a rice bottle maraca. Thanks for sharing this wonderful post!

    Reply
  2. Agatha says

    April 9, 2015 at 5:14 am

    These are great suggestions. For voice exploration, my son’s class did this experiment where they spoke with different volumes. The teacher called them the x inch voice. So if you were told to speak in a 6 inch voice it meant that you were 6 inches away from the person’s ear and needed to speak softly. It worked wonders!

    Reply
  3. annabelt says

    April 9, 2015 at 1:54 am

    Great ideas, thanks! He looks like he had fun with the microphone too 🙂

    Reply
  4. Tirralan @ Tinseltown Mom says

    April 9, 2015 at 1:08 am

    I agree that music plays such an important role in the life of children. And, I love all of your ideas and suggestions.

    Reply
  5. Jenn @ mommytime365 says

    April 9, 2015 at 12:27 am

    We bought my daughter a Frozen microphone for Christmas and I love-love-love her musical performances.. Music is so important, wonderful post!

    Reply
  6. Kim @ This Ole Mom says

    April 8, 2015 at 11:03 pm

    What a great post. We love listening to different music, and signing around our house even though we can’t carry a tune. I think I ‘ll make the microphone craft with my little boy. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  7. Leslie says

    April 8, 2015 at 6:34 pm

    What great suggestions! I took my daughter to a symphony even for homeschooled kids recently and she really enjoyed it. Our symphony also does an outdoor free performance every year for the 4th of July that we have taken the kids to since they were babies. Plus I sing ALL THE TIME. 🙂

    Reply
  8. Amy Nielson says

    April 8, 2015 at 1:47 pm

    Music is a huge part of our lives. My kids would love the microphone craft.

    Reply
  9. Kim says

    April 8, 2015 at 12:34 pm

    Music is a huge part of our lives in this house. Since my children were babies I have always sung to them and/or had music playing (all kinds). Because of that influence at 5 & 8 they are both avid music listeners, and love to sing too. Warms my heart!

    Reply
  10. Laura says

    July 23, 2014 at 1:58 pm

    We love music here! I always catch myself singing little songs about what I am doing..I should live in a musical. Songs are such a great way to learn and have fun!

    Reply
    • Mama Carmody says

      July 23, 2014 at 2:57 pm

      We always made up little songs around our house too. It would always bring a smile to the kids’ faces. Personally, I believe I do live in a musical! 😉

      Reply
  11. Amy G says

    July 23, 2014 at 6:55 am

    Love all these ideas. Music played a big part in my son’s life when he was a baby.

    Reply
    • Mama Carmody says

      July 23, 2014 at 7:23 am

      Thanks for stopping by Amy. Music has always been such an important part of my life as well. Can’t wait to share the wonderful world of music with our grandson.

      Reply
  12. Christy Garrett @ Uplifting Families says

    September 20, 2013 at 6:41 pm

    This is a cute craft idea. My youngest loves music. 😉

    Reply
    • kcarmody says

      September 23, 2013 at 7:13 am

      Thanks, my great-nephew really enjoyed it. I can’t take all the credit though. I adapted the craft from itmom

      Reply
  13. Christina Berry says

    September 20, 2013 at 3:20 pm

    Great post! I really think music is a lost art, so many public schools have stopped teaching it, and fewer children are learning to play instruments. You’ve shared some great ideas for encouraging kids to love music! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • kcarmody says

      September 20, 2013 at 3:43 pm

      We love music around our house and I really enjoy exposing others to it. My 2 year old great-nephew automatically asked, “Music?” the last time we picked him up because we are usually taking him to some type of outdoor concert. I’m so glad you stopped by.

      Reply
  14. HilLesha says

    September 20, 2013 at 12:12 pm

    As a huge lover of music, I encourage my children to have a love for music. My daughter greatly enjoys music, while my son is growing to appreciate it more as he gets older. Although he listens to music from time to time, singing brings him more enjoyment. 🙂

    Reply
    • kcarmody says

      September 20, 2013 at 1:13 pm

      Possibly they can make the microphones and have fun signing around the house. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. – Mama Carmody

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra's Community Day says:
    October 10, 2015 at 8:14 pm

    […] Percussion Instruments Fun with Music: Brass Instruments Fun with Music: Woodwind Instruments Fun with Music: Voices Fun with Music: String Instruments Fun with Music: Keyboards Music at an Early Age by Mamamusing […]

    Reply
  2. Meet the Musicians - Love to Laugh and LearnLove to Laugh and Learn says:
    September 11, 2014 at 1:59 pm

    […] Percussion Instruments Fun with Music: Brass Instruments Fun with Music: Woodwind Instruments Fun with Music: Voices Fun with Music: String Instruments Fun with Music: Keyboards Music at an Early Age by Mamamusing […]

    Reply
  3. Fun with Music: Keyboards -Love to Laugh and Learn says:
    February 6, 2014 at 3:33 pm

    […] Fun with Music: Overview Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments Fun with Music: Brass Instruments Fun with Music: Voices Fun with Music: String […]

    Reply
  4. Fun with Music - Overview | Love to Laugh and LearnLove to Laugh and Learn says:
    February 5, 2014 at 11:28 am

    […] Percussion Instruments Fun with Music: Brass Instruments Fun with Music: Woodwind Instruments Fun with Music: Voices Fun with Music: String Instruments Fun with Music: Keyboards Review: Rhythm! Discovery Center […]

    Reply
  5. Generally Having Fun with Music -Love to Laugh and Learn says:
    February 5, 2014 at 8:56 am

    […] The microphone was a big hit. Don’t forget that your voice is an instrument you take with you wherever you go. (Fun with Music: Voices) […]

    Reply
  6. Fun with Music: String Instruments -Love to Laugh and Learn says:
    January 22, 2014 at 4:28 pm

    […] Fun with Music: Overview Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments Fun with Music: Brass Instruments Fun with Music: Voices Fun with Music: […]

    Reply
  7. Fun with Music: Percussion InstrumentsLove to Laugh and Learn says:
    November 23, 2013 at 8:16 pm

    […] with Music – Overview Fun with Music: Brass Instruments Fun with Music: Woodwind Instruments Fun with Music: Voices Fun with Music: String Instruments Fun with Music: […]

    Reply
  8. Fun with Music: Brass InstrumentsLove to Laugh and Learn says:
    November 23, 2013 at 8:13 pm

    […] – Overview Fun with Music – Percussion Instruments Fun with Music: Woodwind Instruments Fun with Music: Voices Fun with Music: String Instruments Fun with Music: […]

    Reply
  9. Fun with Music: Woodwind InstrumentsLove to Laugh and Learn says:
    November 23, 2013 at 8:11 pm

    […] ← Fun with Music: Brass Instruments Fun with Music: Voices → […]

    Reply

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