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Generally Having Fun with Music

February 5, 2014 by Mama Carmody 37 Comments

Generally Having Fun with Music




This post, Generally Having Fun with Music, is written in collaboration with Shannon Wijnker, who used to blog on Mamamusing. Shannon is a music teacher and mother of four.

It has been a lot of fun writing the posts “Fun with Music” in collaboration with Shannon. Our posts have covered the different instrument families. This final post, of the series, is about ways for your children to simply have fun with all kinds of music.

Shannon and I both agree that most learning for young children should come through play and experimentation. So dance around the room with your child, share your favorite songs from childhood or watch a musical together. Just generally have fun with music!

“If the parent values music, and makes it a part of their life, then their children will value music also.” – Shannon Wijnker

Shannon shared:

“Children learn best by constructing their own concepts and ideas, and by trial and error. They will learn how to create a variety of sounds. Some of which they will like and some they will decide they don’t. Your concept of what is acceptable sound may vary from theirs. But be patient and let them explore. Remember that it’s not just about making a beautiful sound, but playing and exploring the concept of sound.”

Contents:

Musical Sensory Bin
Musical Outings
Games Online
Another Resource: The Recorder Classroom
Story Time
Related Posts

Musical Sensory Bin

Shannon mentioned that the dollar store is a good place to pick up inexpensive instruments for the children to experiment with. Recorders are great choice. You can also find tambourines, kazoos, etc. I took Shannon’s advice and headed to the dollar store to pick up some instruments. I decided to create a musical sensory bin. I found several items in the party favor section and some in the toy section. I picked up a recorder and a toy microphone from the $1 bins at Target.

Items in my Musical Sensory Bin:

Beans (I bought at Dollar Tree)
Rice (I bought it at Costco. It was cheaper to get a big bag here rather than smaller ones
at the Dollar Tree.)
Hand Drums
Plastic Musical Clackers
Kazoos
Slide Whistles
Recorder
Microphone
Empty Plastic Containers (of all sizes)
Empty Oatmeal Box
Metal Spoons (I bought at Dollar Tree)
Empty Shoe Box
Rubber Bands
Plastic Easter Eggs

Generally Having Fun with Music: Musical Sensory Bin

Jeremiah put beans and rice into different containers. We talked about the different sounds they made.

Generally Having Fun with Music: Experimenting with Shakers

There were different types of whistles and kazoos for him to play with.

Generally Having Fun with Music
Generally Having Fun with Music

We stretched rubber bands around a box and listened to the different sounds they made when we plucked them.

Generally Having Fun with Music: Musical Sensory Bin

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)

Generally Having Fun with Music: Microphone

Using the spoon to drum on the different containers was also fun.

Generally Having Fun with Music: A Little Drumming

Jeremiah was almost 2 years old when I created this Musical Sensory Box. As you can see, he really enjoyed it. He has played with it on more than one occasion and I’m sure he will play with it many more times. The one thing that I noticed is that some of the whistles didn’t work very well. I will probably replace and add some better quality instruments, as I get the money, but this was a good place to start. As we have made the crafts on the different Fun with Music posts, we have added them to the bin. This was a place to start and as his interests grow and change we can add to or switch out instruments.

Shannon also wants to remind us to help our children explore sound within their own environment:

“You can talk about sounds being high and low. You can talk about the timbre (the quality of sound – how we can tell mom’s voice from dad’s). Encourage your children to explore sounds with their bodies and other toys/things they can find in the house. You don’t have to go out any buy instruments to explore sound and music.”

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Musical Outings

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. 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 by clicking here.”

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Games Online

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 9 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.You can find more information about the books below in Story Time.

Another Resource recommended by Shannon from Mamamusing

“If you homeschool your children, a great resource for teaching them music (and how to play the recorder) is a magazine called “The Recorder Classroom”. I believe there are 4 issues printed so far. You can download both the music and accompanying mp3s online. They are fun to play and I find my students are motivated to learn the music, when they have great accompaniments to play along with.”

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Story Time – There were so many books that didn’t fall under any of our other posts so I have included them here. You should really check all of them out. I really enjoyed reading them and I’m sure you and your child will too.


Before John Was a Jazz Giant: A Song of John Coltrane by Carole Boston Weatherford
Reading Level: Ages 5 to 9 yrs old
This is an interesting look at the influences on a great musician. The book shares the many different sounds and experiences that John faced as he was growing up; listening to Daddy play the ukulele or to big bands on the radio. The essence of the story it that John heard and listened to many things that lead him on his path of becoming a Jazz Giant.

Freddie the Frog series by Sharon Burch
Reading Level: Ages 4 – 9 yrs old
This series was recommended by Shannon Wijnker from Mamamusing. She uses this series in her music classes. Shannon says, “A great series to start kids learning music concepts and theory is “Freddie the Frog”. These are cute stories with a hidden agenda. My students love these books and ask for them again and again!”

Through the series of books your child will learn the names of notes; they will learn about rhythm, beat and tempo. Each book comes with a CD that includes the dramatized story and sing-along songs.

Adventure #1 – Freddie the Frog and the Thump in the Night by Sharon Burch
Freddie the Frog lives on the island of Treble Clef, with his parents. Join him in his adventure as he searches the island for the source of the thump.

Adventure #2 – Freddie the Frog and the Bass Clef Monster by Sharon Burch
Freddie the Frog awakes from hibernation to find out that he is no longer at home, on Treble Clef Island.

Adventure #3 – Freddie the Frog and the Mysterious Wahooooo by Sharon Burch
Join Freddie the Frog and his best friend, Eli the Elephant, as they discover tempos, rhythms, and beats on Tempo Island. Your child will enjoy learning to play their percussion instruments to the rhythm and beat along with Eli and Freddie

Adventure #4 – Freddie the Frog and the Secret of Crater Island by Sharon Burch
Freddie and Eli take on a new adventure. They seek to find the secret on Crater Island, along with the Blue Beetle Bugs.

Adventure #5 – Freddie the Frog and the Flying Jazz Kitten by Sharon Burch
Join Freddie the Frog and the Flying Jazz Kitten, on Treble Clef Island, as Freddie becomes a jazz sensation. They will learn how to use an instrument they have with them all the time, their voice. Freddie and the Jazz Kitten help your child learn about scat singing.

Froggy Plays in the Band by Jonathan London
Reading Level: Ages 3 to 6 yrs old
Froggy sees a poster at school about a marching band contest and a big prize. When he asks his music teacher about it, she tells him to form a big band and practice, practice, practice. She helps Froggy and his friends as they work their hardest to become a great marching band. The one important thing the teacher tells them is, “Don’t stop for anything!” This is very good advice especially when they get to the end of the parade. Pick up this book and find out what happens to Froggy and his marching band when they didn’t stop for anything.

Instruments and Music by Daniel Nunn
Reading Level: Ages 4 – 8 yrs old
This book is a great introduction to instruments and music. Your child will get to see pictures of many different instruments; some will be familiar and some will seem strange. There are instruments from many countries. Your child will learn what materials the instruments are made of and how they produce sound. I believe any child interested in music and instruments will enjoy this book.

Jazz Baby by Carole Boston Weatherford
Reading Level: birth to 6 years old
This is simply a fun little book to introduce music and instruments to even the youngest “musician”. The text on each page starts with “Jazz baby, jazz baby” and then describes, in rhyme, some fun aspect of music; such as playing a horn or the drums. Your child will get to see children singing, dancing and playing instruments. I love this book. I think it’s absolutely adorable. I had to buy one for my grandson and one to have at my house.

Listen to My Trumpet! by Mo Willems
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
Piggie gets a trumpet and wants to show his friend Elephant what he can do on his trumpet. He blows and blows and all kinds of sounds come out of the horn, but is it music? Find out what Elephant has to say about Piggie’s playing and how Piggie responds.

Little Pig Joins the Band by David Hyde Costello
Reading Level: Ages 3 to 6 yrs old
Little Pig wants to play an instrument like the bigger pigs but he is just too small for any of them. He watches as everyone chooses an instrument and marches around. Little Pig watches each of them march in different directions and play different songs all at the same time. Once a big accident occurs, he realizes there is a job for him. Read this adorable book to find out how Little Pig helps out.

Meet the Orchestra by Ann Hayes
Reading Level: Ages 3 to 8 yrs old
This is a fun and well written book that covers many of the instruments that can be found in an orchestra. There are simple explanations of what the instruments look like and how they are alike or different from each other. Your child will receive an explanation of what the instrument sounds like. The illustrations are quite fun. Each musician is an animal, which will appeal to the younger crowd. This book makes a great introduction to instruments and the orchestra.

Music Is by Lloyd Moss
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
This is an enjoyable book written in rhyme. It talks of all the fun ways music influences our lives. Lloyd Moss captures my feelings about music. It is a happy, important aspect of my life everyday. He talks of music when you wake up and music when you go to bed. Music for your birthday, 4th of July and to ring in the New Year. Music in an elevator and sometimes on a phone. Music fills our lives even when we aren’t paying attention. What would life be like without music?

Our Marching Band by Lloyd Moss
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
This is a fun little book about a group of kids that loved playing their instruments. The story starts with them getting the instrument that they each wanted. They each practiced and practiced their parts separately and although they sounded a little rough in the beginning the sounds they made together were much different. Read this inspiring tale of how dreams and practice turned them into a marching band.

The Orchestra by Mark Rubin & Alan Daniel
Reading Level: Ages 5 – 8 yrs old
This book is a wonderful introduction to music, instruments, musicians and the orchestra. It describes the different families of instruments in the orchestra: strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion. Your child will even learn different terms related to music such as melody, harmony, rhythm and tempo. The book covers a lot in simple descriptions your child can understand. I highly recommend this book as an outstanding introduction to music.

The Orchestra (Culture in Action) by Liz Miles
Reading Level: Ages 8 and up
This is a children’s book, but as you can tell by the reading level, it is for a little older child. There is a lot of great information about the orchestra, music, musicians and composers. You could still use this with a younger child who has an interest in music because it is broken up into several different sections. Sometimes you will find more than one subheading on a page. The reason this is nice is that you can read a section or two at a time, to a young child, and save some for later. I wouldn’t use this book as an introduction to orchestras for a young child but it has much valuable information for a little older child.

The Philharmonic Gets Dressed by Karla Kuskin
Reading Level: Ages 4 – 8 yrs old
As I first read through this book I was going to discard it as possible reading material for my posts on music but I had second thoughts. It is a silly book. Understand I usually like silly but I was taking my posts on music a little too seriously so I wasn’t going to suggest this book. The book goes through each step the one hundred and five members of the Philharmonic go through in getting ready for their performance that evening. It starts with them bathing and showering and then getting dressed. Oh, and it has every detail of them getting dressed; from putting on their underwear, socks or hose all the way to putting on their tuxedos or dresses. The further I read and the more I thought about it, I changed my mind and decided this would be a good book to include with my posts on music. Although it does it in a silly way, your child will get to see that the musicians are regular people with families and pets. They have to get ready for their job like everyone else. Your child will get so see some of the instruments and the different size cases they get carried in. I believe your child will have fun with this light-hearted book about the Philharmonic.

The Recorder and Other Wind Instruments (Let’s Make Music) by Rita Storey
Reading Level: 6 yrs old and above
This book covers both types of wind instruments; woodwinds and brass. Your child will learn how the instruments are made and how they are played. It gives you examples of skills you will need to build to be able to play a wind instrument, like being able to blow out a long slow breath of air (without puffing out your cheeks). They will learn what it means to buzz your lips and how to do it. The illustrations are pictures of wind instruments and people playing them. Have fun learning about the many different wind instruments.

Saxophone Sam and His Snazzy Jazz Band by Christine M. Schneider
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
This is simply a “doo dilly dilly” silly book of two children and some sneaky jazz music. The music is calling but from where? Is it coming from the kitchen, the bathroom or from underneath the bed? Follow the children as they search for the music that is overtaking the house. They are having a toe tapping good time. After reading the book, or maybe even while you are reading the book, put on some jazz music and have some fun dancing to the “zoo zoo zing” once “the band is in full swing!”

Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss
Reading Level: Ages 5 to 10 yrs old
This book is not simply about a violin (as I thought), it is actually a musical counting book. Not counting as in tempos but as in the way you count musical group settings; such as a solo, a duet, a trio, etc.. The story is told in a fun rhyming text. Your child will be exposed to many different instruments as well as the varied names for the different sized musical groups. Although the story goes up to a group of ten, they only tell you the correct names up to nine. So if you are curious, a group of ten is called a dectet. Be sure to share this with your child to find out what the special names for all the groupings are.

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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: Voices
Fun with Music: String Instruments
Fun with Music: Keyboards
Review: Rhythm! Discovery Center
Review: Peanut Butter and Jam Concerts
Bongo Boy Music School Review

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Filed Under: Music Tagged With: children and music, educational activities, family friendly, fun learning, fun with music, learning, learning fun, learning opportunities, love to laugh and learn, music, music fun

Fun with Music: Voices

September 15, 2013 by Mama Carmody 28 Comments

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

Fun with Music: Keyboards

November 18, 2013 by Mama Carmody 8 Comments

Fun with Music: Keyboards




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

There is a debate going on among musicians, both amateur and professional, as to whether a piano is a string instrument or a percussion instrument. Although a piano has strings in it, the sound is made by little hammers striking the strings. The definition of a percussion instrument is “a musical instrument (as a drum, xylophone, or maraca) sounded by striking, shaking, or scraping”. So what do you think? This might be a fun survey for your child to do with family and friends. Teach them how to make a chart from their findings.

When exploring keyboards remember there are other instruments besides the piano. In the keyboard category there are also organs, electric pianos, harpsichords, accordions and so much more. Lets have fun experimenting with keyboard instruments.

Playtime
Craft
Musical Outings
Story Time
Related Posts

Shannon shares with us:

One of the most popular instruments is the piano. Every parent wants to play it and every parent hopes that their child will learn. So we sign them up for piano lessons and at first everything is going well. But then the children are expected to practice. Repetition isn’t fun and all of a sudden the piano is not as fun as it used to be. Sound familiar?

Don’t get me wrong – I am all for children taking piano lessons, but I have encountered way too many children who are forced to take lessons because they had displayed an interest in learning, but have since fallen out of love with the idea.

Many parents ask when it is a good age to start teaching children the basics of piano. My answer – it’s never to early to let them play and explore. Structure can come later, and I’ll talk about that in a second. I have a piano in our house and it is located in the playroom. My girls will experiment by pressing the various keys, making up pretend songs, imitating myself playing the piano and also fooling around with the multitude of timbres (different instrument sounds) available. Here are my two older daughters making up songs at the piano. I have not given them any lessons, they have creatively come up with this setup (the microphone stand) on their own. I encourage their exploration, and leave it at that for now.

There are two streams of thought. Some believe that learning how to play by ear is the best way to go. Others believe that learning how to read notes off a page is other. Neither better than the other, it simply depends on the student. I learned how to read music at an early age and it has served me well. Once your child has learned the basics of reading (kindergarten) they can then grasp the basic concepts of learning how to read music. There are several method books out there which can help guide your child. Just remember that their attention span is not very long and you will be lucky to have them sit and concentrate for 15 minutes. When they are practicing try to split it up into 2 or 3 sessions of about 5 min each. Repetition can be very boring, so look to Pinterest for ideas of how to make their learning (and the repetition which is essential) fun. Click here to see Mamamusing’s Pinterest Board about Keyboards

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Playtime

If you don’t have a piano or keyboard at home, for your little ones to experiment with, there are some virtual ones online and apps for your phone. I found Virtual Piano online. It was fun to play around with but not nearly as much fun as getting my hands onto a real piano. I found a toy piano by Melissa & Doug and several toy accordions on Amazon.com that your child could have fun with.

Shannon also suggests:
Besides having a keyboard at home, there are a multitude of keyboard toys on the market: xylophones, floor pianos, keyboards, baby pianos, etc. Just give them the opportunity to explore.

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Craft

P is for Piano

Materials needed:

Keyboards: Materials Needed for Piano Craft
Keyboards: Materials Needed for Piano Craft

P – Capital Letter (comes from the set Upper Case Stencils (Large) A-Z by Lani)
White cardstock
10 Tongue depressor sized craft sticks
White paint
Black paint
White craft glue
Scissors
optional – crayons or markers

Instructions:

1. On cardstock, print the letter P template letter P template
2. Cut the 10 tongue depressor sized craft sticks to 2 ½ inches.
3. Paint them white.
4. From the scrap pieces of tongue depressor sized craft sticks, cut 7 of them to 1 ½ inches.

Cutting Craft Sticks for Piano Craft
Cutting Craft Sticks for Piano Craft

5. Paint these 7 pieces black.

Painted "Piano Keys" for Piano Craft
Painted “Piano Keys” for Piano Craft

6. Spread the white craft glue on the long “stem” side of the letter P. I like to use foam applicators for spreading glue. (The craft sticks will not go all the way from the top to the bottom so you might want to lay them out before you put down the glue just to get an idea of where you want them to end up.)
7. Add glue to the back of the black pieces and lay them out in the pattern of a piano keyboard (3 black keys, the 2 black keys) Refer to the picture if you aren’t sure how a piano keyboard looks. If you have a piano at home have your child look at your keyboard and see if they can figure out how to place the black keys.

Keyboards: Piano Craft: P is for Piano
Keyboards: Piano Craft: P is for Piano

*** Other options would be to let your child color or paint the letter P before you glue the piano keys to it. This craft would also be good when learning the alphabet. You can purchase the entire alphabet collection from Lani at Upper Case Stencils (Large) A-Z. This set would be great for crafts, when learning and practicing the alphabet, or to make up games to help with letter recognition.

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Musical Outings

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. 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 by clicking here.”

Story Time

Pianos (Music Makers) by Pamela K. Harris
Reading Level: Ages 6 and up
Your child will gather a lot of interesting information about pianos from this book. For instance, did you know that a piano is sometimes considered a string instrument? Most of the time you can’t see the strings but they are in there. Other people say that a piano is a percussion instrument because little hammers hit the strings to make the sounds you hear. Your child will learn how a piano is made and how it is played. They will hear and see that pianos come in many different shapes and sizes. They will hear about some great musicians that played and wrote music for the piano. The illustrations are pictures of pianos and people playing them. Your child will enjoy learning about pianos while reading this book.

Keyboards (Instruments and Music) by Daniel Nunn
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
This book is a great introduction to keyboards, for your young child. It explains the different types of keyboards; pianos, organs and several others. Some keyboards are small enough to carry around and others take up a large part of the auditorium. Have fun helping your child learn about keyboards with this informative but simple book.

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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: Voices
Fun with Music: String Instruments

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Filed Under: Music Tagged With: children and music, educational activities, fun learning, fun with music, keyboards, laugh, love to laugh and learn, music, music fun, organs, piano, piano craft, pianos

Fun with Music: String Instruments

October 21, 2013 by Mama Carmody 10 Comments

Fun with Music: String Instruments

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:

As a child, I was always fascinated with string instruments. In fact, the violin was the first instrument that I learned how to play. After listening to someone play the violin, I walked up to them and told them that I wanted to start lessons (not even consulting my parents of course!). One thing led to another and my studies in music began.

I find that children are familiar with the guitar, but have little to no knowledge of any other instruments in the string family. Especially in our school system, a majority of the children are only exposed to woodwind and brass instruments.

Just the other day I was watching Sesame Street with my kids and they had a skit about musical instruments and vibrations. I thought to myself…. Yes! String instruments are the best way to teach children about vibration! Drawing a bow across the strings is a great visual and tangible way to demonstrate this concept for young children. My daughter just loves to watch them, because she thinks they are cool J. All musical instruments make vibrations, but string instruments are the best example. You can also talk about pitch and that the bigger the instrument gets, the lower the vibration will sound. The smaller the instrument, the higher (and as faster) the vibration will sound. Play a game with your child and have them compare two different instruments and guess which one will make the higher/lower sound.

Content:
Playtime
Craft
Musical Outings
Story Time
Games Online
Related Posts

Playtime

More from Shannon:
One of my favourite string performers is Yo Yo Ma. He plays the cello and has an amazing talent for making the music sound so expressive. You can find a plethora of videos on YouTube. Natalie MacMaster is a very talented Canadian violin player. Another great example to listen to! (and a completely different style of playing)

Also, introduce your child to listening to music by playing all four (4) movements of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. This is played by a string quartet (4 string instruments: 2 violins, viola and cello) and each movement depicts a different season. Have your child draw a picture of what season they hear when listening to the music. (Only one movement per seating!)

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Craft

Box Guitar

Materials Needed:

String Instruments: Materials Needed
String Instruments: Materials Needed

Cardboard shoe box or similar
Rubber bands of different sizes
Paper, crayons, markers, stickers, etc. to decorate your instrument
Glue
Scissors
Paper towel roll (optional)

Instructions:

1) Cut your paper to the size you need to cover your box. (I was able to eliminate the first two steps because the box I had was solid black.)

2) Decorate the paper then glue it to the outside of your box. (We just used stickers this time. Stickers are a great fine motor activity for little hands.)

String Instruments: Decorating Box
String Instruments: Decorating Box

3) Cut a hole in one end of the box; just big enough to fit the end of a paper towel roll through.(Since we just used stickers, I cut the hole in the end of the box before we attached the stickers.)

String Instruments: Hole for Paper Towel Roll
String Instruments: Hole for Paper Towel Roll

4) Make small cuts on one end of the paper towel roll.

5) Push the end with the cuts through the hole in the end of the box.

6) Spread out the cut pieces and add some glue.

String Instruments: Glue Handle
String Instruments: Glue Handle

7) I then used duct tape to make sure the paper towel roll held in place.

String Instruments: Duct Tape
String Instruments: Duct Tape

8) Have a grown-up cut little slits on the long sides of the box. Make the same number of slits as the rubber bands you are going to use. This will help keep the rubber bands in place rather than sliding around as the child plucks them.

9) Arrange your rubber bands from largest to smallest.

10) Stretch them around your decorated box and slip them into the slits.

11) Now pluck away. Can you hear a difference between the largest rubber band and the smallest?

String Instruments: Playing Guitar
String Instruments: Playing Guitar

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Musical Outings

Stringed instruments cover everything from guitar and banjo pickin’ to violins and cellos in a symphony. 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. 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 by clicking here.”

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Story Time

Strings (Instruments and Music) by Daniel Nunn
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
This book makes a great introduction into string instruments. The text is simply a sentence or two on each page. The illustrations are actual pictures of string instruments and people playing them. Your child will get to see the many different sizes and shapes of string instruments. Have fun learning about string instruments.

Strings (The Musical Instruments of the World) by Barrie Carson Turner
Reading Level: Ages 6 and up
This book has a lot of information in it but it is laid out nicely. The book introduces you to 19 stringed instruments from around the world. You will find some instruments that are familiar to you and there are others you may have never seen before. Each instrument has it’s own page so if you just want to cover the familiar ones or if you want to break the book up into different sessions it is laid out well for that. Although this book is for a little bit older child you could use it with a younger child by becoming familiar with the text and then simply point out and discuss the different instruments rather than reading it word for word.


The Violin and Other Stringed Instruments (Let’s Make Music)
by Rita Storey
Reading Level: Ages 6 and up
This is a very informative book for children that would like to learn a little more about what string instruments are and how they work. Your child will learn about the different sizes of string instruments. They will learn how different string instruments are played; some plucked or strummed with fingers, while the musician uses a bow or pick on others. Your child will learn why some string instruments don’t need electricity to be played and others do. It’s a great book that gives a little more detail, as to how string instruments work, but is still very interesting.

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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: Voices
Fun with Music: Keyboards

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Filed Under: Music Tagged With: educational activities, fun learning, fun with music, guitar, guitar craft, learning fun, learning opportunities, music fun, string instruments

Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments

June 20, 2013 by Mama Carmody 22 Comments

Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments




This post, Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments,  is written in collaboration with Shannon Wijnker formerly blogging at Mamamusing. Shannon is a music teacher and mother of four.


Content:

Playtime
Crafts:
Drum
Shaker
Maracas
Musical Outings
Story Time
Related Posts

Children and music are a perfect combination. Starting at a very young age, children love to move to music. It is important to encourage their natural love of music. Children start banging out rhythms on things almost as soon as they can hold something in their hands. They will bang their spoons on the high chair or drum the coffee table with their hands. Most children love the opportunity to beat your pots, pans and plastic tubs with wooden spoons, if you give them the chance. Since children love banging on things so much I thought the first instrument to cover in the Fun with Music posts should be percussion instruments.

To start this learning activity I would suggest reading Percussion (Instruments and Music) by Daniel Nunn if you child is younger or Percussion (Musical Instruments of the World) by Barrie Carson Turner for an older child. There is more information about both books below in the Storytime section.

Shannon from Mamamusing wants to remind us:

When teaching young children about music, and while they are playing along with music, the subject about beat and rhythm will pop up. It is important to help your child understand the difference between rhythm and beat. Beat is like a heartbeat, it is steady and stays the same. Rhythm changes and provides variety. Usually the rhythms will follow the words (or lyrics).

When trying to teach your child about how to keep a beat, make sure to choose music that is fast. It is impossible for children to keep the beat to slow music. Most adults think slower is easier, but it is not. Children can learn to keep a beat quite easily when it is fast. Think dance music 🙂

To learn rhythm, create accompaniments to a poem. For example, ask them what instrument they would choose for “Twinkle twinkle little star” and get them to explain the reasoning behind their decision. Even if you don’t agree – let them choose! Then try keeping the beat as you sing the song. Then try the rhythm of the words.

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Playtime

Maybe your child has some percussion instruments in their toy box. Do they have a toy drum or toy xylophone? If they don’t (or even if they do) experiment with some household items. A percussion instrument is an instrument that makes sound by striking, scraping or shaking. Set out some pots, pans and plasticware, give your child a wooden spoon, spatula and anything else they can safely beat objects with and let them go at it. Talk about the different sound the different objects make. Which ones make loud sounds and which ones make quieter sounds. Experiment with the objects you are striking the pans with. Does it sound different if you hit the object with the handle of the spatula than if you hit it with the flat part of the spatula?

What kinds of things can you find around the house that make noise when your child shakes them? What about a box of rice? Make sure it’s closed tightly. Small plastic jars of spices would make different sounds when you shake them.

What kinds of things do you have around the house that make noises when you scrape them. Do you have bottles that have ridges around them? We have water bottles like that. Have your child use the wooden spoon handle or spatula handle to rub along the ridges.

Put on some music and encourage your child to play along on their household percussion instruments. Be sure to join your child in the fun.

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Crafts

Have fun creating some simple percussion instruments at home.

Drum

Materials needed:

Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments - Materials Needed to Make Drum
Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments – Materials Needed to Make Drum

Empty oatmeal box, margarine tub or similar container
Construction or craft paper
Markers
Stickers
Glue and/or tape
Scissors

Instructions:

1. Cut your paper to the size you need it to fit around your container. It may take more than one piece.
2. Glue or tape the paper to the container.
3. Let your child decorate their drum with markers and/or stickers.

Now watch your child enjoy playing some fun rhythms for you.

Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments - D.I.Y. Drum
Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments – D.I.Y. Drum

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Shaker

Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments - Materials Needed for Shaker
Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments – Materials Needed for Shaker

Materials Needed:

Empty water bottles or soda bottles
Uncooked rice or dry beans
Colorful duct tape
Stickers – foam stickers work best
Funnel (its easier to put beans in by hand, as they get stuck in the funnel)
Super glue (for adult use only)

Instructions:

1. Have your child put some rice or beans in the bottom of the bottle.
2. Help them wrap some decorative tape around their bottle.
3. Let them put some stickers on the bottle for added fun.
4. This step is for adults only: Run a bead of super glue around the inside of the bottle cap and place on the bottle. This will keep your child from opening the bottle and someone possibly choking on the beans or rice.

Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments - D.I.Y. Shaker
Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments – D.I.Y. Shaker

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I found another fun percussion instrument craft on The First Grade Parade blog. You will find the directions to make cute maracas out of plastic Easter eggs, rice, spoons and some decorative tape. Below is a picture of one I made.

Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments - Maraca
Fun with Music: Percussion Instruments – Maraca

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Musical Outings

Here are some fun places, in Indianapolis, to take your children and have some fun, hands-on experience with percussion instruments.

Bongo Boy Music, Recreational Music Center – Bongo Boy Music offers several drum circles that your child can participate in. They offer times for just the kids, times for the whole family and even a night for special needs children. Some of the events are free and some have a small fee. I include some of their events on my monthly Family Friendly Events schedule.

Rhythm! Discovery Center – The Rhythm! Discovery Center is an interactive, hands-on percussion museum. Children, as well as adults, will love the opportunity to experiment with different percussion instruments from around the world.

If you have similar attractions, in you area, please share them with me and I will add them to this post.

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Story Time

The Drum and Other Percussion Instruments (Let’s Make Music) by Rita Storey
Reading Level: Ages 6 yrs old and up
Your child will enjoy learning about drums and other percussion instruments with this fun book. They will learn how different shaped drums make different sounds. The book gives your child a couple of “experiments” to try to help them learn more about drums. One helps them see how the sounds are made and another shows them how to play different rhythms with different hands (tricky!). Your child will also get the chance to learn about several other percussion instruments. The illustrations are pictures of people playing drums and other percussion instruments.


Drum City by Thea Guidone
Reading Level: Ages 3 – 7
A fun book about kids and their thrill of drumming. They drum on anything they can get their hands on; buckets, bowls, barrels and pans.They dance and march, all while their drumming. They march into the “humdrum of the city”. Soon the children’s infection beat is caught by the adults on the street. “People in traffic” and “Mamas in rollers” and join in keeping the beat. The book is so well written that you get caught up in the fun and want to join the drum parade.

Freddie the Frog and the Mysterious Wahooooo
by Sharon Burch
Reading Level: Ages 4 – 9 yrs old
Join Freddie the Frog and his best friend, Eli the Elephant, as they discover tempos, rhythms, and beats on Tempo Island. Your child will enjoy learning to play their percussion instruments to the rhythm and beat along with Eli and Freddie. There is also a CD with the dramatized story, sing-along songs and jam tracks to play your own created rhythm.


Percussion (Instruments and Music) by Daniel Nunn
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8 yrs old
Do your children like to bang on pots, pans or tabletops? Do they like to shake the box of rice to hear the noise it makes? Then they will enjoy this book about percussion instruments. Your child will learn that there are many different kinds of percussion instruments; some you bang, some you shake and some you play tunes on. There is even a cute picture at the end of the book that shows you how to make your own toy drum at home.


Percussion (Musical Instruments of the World) by Barrie Carson Turner
Reading Level: Ages 6 and up
This book has a lot of information in it but it is laid out nicely. The book introduces you to 19 percussion instruments from around the world. You will find some instruments that are familiar to you because you see them where you live and there are others you may have never seen before. Each instrument has it’s own page so if you just want to cover the familiar ones or if you want to break the book up into different sessions it is laid out well for that. Although this book is for a little bit older child you could use it with a younger child by becoming familiar with the text and then simply point out and discuss the different instruments rather than reading it word for word.

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Related Posts

Music at an Early Age by Shannon at Mamamusing
Fun 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: Keyboards
Bongo Boy Music School Review
Rhythm! Discovery Center Review

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Filed Under: Learning Activities, Music Tagged With: children and music, drum, educational activities, fun learning, fun with music, kids and music, laugh, learn, learning, learning concepts, learning fun, learning opportunities, love, love to laugh, love to laugh and learn, making learning fun, maracas, music, music fun, percussion instruments, shaker

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