Music-and-Me Mondays Re-lived

Looking for fun way to spend the day with the kids? Well, music and movement always delight little children. When the kids weren’t in preschool yet, our Monday mornings were always filled with music. During our PLAYhouse preSCHOOL days, we called it our Music-and-Me Mondays. Next to our Arts & Crafts Day (Wonderful World of Wednesday), this was their favorite time of the week. We’d spend hours listening to music, dancing to upbeat songs, and creating our own music. Of course, the music sounds a lot better when it comes from the AV Installation system instead of the kids’ makeshift instruments, but they can have a great time making their own music. These were the times when the kids discovered that drumsticks can be used to create music even without drums.

Here are some of our favorite Music-and-Me Mondays activities that you and your child may enjoy as well:

  1. Freeze Dance. Everyone knows how to play this one! You dance when the music is on and freeze when it stops. Change the rules a little bit and have the kids dance when there’s no music instead.
  2. Our Home Band. Gather items around the house that can be used to make music and form your own rock band at home.
  3. Slow Dance, Fast Dance. You will need a music player that can play music in slow or fast motion for this one. Just change the speed that the music is played and have the kids move according to the tempo. It’s really fun to see them transition from slow to fast dance.
  4. Alphabet In Motion. This is one of our faves from Baby Songs. The kids are no longer toddlers but we still love doing this. It makes for a great morning exercise as well coz we just have to do it several times over – always.

From Orphan Annie to Sharpay

Musicals were a great part of our growing up years.  Though we were not allowed to watch movies (even the ones shown on television),  we were permitted to watch musicals such as Wizard of Oz, My Fair Lady, and other classics. We never really tire of watching them even if we’ve seen the Sound of Music and such thousands of times.

Since I want my children to appreciate classic musicals as well, I’ve been building our video collection of these shows.  We already have Orphan Annie, Oliver Twist, The Sound of Music,  Mary Poppins and The King and I.  We’re still searching though for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and My Fair Lady which seem impossible to find in any local video store.

The kids though love to sing current hits as much as they love to sing Annie’s Tomorrow and the Von Trapps’ So Long Farewell.  And since we do love watching the Disney Channel, they also get to watch current musicals such as The High School Musical, Camp Rock, and Jade’s favorite – Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure.  I personally do not like Sharpay but that movie showed that she was not as shallow and self-absorbed as she was in The High School Musical.  Plus, my little ones look cute when they song My Boi and Me.

Classic or contemporary, there’s no doubt my kids love to watch anything musical.  They also love to imitate the characters that they watch.  You should see them ‘rock’ after watching Camp Rock and Hannah Montana the Movie.  I really wouldn’t be surprised if I’d see them performing with electric guitars someday.

I love it that my children appreciate the music of our time the same way that they love current hits of this generation.  Hopefully, we’d be able to cultivate their love of music well.

Dancing to the Beat

It was a great Music & Me Monday today! As always, the toddlers had fun listening to our music selection.  We had our favorite CDs out this morning. Kindermusik’s Get Up and Move, Baby Songs Collection, and Getting Smart with Mozart.  We did miss last week’s Sound of Music Singalong though so we’d definitely be inserting that into our schedule the rest of the week.

Jade already has her own dance moves and can follow the beat of the songs.  She’s actually the one who has the most fun during our music time.  Jakei has started to pay attention to what Jade and I are doing but he still just keeps to his own world most of the time.  He would dance a little or clap his hands for a little while then he’d be off running or hopping around the room.  We have gotten to stop him from throwing the maraccas in the air though (Hurray!).

Music isn’t really one of my forte.  I even remember scoring the least in Musical Intelligence when I answered a checklist on Multiple Intelligences a decade ago.  The only statement I checked that fell under “Musical Intelligence” was “tapping your fingers or feet while working or thinking.”  Although I’m not the type who’d listen to music nor sing a tune, I am making an effort for my toddlers to grow up loving music.  Fortunately, my husband is greatly talented in this field so he’s able to impart his love for music to the toddlers.  He’s the one who patiently teaches them how to sing notes and, more likely than not, he’ll also be the one to teach them how to dance.

Since this Tottering Mama is tone-deaf and has two left feet, the toddlers would have to make do with a little clapping and tapping while playing with our musical instruments during music time.  Thankfully, my little ones are so easily amused and pleased that they always have a heck of a grand time!