We are offering Parent Education Classes through the Early Childhood Academy in Midvale, Utah to help parents gain skills in using music to promote their child’s development. Come check out the 8 week course and enjoy the benefits of bonding through music!

 

Music plays a significant role in child development and parent-child bonding, but may not come naturally to all parents. We are here to help you gain meaningful skills! In this 8 week Parent/Child Music Enrichment program parents will gain hands-on skills and confidence in using music at home daily with their child. Each week will focus on a different topic on how to use music for bonding and to promote healthy development. Topics include:

Week 1: Singing with your child
Week 2: Action Songs, Dance & Finger Plays
Week 3: Instruments
Week 4: Managing Emotions with music
Week 5: Relax with music
Week 6: Teach concepts with music
Week 7: Support transitions & Routines with songs
Week 8: Montessori and Music Therapy

 

Class Length: 8 weeks of classes @ 45 minutes each beginning Friday, November 4th
Location: Early Childhood Academy located at 154 E Myrtle Ave in Murray, UT
Dates: Groups will be on Fridays beginning in October 2016
Participants:

Track A: Parents of children age 0-3 and their child (Fridays @ 9:00-9:45)

Track B: Parents of children age 3-5 and their child (Fridays @ 1:30-2:15)

Total cost: $200

Class Fee: $175 for 8 weeks

Materials Fee: $25 includes instrument starter kit

 

 

 

Week 1: Singing with your child

This week will focus on the simple power of singing with your child. Singing is one of the most natural ways to interact with your child and doesn’t require any special equipment, recordings, or even a great voice. Your kids will just love the fact that you are singing with them or to them. Singing helps parents and children create bonds and connect on a whole new level, and is especially important in the early years with parent-infant bonding. Come learn how to use your voice to promote a deeper parent-child bond!

 

Week 2: Action Songs, Dance, & Finger Plays

This week will focus on the bonding that comes from actions paired with singing or other music. Actions bring a whole new level of involvement to the musical experience and can help your child increase memory and retention. They are also so much fun to sing and bond with your little one! We will also focus on the bonding that comes from moving and dancing with your child. This can range from simple action songs to full blown dance parties with free and exciting exploration!

 

Week 3: Instruments

This week will focus on how to use instruments to engage and play with your child at home. We will provide instrument kits (part of registration fee) for you to take home and enjoy interacting with your child. Kids LOVE creating sounds and exploring, and you can give them the tools to play and explore without too much effort. There are so many benefits that come from instrument exploration that link to improved socialization, literacy, executive functioning, sensory tolerance, following instructions, etc. Come learn how to use this powerful tool!

 

Week 4: Managing Emotions with Music

Music can be extremely helpful in helping your child to manage their emotions. Come learn what type of music to use, how to use it, and gain strategies for in-the-moment calming. We will address this topic, give examples, and also engage in active music making and bonding time with your little one!

 

Week 5: Relax with Music

This week will focus on how to use music to promote a calm and relaxing atmosphere at home. We’ll talk about ideas of what music to use to promote a calm environment and give some strategies and techniques to use at home (i.e. quiet time, personal playlists, and music to support certain routines).

 

Week 6: Teach Concepts with Music

Music is a powerful tool for learning! Use well known simple songs like “Old MacDonald” to teach about farm animals, Raffi’s “Going to the Zoo” to teach about zoo animals, “Dr. Knickerbocker” to teach numbers 1-9, “ABC’s” to teach letters, etc. We’ll give you ideas on what kinds of concepts to teach with music and where to find resources.

 

Week 7: Support Transitions & Routines with Songs

If your child struggles with everyday routines or transitions, you can sing about them as you are doing them. You can have a song for each routine such as giving your child a bath, brushing teeth, getting ready for bed, etc. I have a whole album of songs that outline the steps involved in each of these tasks and they help kids remember what to do and stay on task. You can also have a certain song you play for transitions—dinner time, getting in the car, bed time, or anything else you do regularly. This can be something you sing “it’s dinner time, dinner time, 5 minutes ‘til dinner time”, or you can have a certain recorded song you play every night before dinner (i.e. “Biscuits in the Oven” by Raffi). Come learn how to create these songs and bring some home to try out!

 

Week 8: Montessori and Music Therapy

Montessori education and music therapy are more closely related than people may think. In music therapy, we support the child’s independence, encourage exploration and intrinsic learning, and seek to help the child make their own natural discoveries. Come learn the similarities and find out how you can apply these principles at home to promote learning and growth!

 

If interested, please contact Jaycie at jaycie@elizabethacademy.com or info@harmonymusictherapy.com