Burlington Kindermusik Family Appreciation Night

You and your family are invited to our:

Burlington Kindermusik Family Appreciation Day

To celebrate how much our Kindermusik families mean to us...

DATE: Saturday January 26th, 2008
TIME: 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
LOCATION: Performance School of Music- 1600 Kerns Rd.


Join us for:

Crafts and Kindermusik Story time
Snacks and Drinks
Door Prizes!

Hope to see you all there!

Visit http://www.psmusic.ca/contact.html to find directions to the school.

RSVP: 905-319-8025 if planning on attending.

Happy Holidays

To my wonderful families,

I would like to wish you all a HAPPY HOLIDAY. For those of you travelling please drive safely. I am looking forward to seeing you again the week of Jan 7th, 2008.

Take care,

Miss Kendra.

Nurturing a young child's singing voice

These French children sing beautifully, without words. In France, they call this humming. It is a great way for children to sing and explore melodies. But I really chose this so you could hear singing in the upper register, where young children sing best. And babies are most stimulated, and become more alert when they hear singing in this upper head range. Of course, you and your young children shouldn’t try to go as high as these two. But it is beautiful, isn’t it?

Young children certainly aren’t ready for true voice lessons. But that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t sing. And there are ways that parents can help them sing correctly AND do some fun activities that will help them develop good habits and work the muscles to sing well.

• Explore the many types of noises that the mouth and voice can make
• Encourage them to sing in their upper range (higher notes)
• Play with glissando’s - sounds that start on one pitch and slide around to other pitches. Making high sounds, and sliding to low sounds actually helps children sing in their high head voice
• Hum your favorite tunes. Hum a melody, and have someone guess the song. Humming has two specific benefits according to Jean Westerman Gregg, speech-language pathologist with a specialty in voice therapy. Humming over a period of time increases the strength of the fundamental in the acoustic spectrum, thereby affecting the quality of the singing voice. Also, over an extended period of time, the vibration sensation of humming seems to increase the carrying power of the voice resulting in more volume with less effort.
• Blow with long sustained breaths. Blowing helps to increase breath control. Breath control affects the ability to speak, sing or read a complete sentence or thought. It is dependent upon the strength of the diaphragm and lungs. Blowing can benefit both the speaking and singing voice by increasing that strength. In the Imagine That class this week, we used long blowing breaths to make the scarf rise with “Windy Weather”.
• Blow into a scarf, or simply blow around a few tissues, or cotton balls.
• Have a contest where two people stand across from each other at a table, with a tissue in the middle, then see who can blow it across the table first when you are both trying to blow it.
• Blow through straws and try to move a ping pong ball in the same type of game.

Nanny Wanted

Hi Guys,

I have a mother who is looking for a Nanny please contact her directly.

I'm looking for the following:Energetic nanny needed for two school aged girls (JK and Gr 1) and a 15 month old boy. A car is required. Light housekeeping. Non-smoker. Waterdown.Please call 905-689-9524 ask for Michelle.

Performance School of Music at the Grimsby Santa Claus Parade

Santa's elves and reindeer all enjoyed a relaxing (and chilly!) evening on a tropical island, just before the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season sets in. They sang, danced and played the bells to Hawaiian Christmas music. A big thanks to Cindy, Cody, Angela, Darrick, Caitlin, Christine, Olivia, Chloe, Laura, Emma and Becky for representing the Performance School of Music in the parade. Everyone came in very creative festive & tropical costumes, even the parents! Thanks also to Henk for driving us safely through the parade, and for the adventure ride back to our cars.


Merry Christmas everyone! Have a safe and happy holiday season!

Fun and Safe Holiday Season Fact Sheet

HOLIDAY TREE

If you use a real tree:

• Add water daily.
• Choose one that is fresh (needles are hard to pull off and do not break when bent).
• Keep the tree secured in a sturdy tree stand.
• Place the tree away from traffic areas, doorways, heating vents, radiators, stoves, fireplaces and burning candles.
• Choose tinsel, artificial icicles and other trimmings made of plastic or non-leaded metals. Leaded materials are hazardous if ingested by children.
• Avoid trimmings that are sharp and breakable or have small removable parts if small children are around.

TOYS AND GIFTS

Select only toys suitable for the child's age group, and make sure to read and follow all instructions.

Toys with small parts are dangerous for children under three years of age. Keep them out of their reach.

Make sure batteries in toys for young children are properly installed and not accessible to the child. A child should not take battery-operated toys to bed.

Dispose of packing materials (such as Styrofoam pellets and plastic bags) quickly. Children can choke on these items.

Keep cosmetics (such as perfume, aftershave and nail polish remover), medications, and household cleaners out of children's sight and reach and away from heat sources.

If using cosmetics for the first time, place a small amount on the back of the hand for a couple of hours. Redness or swelling may indicate an allergy and the product should not be used.

SAFETY FIRST!

Keep lighters and matches out of reach of children.
Trimmings and candles that look or smell like food or candy should be kept away from children.

These products are attractive to children and may cause choking if they try to eat them.

CANDLES
Do not leave burning candles unattended.
Use sturdy candle holders that won't easily tip over.
Keep burning candles out of the reach of children, and away from pets, trees, decorations and wrapping paper.

HOLIDAY LIGHTS

• Use only lights that are certified by a recognized organization (CSA, ULC or cUL) to decorate your home.
• Use indoor lights for inside the home and outdoor lights for outside the home.
• Check all light bulbs before use. Replace broken or burnt out light bulbs with those recommended by the manufacturer.
• Check light strings and extension cords. Discard any that are frayed or have exposed wires, loose connections, or broken light sockets.
• Never run electrical cords through doorways or under carpets.
• Do not overload electrical outlets. Use more than one outlet if the wattage of your lights is more than the outlet can handle.
• Keep bubbling light bulbs away from children. They contain a hazardous chemical which may cause irritation or chemical burns if the bulb breaks and the chemical is released.
• Turn off all holiday lights before you go to bed or leave your home.

As printed on the Health Canada website 2007. http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/index_e.html

Why Re-enroll

There is a great article on the Kindermusik website regarding a study done in the Department of Psychology at George Mason University saying how children who are enrolled in Kindermusik have better self-control than children who are not enrolled in Kindermusik.

Another great reason to enroll for Kindermusik this winter.

Check it out!! http://www.kindermusik.com/new/2006reEnrollingFlyer.asp

Music & the Developing Brain

Here is a link to a video posted on Youtube where Julee Kowalis, a Kindermusik Educator and ABC & Me trainer, describes how a child’s brain works and how music can be such a powerful influence.

It is called Why Music?




Catch this part: As a child participates in a stimulating activity, it establishes new neural connections. Each time they repeat the activity, it strengthens this connection. These neural connections include ALL kinds of development. Musical activities engage multiple senses at once, establishing and strengthening these developmental skills.

Music includes a positive emotional element, these positive feelings bond with the learning, strengthening it even more, and making it so the child desires to repeat these learning activities over and over again. Just ask any child who has participated in a “pony ride” lap bounce activity, and the adult who has sore legs due to the amount of repetition required. “Do it again, Do it again!”

“Catching” a Steady Beat with very Young Children

A STEADY BEAT is an unchanging continuous pulse. This is different from the Rhythm Patterns of a specific song. To illustrate a steady beat, tap with each underlined syllable as you sing the song.

Do you know the Muffin Man, the muffin man, the muffin man.
Do you know the Muffin Man, who lives on Drury Lane.

RHYTHM PATTERNS are patterns of sound that fit within the steady beat. To illustrate this, tap as you sing each word of “The Muffin Man”. The ability to keep a steady beat is developed over time, and can be started with very young children. This skill is required for walking, talking, using a pair of scissors and bouncing a ball, as well as many other abilities. Feeling and moving to steady beat develops a sense of time and the ability to organize and coordinate movements within time.

Encourage, don’t Impose


Notice how Mom is helping Bobby learn a new way to keep a beat. She helps his hands swish across each other with his hands going up and down. THEN - she lets go, and continues and focuses on Bobby, watching to see how he chooses to keep the beat. She continues to sing “Wishy Washy Whee” and keep the motion going just in case he looks to her and tries to imitate her actions. WOW! Thanks Mom for a great example!

Observe, Notice, Question, and Expand - Repeat

(This is called “Scaffolding” and is a method of teaching and interacting with your child.)

The following few postings include fun ways to “catch a beat” - appropriate to the age / ability of your child. Any of the ideas for younger children can be used for older children. When adding new skills or concepts, keep in mind the goal of increasing their self-concept as a competent musical person. Try to remember to use these BEST TEACHING METHODS:

• observe first (watch to see what they already know, or if they remember what they learned last time)
• Verbally notice their actions (label, comment, and imitate what they are doing);
• Initiate activities to expand on what they are doing well and are motivated to do. Start by asking questions: “What else can you do? Can you ___? How ____ can you do it? Where else can you tap it?” You can even make connections “That looks like a _____ !”
• Invite and help them try something new, “Can you do it like this?” Let them try to imitate, but if having difficulty, assist them physically to get the idea, then let go and see if they can do it. (Like Mom shows us in the above picture.)
• Sit back and watch to see what they have learned. Then repeat the skill in a multitude of ways to reinforce their abilities, for example, swishing hands high / low, or swishing feet.

The Progression of Abilities in Keeping a Steady Beat

The ability to react to the beat in music is an important learning process. This beat is basically a walking pulse. Many young children are able to steadily tap to an “inner beat”. Yet they may have difficulty changing their “inner beat” to correspond to the pulse of music or a drumbeat. Encourage, but don’t impose an external beat too early, it may result in tension, resistance, or loss of confidence in their abilities. Encourage practicing a beat in a variety of ways (see the following posts for each specific age group). Realize that children will progress through these developmentally appropriate stages as they grow and develop their abilities:

· Let them experience a steady beat, by tapping on their knees / body part.
· Start your own beat and verbally encourage them to imitate.
· Have them walk or march (without recorded music), and watch carefully for their “inner beat”. Imitate their beat with hand movements, drum, sticks, or tongue clicks, then pace a rhyme or song to their own “inner” beat.
· Play music with a strong beat, and “catch” the beat with their hands on top of yours (clapping or tapping), or with them bouncing on your legs, etc.,
· With your hands over theirs, start beat, but remove hands after a few beats.
· While singing, practice with variety of hand movements and body movements.
· While singing, practice with percussion instruments.
· With recorded music, practice with movements and instruments
· Use beat to play simple accompaniments on melodic instruments, ie. xylophones.

KINDERMUSIK® OFFERS UNIQUE LEARNING FOR YOUNG CHILDREN

The Performance School of Music Launches Fall Semester At Grimsby Museum

Grimsby, Ontario – Last week, the Performance School of Music launched its new semester classes of Kindermusik, the world’s leading music and movement program for children from birth to seven years of age.
Kindermusik fosters the total development of young children through a combination of music and movement. Parents with newborns, toddlers, and 4 through 7-year-old children can participate in Kindermusik activities -- jingling bells, pounding drums, floating scarves, “hooting” owl sounds and little feet moving in time to music -- for a valuable learning experience for both the child and the parent or caregiver.
The Performance School of Music offers a complete development program where both children and parents learn through music and movement. Grimsby native Jennifer Averink founded the Performance School of Music 10 years ago in Burlington and began offering Kindermusik classes in 2004. Over the past three years Averink has built her Kindermusik program to Maestro status, an award from Kindermusik International in recognition of having proven masterful in reaching large numbers of families with the Kindermusik experience. Last month, Jennifer returned to Grimsby along with Kindermusik educators- Kelly Tiernay and Renae Witten, to launch her latest Kindermusik program, being offered at the Grimsby Museum.
Jennifer Averink strongly believes that Kindermusik provides a powerful experience for a child. “The many songs and activities in Kindermusik class enhance a child’s total development by strengthening physical, emotional, social, and cognitive skills at a very early age,” explains Averink. “Teaching children through Kindermusik has allowed me to experience the joy of watching children learn and grow through music. Kindermusik creates a warm, creative learning environment for both parents and children.”
Free demo classes are being offered this month for new families of all age groups, newborn to five years. Classes being offered this session are Village, newborns to 1½ years; Our Time, 1½ years to 3 years; Imagine That!, 3 to 5 year olds; and Sign & Sing, a sign language class, 6 months to 3 years old. This semester the Performance School of Music is offering classes at the Grimsby Museum on Monday mornings, Tuesday mornings and early afternoons and Saturday mornings.
To register for a free demo class, or for more info on the Kindermusik program at the Grimsby Museum, call 1-866-611-3012 or visit the Performance School of Music website at http://www.psmusic.ca/.

The newest music class for children 4-6 years old, developed by Kindermusik. The Performance School of Music is now offering this exciting new class at the Burlington and Ancaster locations. "What's so exciting?" you ask...This class is age appropriately developed for children 4-6, and it includes a piano preparation element. That means that your child will learn basic music skills specific to the piano in preparation for either the Young Child curriculum or private piano lessons. These classes are starting every 4 weeks and are being held on Tuesdays. Check the website for exact times at each location. Visit www.psmusic.ca and go to the Kindermusik page where you can download the schedule specific to your most convenient location. Check back often as classes fill quickly!

Open House Dates

Back to school is just around the corner...Can you believe we are half way through August already. I hope everyone has had a great summer and has had some time to relax and enjoy all of the sun we have had this year. My dogs and I have certainly been taking advantage of all of this fine weather!

As much as I have been loving the time off, I am really looking forward to getting back to music lessons and Kindermusik classes so that I can catch up with all of you. On that note... I want to invite everyone to this year's open house. We will be taking registrations as usualy, but this year we are also having some draws to celebrate back to school. You could be the lucky one to win a Junior Drum Kit, or a free semester of Kindermusik, or a J.J. Heart Guitar! Tell all of your friends to join you at our open house and earn some referral dollars to put toward this year's tuition. There may even be a few surprises for the kids!

The open house dates for Burlington and Ancaster are August 28th, 29th and 30th from 4-7:30 pm and on September 8th from 10:30am-2pm. The Kindermsuik open houses in Oakville are taking place on August 25th from 2-5pm (OakPark Moms & Tots) and on September 8th (time & place to be determined). In Grimsby our Kindermusik open house is scheduled for September 4th from 5-7:30 and September 15th from 10:30 - 2pm. Both Grimsby dates will be held at the Grimsby Museum.

I hope to see you all at the open house! Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Burlington PSM Renovations

I am very excited to see what the PSM will look like in September. I have hired a contractor and he's been working to build a new office. Actually we will now have 2 offices - one for Jenn and one for Kendra. These 2 offices will also serve as their teaching rooms, which means that there will be one more teaching studio come September. I have also planned for the small Kindermusik room to be expanded. More room to dance and play! I hope that you will all enjoy the upgrades as much as we will.