Are you looking for ideas for to expand your child’s musical experiences? Making music does not have to be something done outside of the home or to be relegated to someone outside of the home causing it to happen. Music making can happen right in your living room, and parents can lead the creation.
Check out these ideas and let that music fill your house:
For Younger Kids
– Play CD’s (or You-Tube links) of traditional children’s songs to act out and/or do hand motions (i.e. “Polly Put the Kettle On” and “Itsy Bitsy Spider”).
– Play recordings of songs and ask your child imaginative questions like “What animal does this make you think of?” Slow and low sounds could be an elephant, and high soaring notes could be a bird. Maybe see if your child would like to imitate the animal movements during the song or part of the song.
– If you as the parent can sing or play an instrument, then sing or play songs for your child to enjoy hearing. Watching and hearing a parent make music goes a long way towards developing a child’s love for music.
– Together listen to songs and wave scarfs or other objects and/or wave or tap various parts of the body to the beat. This could be tapping shoulders on the beat during fast sections, waving hands through the air on a slower section, and tapping toes on another fast section.
– Ultimately, enjoy the music together. Make the time with music like a game and/or playing. If your child doesn’t join in the actions right away, that’s fine, the child is still learning by hearing and watching.
For Older Kids
– Record your teenager playing a piece from their lessons or a piece of their own creation and post the music video online.
– Ask your child or child’s music teacher to teach you the easy duet parts for “Chopsticks” or “Heart And Soul” and then have a hoot playing the duet with your child. For more fun, wear some wacky clothes or hairdo and get some selfies.
– Watch a You-Tube music video and research fun facts about the group who produced it.