Dear Parents,
I was looking back at some of the pictures on the website and realized just how much the children have grown over the course of the year. I am really enjoying some extra time in the toddler wing this summer, and am struck at how well they are singing along and how many songs they can sing. They sing out especially well when I bring my guitar.
The Birch classroom loves to do the “Jumping Song,” and try to see how many verses they can jump along to before they get tired. Aspen preferred the rocking song, “Hush Little Baby.” Dogwood often requested the “Doggy Song,” which is a medley of “How Much is that Doggy in the Window” and “Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone.” Dogwood also really enjoyed the new song, “Hush, Hush.” All of the classrooms enjoy singing the “ABC Song,” “Wheels on the Bus,” “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” and “Apples, Peaches.” The Mountain/Garden group have responded the most to, “The More We Get Together,” which I understand is sung often in the classroom. Some of them bounce or sign along while I sing and play. Other new songs this month include,“Somebody’s Calling My Name,” “Who’s That?” the call and response song, “Hambone,” “Did You Ever See a Lassie,” “Comin’ Round the Mountain,” “Somebody’s Knocking,” and “When the Train Comes Along.”
In addition to singing together, we do movement, listening, rhythm and tonal exploration, and music appreciation. For music appreciation this month we have read, sang and listened to the singing stories of, “Over the Rainbow,” “My Favorite Things,” and “Puff the Magic Dragon.” The movement songs include, “When The Train Comes Along,” “This Train,” “Did You Ever See A Lassie,” and “Hush Little Baby.” The listening sounds included a comparison of loud and quiet with whispering and shouting, and a doorbell and knocking. The rhythm and tonal exploration is done using a toy microphone and echoed patterns. The Aspen classroom has also begun learning Kodaly rhythm syllables for the quarter note (ta) and eighth note (ti, ti).
I would again like to bring your attention to the enrichment opportunities from the Colorado Music Festival. There is a poster with concert dates posted in the lobby. There are several free or low cost music events especially designed for families. As always, I enjoy hearing from you. If you have any questions or comments please don’t hesitate to let me know.
Ms Kathleen