Sound Beginnings
for children ages 0-4
Sound Beginnings is a a family music class and educational curriculum based upon the foundational elements of child development. It prepares children for success in Let's Play Music and Kindergarten. Classes include singing, movement, instrument play, nursey rhymes, games, stories, and ear training activities.
Taking us back to days before electronic stimulus, buttons and screens, Sound Beginnings gives parents the tools to connect with their child on an intimate, playful level. Children learn best when they feel loved and nurtured. This fact is the core of the Sound Beginnings philosophy. Sound Beginnings provides the structure for natural play between a parent and his or her child. Class time and home play time provide a solid framework for a child to learn, thrive and flourish.
Foundational Elements
Sound Beginnings includes research-based elements that stimulate growth in the areas particularly crucial to the development of young children. These elements make up the foundation of the Sound Beginnings curriculum.
Literacy and Kindergarten Skills
Research has shown that singing improves reading. Our classes prepare children for kindergarten by exploring concepts and skills such as name recognition, alphabet and phonetic awareness, counting, identifying colors, rhyming, telling time, and sequencing.
Rhythm and Beat
In class, we experience steady beat and imitate rhythmic patterns with our voices, and bodies, and through the hands-on use of instruments. We incorporate Eurythmics, a movement-based rhythm training perfect for toddlers!
Vocal and Pitch Development
Sound Beginnings channels the young voice into beautiful, in-tune singing by providing proper vocal modeling in the correct range. Solfege hand signs teach pitch relationships; the minor 3rd (SOL-MI) pattern is used to develop in-tune singing and pitch matching.
Fine Motor Skills
Little hands need to be strong in order to perform life and learning skills such as dressing oneself and writing. In class, students gain finger dexterity and hand strength as they participate in finger plays to favorite nursery rhymes and manipulate tactile props and instruments.
Gross Motor Skills
Peek into a Sound Beginnings class and you will see skipping, crawling, dancing, and jumping! Full body movement builds large muscle strength, hand-eye coordination, aids brain-hemisphere function, and develops balance in young children.
Classical Music Experience
Our classes teach intelligent listening and understanding of classical form in a fun and interactive way. Each semester we study the timbre of various instruments and our Smart Moves dances involve the whole body in an enjoyable, classical music experience.
Parent Bonding
A child learns when he or she feels loved. In class, purposeful touching, eye contact, partner activities, and generational nostalgia help develop the all-important parent/child relationship.
