Hi I’m Jayne and for the last 20 years I’ve been running my Monkey Music classes in Chelsea and Westminster.
As a professional violinist, teaching little ones has given me the opportunity to pass on my knowledge about the truly amazing benefits of exposing your baby to music right from the very start.
We have four, age-specific curriculums from babies at 3 months right up to teaching our 3-4 yr olds to read music and recognise all the instruments f the orchestra.
Over the years lots of new parents have said to me that they don’t seem to find the time to ‘play’ with their babies, there’s so much to do to get through the day, so here’s my top 5 tips on how to enjoy and introduce music at home for you and your baby.
- Play music to your baby as much as you can!
Think about your favourite songs, they evoke so many emotions and make family memories come alive.
- Make a playlist of songs to help with your routine. A gentle song for waking up, a fun upbeat playtime song, sleep time song, lunchtime song, bath time song, you’ll be amazed how well it works.
I always recommend the same songs for same part of your routine, and it doesn’t have to be just classical. Your baby will start to recognise and respond to the songs to and begin to predict what happens when they hear them.
It’s a great way for them to feel secure too, knowing what’s coming next!
- Sing to your baby, even if you think you can’t sing, you can and baby loves YOUR voice more than anyone else’s!
Think of your favourite childhood songs, make up little songs as you go thru your day to a simple tune that you know, (like Twinkle Twinkle little Star).
The key is repetition, over and over, having lots of fun as you start to see your baby ‘remember’ in those early stages!
- Search for your favourite song title online and add ‘lullaby’ at the end, you’ll be amazed how much is out there!
Then you can sing lots of lullaby versions of your favourite songs and you’ll already know the words!
- Use a song to ‘Move to the Beat’ with them too, lie them down, move arms and legs in and out, up and down, rowing, cycling actions, pushing knees into chest, bouncing up an down.
Extend this to making sounds, buy a little set of instruments or use things you have in the house, wooden spoons, bowls and pans to make sounds to the beat.
Stopping and starting, hiding things, bringing them back, all great ideas to help tracking/swatting for sounds and the grasping reflex.
Studies show that babies who are exposed to music at a very young age go on to score higher in reading, writing and maths later in life, loving music is simply the best thing you can do for you and your baby!
We'd love to show you what we do in our classes, book a FREE class by hitting timetable above or click HERE
Posted: 13/01/2023
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