Monkey Chatter

Happy January, everyone!  And a happy New Year to those of you who celebrate at this time.

With the New Year comes a new term and I couldn't be more excited for this year's Spring topics!  

In our Stage 1 class, Rock'n'Roll, we will be learning about 'Faces'.  Young babies show more interest in faces than any other objects, and research shows that their fascination with faces begins even before birth (watch out on our Facebook and Instagram for more about that this week!) so this topic is a particularly wonderful one to experience if you and your baby are joining us for the first time.

In Stage 2, Heigh-Ho, our topic is 'Transport', with some of my own Monkey Music favourite songs and activities!  Our toddlers will be driving cars and buses, rowing and sailing boats, flying high in our aeroplanes, choo-chooing in trains and riding some wonderful animals - some you might expect and some that will surprise you! - but all will delight you and your little one as you share pecious time together!

Our Stage 3 class, Jiggety-Jig, sees our 2 and 3 year olds 'Dressing Up'!  Pretend play is hugely important for toddlers and young children as it's a safe way for them to experiment and test boundaries.  When we pretend, we can be anything and anywhere we wish - this gives little ones a fantastic sense of freedom and encourages their imagination, boosting self-confidence and self-esteem.  

Finally, in our very clever Stage 4 Ding-Dong class, we are learning about 'The Brass Family'!  This advanced class introduces a different family of the orchestra each half term, whilst teaching our 3 and 4 year olds to read and play rhythm patterns in symbolic notation, and encourages them to create, write and perform their own compositions!  What a wonderful way to bring together all our learning and prepare our little friends to choose and learn an instrument of their own!