Rhyme Time!

Although we started our time together with the usual energy I've come to expect at Redwood, dancing and moving our bodies, the real highlight of our session was an extended version of Down By the Bay. All the kids took turns coming up with silly rhymes, and they were being so considerate with one another, raising their hands for their turn to jump into the song. After that, we explored our emotions through If You're Happy and You Know It by adding "if you're sad and you know it" and "if you're mad". All of the expressions were great!

Clave Stick Extravaganza!

Today I showed the class the clave sticks from Cuba. One little boy (4 yrs old) caught the complicated clave beat and was able to carry the rhythm throughout the class. It was really exciting for him, me and the other participants to see someone get the rhythm and keep it!!

Stop and Go!

A group full of smiling faces where the grown-ups were having as much fun as the kids! We had a lot of silly fun playing with songs that got us creating rhythm together with a surprise STOP! “It’s time to clap, clap your hands! It’s time to STOP!” Everyone worked hard together playing circle games that had us “GO” and “STOP” with lots of giggles. Then we all listened carefully as we played the chime bars to the beat 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! DING!

Bells Bells Bells!

Another great class at Robertson House this week! We had so much fun starting songs off slow and then gradually speeding them up. We also had a lot of fun attaching body bells to our wrists and ankles. As we sang Shake It Baby we couldn’t help but stand up and dance around! Looking forward to more classes like this one.

Feel the Rhythm

This week we took advantage of the fact that we've got a bit of an adolescent group, so we got a bit technical with our time together. We worked out different types of rhythms, like comparing a "regular" 4/4 beat to a waltzing 3/4, and also with different tempos, like going twice as fast every time I called out "double time!" It was great to see everyone really taking in and embodying their musicality. We also sang en français! We named different body parts and even tied it into our instrument, the tambourine, which translates as "little drum" – as one of the grown-ups rightly picked up on as we talked about it!

Rainy Day Fun

We had a much larger group this week at the Plaza and a whole lot of energy on a rainy day! We started with some weather-appropriate songs like Thunder Pounding and Rain Rain Go Away. The kids loved making the rain sign with their hands. Once we moved to other songs like The Rooster Song and Mr Sun, they were eager to keep participating in the signs. I recognized some kids from last session who weren't there last week and it was amazing to see how much they've grown over the summer! They still remember all the songs and even called some of the lyrics out before I sang them. Rainy days tend to make people antsy, so I included lots of jumping songs today and the kids continued to bounce even after the songs were all over. This group loves my guitar, so I finished the class by letting them strum my guitar while I sang the Goodbye song a cappella.

The Birds are Singing!

This week’s class at Robertson was a hoot! With a great turnout and the usual enthusiasm from the parents, we were bound to have a great time. As part of our “Number of the Week” activity, we sang Two Little Blackbirds. It was so great to see the kids trying hard to get all the actions right in addition to singing. What fun!

Back in Action

It was great to be back at the Redwood this week! It was quite a large group tonight with a big range of ages, from one-year-olds to pre-teens. It was initially challenging to find songs that caught the attention of the whole group, but we found our way with a little help from some drums. They have several djembes at the shelter, so I taught our clave rhythm (or just had them tap out the last two beats) to the older kids, and they played that while younger kids jumped around for Five Little Monkeys. We continued working with rhythm, taking turns with the drums, with everyone else either clapping their hands, slapping their knees, or stomping their feet. This group is going to keep me on my toes, I can tell!

Shake It Baby Shake It!!

Today we had a better turnout, and the caregivers and children alike were super excited to be there. We explored different rhythms on the tambourine, and the class particularly liked shaking it to the bottom, to the top, around and around and around, until they had to STOP during the Shake It Baby Shake It song.

Great to Be Back!

It was so wonderful to return to the Plaza Hotel for another session. There were some familiar faces and some new ones, but everyone had an unbelievable amount of energy and excitement. The kids delighted in going around the circle with names for the Hello song, and some of the older kids helped the young ones clap along. That rhythm stuck around all throughout class, through songs like I Wake Up My Hands and Sticky Sticky Bubblegum. When it came time for the jam bag, I had eager helpers to bring it out. I introduced the instruments one by one and was amazed at how easily the kids shared them without diving into the bag. We finished with a great jam and once it was all over, I heard one of the kids yell "SO MUCH FUN". I couldn't agree more.