A very lively class at Robertson House this week! We used up all our energy by focusing on songs with a lot of movement and actions. One mom took it upon herself to adorn her son’s arms in jingling bells during our jam. He got such a kick out of shaking his arms around and hearing the sounds of the bells. Great to see musical family fun!
This week’s class was sweet and fun! As soon as I entered the shelter I was greeted by a girl who said “music!” very enthusiastically when she saw me. Right after that, another young girl with special needs (who is mostly non-verbal) saw me and said “Léa!” It was super special and the grown-ups and I in the room were all floored!
One of the biggest hits this class, however, was the Tibetan singing bowl I brought in for the instrument of the week. It brought a calming effect to the group, and each child was excited to try it out. One said it sounded like the ocean. The co-ordinator of the program commented on how great it was as a calming tool and said she’d like to get one for the shelter. Success!
We had a very rhythmic class at Robertson House this week. These kids and grown-ups have some great moves!! During our jam, I was happy to look down and see two sisters smiling at each other and dancing while playing the maracas in their hands perfectly to the beat. What a great moment! I look forward to another fun class next week.
Today was especially great at Birkdale because all of the kids were accompanied by a parent. Normally it’s been difficult to get parents to stay because they’re used to dropping their kids off for programs, but the staff at Birkdale have been working very hard throughout the week to ensure that parents know it’s a participatory class. Though some tried to be on their phones at the beginning, once I got them to put them away, I could instantly see how much more engaged the kids were when the parents were focused and encouraged. The next step will be getting them to be a bit less shy about singing along, but little by little we’re getting there, especially because so many folks are new to the program.
Today’s class was boisterous and fun along with some moments of distraction. There were boxes of new toys that the children were excited about and they often got distracted playing with them. I had come prepared with some new songs to try out and I noticed they lost focus the more I introduced new material. To get their attention I decided to bring out some tried and true hits, such as Sleeping Bunnies and Zoom Zoom Zoom, and then the group instantly focused and their energy sky-rocketed! One mother in particular got up and danced and had a great time. Shut the Door was also a big hit in anticipation for Halloween next month.
I had a lovely time covering for Dave at Robertson House, and I think everyone else did too! One child was teething and did not seem to be having fun at the beginning, but the best part about these classes is seeing how music can turn tears into laughter and smiles, and the wonderful collective singing of the group made that possible. I brought out the Vibraslap as the instrument of the week, which was a big hit (as always), and the kids were great with sharing it around the circle. We had an extended jam to Twist and Shout, followed by I Feel Good for the parachute, and everyone was certainly feeling that way by the time we sang our Goodbye song.
It was a pleasure to return to Birkdale for the fall session. Over the summer, a number of families have moved out and some new ones have moved in, so it was a mix of a couple of familiar faces and mostly new ones. The kids were quite bouncy, occasionally jumping on the couch, but I decided to take things slow and make sure the kids were sitting on the carpet and paying attention before moving between parts of class. Hopefully that will set a good precedent going forward. Luckily, the energy didn’t subside and the kids were all smiles. The grown-ups certainly had a handful, but hopefully next week with a few more parents things will be a bit more balanced.
The first class at ARISE last night was very fun! Some of the same families were there from last session and it was nice to see the familiar faces. The children who had done the program before seemed very excited to sing again and to clap out the rhythms to the Hello and Goodbye songs. The new children in the program also seemed to get in to the energy of the class pretty fast! I also learned after the class that this was one child's first day at the shelter. The ages ranged from 4 months to 13 years old, and everyone seemed to be engaged. Highlights included funny verses of If You’re Happy and You Know It, such as, "If you're silly and you know it... make a silly face!", as well as Johnny, Woops! and speeding up the train in Down by the Station. And as always, the parachute was a big hit.
We had a great kickoff to our fall session at Robertson House! With a big crowd of young ones and parents, there was a lot of group singing and dancing. I was so impressed by the parent participation. It’s always great to feel like you have a full choir of all ages singing with you. Despite never having been to a Rainbow Songs Foundation class before, lots of the kids were enthusiastically doing all the actions for the songs—and the parents too! I have no doubt this will be a great session at Robertson House.
Our last class at ARISE last night was very special. I could tell the moms and the children were sad to hear that it was coming to an end. I tried out some new tunes last night that the group adored, such as What Are You Wearing?, Shut the Door, and Tingalayo. Furthermore, the instrument of the week, the Ting Shaw Bells, was received with awe and curiosity! In discussion with the co-ordinator after the program, I found out that two new children who attended the class yesterday had only just arrived at the shelter the night before. They were scared and shy when they arrived yesterday, but they opened up and really relaxed during the music class. This was so meaningful to hear!! This shelter has a wonderful community and I really hope to be able to continue here in the future. The co-ordinator spoke very highly of the program, saying it's the best program she's seen to date, and that it made everyone happy and open up! What a gift to be able to be a part of this :)
Powered by Squarespace.
