Frogs to the rescue! This group loves to explore different instruments. Today I introduced them to the guiro, the frog shaped guiro. We experimented with the different sized frogs and listened for their different music sounds. Together we practiced waiting and watching and listening to the instrument. Then we shared them around the circle. It was a lot of fun!
We had a pleasant evening for our first piano and ukulele classes of the session. We learned about the basics of the instruments and how to play separate notes and basic chords. We all practiced our C chord and played different strumming patterns.
The first week of any program is always an introduction to the students and an opportunity for them to get to know me! I was working with two lovely groups of students. The first were beyond excited to explore the xylophone style instrument, they were very receptive to music games and visual examples, so I will include more next week! My second group of two singers were nervous but really adventurous and sang every note without hesitation. I asked them to tell me about music they love, so now I have some homework to do! My favourite kind - listening to new music!
Today marked the first music therapy group session at Robertson House! The attendees came into the room to find a circle of chairs with a collection of different musical instruments in the centre. The children were quick to explore the instruments, shaking shakers and banging drums. Together the group members chose instruments to engage with and began playing. Group members laughed and smiled at one another while playing musical games to get warmed up to the space. Once we all became familiar with the instruments, we improvised music together as a group. As the music progressed and the group members appeared to gain more confidence in their playing, they began to play louder and with more musical complexity. Group members had an opportunity to play a musical solo while the group accompanied on their instruments, the solos sounded great and everyone had something different they created. When asked if they wanted to continue playing or listen to music instead, the group decided to keep playing. We discussed how we wanted the last musical piece to sound, group members said they wanted to make something that sounded happy and joyful. The music was accompanied with smiling faces and enthusiastic playing, a moment of connection through live music making.
I was back at Arise this week after having to cancel last week due to losing my voice. It was lovely to be back! Highlights included Round and Round the Garden, which was a request from the mom of a young toddler, making said toddler giggle with delight, Sleeping Bunnies under the parachute, and rhythm sticks. The aforementioned toddler also kept going from her mother to another woman she felt comfortable with, and it was nice to see the moms helping each other out in this way. There is a nice community feel at this shelter.
All the kids had very Big Energy at our class this week. So I thought it would be a good time to work on our musical dynamics. We experimented singing very quietly and slowly getting louder and louder. Next week I will teach them a volume game where we can turn our music up to 10 or down to 1. We are still getting to know each other and learning the class routine, hopefully as we do the children will improve their focus and we can continue to grow our musical skills. These kids really like free movement, dance, and playing with instruments.
With great energy and excitement, the group had lots of fun in our class of the week. A highlight was the enthusiastic jam we had with Baby Beluga and our movement song of the day, in which we all rode our “bikes” as we froze to the red light and kept riding when encountering a green light throughout the song.
I was greeted with such a warm welcome for our first week of classes. The kids were buzzing with anticipation. I decided to stick to the classics so that everyone felt included and could be confident when singing along. The energy was wild and excited! I was thrilled to have the children's mothers participate too! Everyone was having a lovely time.
What a great time we all had restarting the music classes at Robertson House. With a lot of movement, dancing and singing, we had a blast sharing music with this exciting group. We also had a fun jam with lots of different instruments to choose from and played with the colourful and awesome parachute!
This week's class at Arise was a fun one! It was a real joy to make music together, especially with a group that had quite a bit of energy and enthusiasm! For example, a new family joined with a young child who is very energetic and loves to dance, and she had the whole class in stitches! She is definitely the life of the party, and her energy lifted everyone around her. Songs this week included Sleeping Bunnies, The Rooster Song, Shake Your Sillies Out, and a jam session of Hot Hot Hot, and Twist and Shout. But it was the Instrument of the Week that was the real highlight of the class. I brought out a Caribbean instrument called an "A Go Go," and immediately an older boy who seemed ambivalent to the class became very interested in trying it out . He insisted on keeping the instrument for the jam session and had a lot of fun with it! I am realizing that for Rainbow Songs Foundation classes, the instrument of the week is a great tool to engage older children in the class.
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