Mighty and Musical

Our class at Gooch today was smaller than last week, but mighty and musical! The smaller group allowed the toddlers to really shine, and more space for all of the kids to stretch their dancing legs. We had a special guest taking photographs and it was hilarious to watch the kids either notice or not notice the photography, and sometimes ham it up for the camera. A highlight was at the end of the class when a participant grabbed a grownup's smartphone and held it to her eye like a camera/telescope – with her eye "looking" into the part of the phone that we usually speak into! For most of the class, however, the kids hardly noticed the camera because they were so engaged by the songs and instruments. We walked (and stomped, and tiptoed, and twirled, and danced)… and stopped! … our way around the circle. The children were all excited to learn about the tambourine, and jam time felt like a joyous moment for both children and adults to express themselves freely along with the music and together with one another. I love seeing how happy the grownups get during jam time, although of course the kids usually steal the show with their unabashed musical exploration, or sometimes just pausing and looking at me studiously. The kids were delighted to have parachute play to end the class, and we sang Goodbye to each child individually. Until next time…!

Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

It was good to be back at Robertson House this evening. I started it off with Thunder Pounding as the rain began to pour outside. Things brightened up with Mr. Sun and there were a lot of dance moves for Hands Together, Hands Apart. Everyone had fun shaking like crazy while playing the maracas and jamming out for You Are My Sunshine and Down In the Valley.

New Beginnings

Our first class together at Gooch was busy and active, with lots of babies, toddlers, and kids with their parents or grandparents! It was great to meet everyone and to see lots of smiling, singing faces around me – sometimes dancing around me! The parents in attendance were having a great time too, and during the jam at the end it was great to see the kids moving to the music and trying out all sorts of new instruments. Watching the children explore making music was one of my favourite parts, although their enthusiastic performance of Roly-Poly near the beginning of class also won me over from the start. I look forward to a great session at Gooch!

Welcome and Welcome Back

Today's class involved a couple of regular participants and a couple new participants! Unfortunately, one of our new participants was upset to see her mom leave, but would calm down whenever we sang – it was in the moments between songs that she would start crying again! Fortunately, we were able to flow from one song to the next quite quickly and keep her engaged with the music and actions. And, as usual, the parachute was a big hit with everyone!

Clackin' Away

Class was pretty quiet at Robertson House this evening – I think everyone was outside enjoying the heat wave. Nonetheless, class was successful and we had fun singing songs like I Shut the Door, Put Your Finger In the Air, and Sticky Sticky Bubblegum. At the end of class the moms were happy to receive certificates of completion (some for the second time) and the little ones loved clacking away with the clackers. I hope to be back at Robertson House in the spring!

Welcome!

Today had the potential to be a small class; we started with one toddler and a sleepy infant. But as our class went on, a number of moms came for some drop-in time at Jessie's Centre, and each one who came in was invited to join us in our song circle. We had a great time singing today, and got a lot of practice with the Hello Song as we sang it upon the arrival of each new participant! We were excited to welcome 3 new moms and their babies!

Coming Together

This week's class at Robertson House was a bit unusual. Some moms were in and out and children were wandering around the room. The age of the children also ranged from about 5 weeks to 5 years, so I attempted various activities to reel everyone in. Luckily, it all came together during the jam with a very spirited version of Down in the Valley. My favourite part was the 5 year old girl rockin' out on a little drum playing all kinds of rhythmic fills! I was very impressed. We'll see how the session wraps up next week.

Guitar-Loving Toddlers

We had two eager "guitar" players in class today! Our two guitar-loving toddlers each got to hold their own ukuleles and "strum along" to the songs. It was entertaining for all the grown-ups to watch them strum, then try to balance the guitar on their laps so they could also do the actions, then go back to strumming. One of our regular smaller ones really got into things today and bobbed her head along to the beat. Seeing such small kids with an innate sense of rhythm is so cool!

High Spirits

Class was calm this evening at Robertson House, but spirits and participation were high. I took some requests, like Bath Time, Little Green Frog, and Zoom, Zoom, Zoom. The moms enjoyed learning about the sruti box which was the instrument of the week. They were inspired to chant "ommm" as I passed it around the circle.

Hello, hello, hello!

Today I was greeted by a very enthusiastic toddler. She has been coming to the drop in centre with her mom for a while now, and today was the first time we could really see how singing with the Rainbow Songs Foundation has impacted her. From the moment I entered the room she was sitting in her place on the carpet, repeating “Hello, hello, hello!" over and over. Once we finally got going she was overjoyed, and the moment the Hello Song ended, she was already rolling her arms, ready to sing Roly Poly. Much of what we sang was decided by this little one as she made suggestions along the way! So wonderful to watch!