music & me
MUSIC & MOVEMENT PROGRAM FOR PARENTS AND CHILDREN
AGES 6 months - 5 years
HAMDEN SHELTON WOODBURY WOODBRIDGE MIDDLEBURY
Tel: 203.387.8390
Music & Me is a spirited music and movement program for parents and children, ages 6 months - 5 years, with a relaxed, playful orientation. We work in a drum circle with many instruments, and sing and dance. The children take small steps in their awareness of music, rhythm, tonality, and social development. We have no expectations of children performing; we simply have fun.
Music & Me is offered in Hamden, Shelton, Woodbury, Woodbridge & Middlebury. Each section has about 6-12 families. It is a 45-minute weekly class that has a 8-week fall, winter, and spring semester, and a 5 or 6-week summer session. There is a liberal make-up policy; families can come into other class sections in same semester. Marcia's classes in Hamden meet at Christ Lutheran Church. Middlebury, Woodbridge and Woodbury classes are sponsored by their Park and Rec Department. Shelton is sponsored by Shelton Community Center. You do not have to be a resident or member in order to sign up for any of these classes. For all classes, Marcia would be glad to answer any questions by phone, (203-387-8390) or e-mail, (music-and-me@att.net.)
Hamden: Marcia, 203-387-8390 or music-and-me@att.net. Price for the 8-week 2010 Fall Semester is $105 per first child, $52 for second child in family.
Woodbury: 203-263-3113
Woodbridge: 203-389-3446 or jfranco@ci.woodbridge.ct.us
Middlebury P & R: 203-758-2520
Shelton Community Center: 203-925-8442
Childlike Music-Making At Its Best
Music & Me
Marcia Nelken
What makes us remember a scintillating moment in our early childhood? Some of these moments begin to point us in a direction. I especially remember the piano and other instruments that were put in my small hands to experiment with, and my mother singing and dancing with me with colored scarves.
Twenty years ago I founded the early childhood program Music & Me in the New Haven area. After a lot of training, I began to teach music and movement in a more relaxed, spontaneous way. The parents and their young children sit around in a drum circle that has 100’s of percussive instruments placed about, including little African drums and wood xylophones. In class children have the freedom to move about the circle, pick up, collect, or play instruments, while absorbing the collective music of the group. We especially love the amadinda (large wood xylophone with the pentatonic scale) and singing of songs accompanied by guitar. We simply have fun.
In our childlike drum circle orientation we absorb music and dance at our own pace, which then makes us passionate in this kind of exploration for our whole lives. We become the new music of tomorrow. On a social level, our friendly group experience makes it easy for the young child to readily join other groups thereafter. Keep coming to Music & Me to become happy music and movement, more and more.
Children take pony rides on their little African drums
Working together is fun !
Music makes everyone happy.
Scarf Play
Xylophones for everyone!
PLAYING WITH SOUND, RHYTHM, AND MOVEMENT
"Spontaneity Is The True Partner Of Creativity"
Marcia Nelken
Small children have the natural ability to do music and dance. From the very start, they are relaxed in body and spirit, and are fascinated with what music has to offer. However, if they are not exposed early on to music-making activities and movement, although they still may be interested at age four or five, their "inner critic" becomes engaged, and they usually become somewhat reluctant to join in.
Early childhood is a special time giving us a window of opportunity where we can optimally expose the child to many different expressive experiences. The child has the ability to function with more structured tasks later on in the school setting, but in the early years, we want to expose our child to free and easy expression. These informative experiences enable the child to feel comfortable and confident within self and others, and provide the foundation of their later expression. Many accomplished artists, composers, musicians, and writers acknowledge that their early expressive experiences had critical bearing on their later achievements.
Marcia can be hired for birthday celebrations or a music hour at your home, school or facility.
Parachute Play at the end of class
Ring around the rosie