#MIKidsCan Make Music Together!
Julie Bitely
| 2 min read
The Music Together program is a great way to get your children involved in music at an early age.
Music Together is designed for children ages 0-7 and the grownups who love them, according to their website. It brings families, primary caregivers and early childhood professionals together in a classroom environment then facilitates family participation and spontaneous musical activity in daily life.
“It’s all play-based,” said Motor City Music Together teacher and founder Leah Celebi. “Because of that, the children are learning and they don’t totally realize it.”
“With our ten week semester, every family gets a songbook and CD. They’re playing the music at home so it becomes a part of their child’s daily life,” explained Celebi. “Then we come together [for class] for 45 minutes each week and it’s kind of a celebration of the songs the children are starting to recognize at home.”
The program is broken down into nine collections over the course of three ten-week semesters. 25 songs are learned each semester so it is ideal to start kids as early as possible. That way, the child is ready to enter a preschool situation and already has the foundations for music making.
“Being able to sing in tune and keep a steady beat are all things we’re focusing on exposing the children to,” said Celebi.
Visiting a Motor City Music Together class brought these sentiments to life. The classes are typically divided into between nine and 12 different segments, all focusing on different musical elements. Some have a rhythmic focus, others incorporate fine motor skill development with pitch and tone. A few are just freestyle sessions letting kids dance and experiment with different instruments.
But through it all, the classes provide a high-touch, face to face, heart to heart, voice to voice experience. They are bonding opportunities for kids and their families.
“I try to remind parents that even if your child is just staring at your face as you’re doing something silly, over time you’ll see changes,” said Celebi. “They might start kicking to the beat or rocking around as they crawl. That’s all part of being exposed to the music.”
Music Together programs are available internationally and are prevalent throughout the state of Michigan. To locate a class near you or to learn more about the Music Together program, visit http://www.musictogether.com.
Photo credit: Taylar Kobylas
This blog post is part of #MIKidsCan, an initiative created by Blue Cross Blue Shield Michigan to promote positive change in the health and well-being of Michigan youth. To learn more about the campaign, visit https://www.ahealthiermichigan.org/mikidscan
