Tag: kindermusik florida
How we can be present for our kids at the holidays
Let’s talk PRESENCE. Life is busy, especially during the holidays. While we are in the same space as our children, you might find your mind is in a million other places. Taking some time to be mindful with our children, allows us to focus on the present moment only and not on things that have happened or things that are going to happen. When we are fully present with our children, they learn from us. When we are fully present, our children feel seen, heard, important and special.
How do we do this?
1. Slow down and just take in the present moment through all of your senses.
2. Observe your child without agenda. Simply watching and observing all the amazingness that is your child, will slow your mind down from expectation and future planning.
3. Sing a song. Music is a magical tool that naturally brings presence. It’s very hard to sing a song and think of much else in that moment!
4. Dance together. Moving with baby reduces stress and calms baby down. It also will calm your mind.
5. Come to Kindermusik! Well of course we are going to say that. Hee hee. But seriously, it’s very hard to come to Kindermusik and NOT be present because we do all of the above in class. We slow down, observe, sing and dance. Amazing! That 45 minutes each week is worth SO MUCH for learning, bonding, presence and mindfulness. Give it a try.
Happy Holidays!
Try a class for $5 (in-person & virtual)
growandsing.com
School Year 2022 – 2023 in-person and virtual classes registration is ongoing until May. We know you’ll find an option that will be the perfect learning experience for your child (or YOU, hint hint, private lessons…). Have questions? Just contact us.
We are currently offering in-person $5 preview class opportunities for our baby, young toddler and toddler music classes as well as a full preview week for $5 for virtual classes. Give Kindermusik a try! In-Person Central Florida Kindermusik classes held in Orlando and Volusia at UCF/Oviedo, Winter Park, Baldwin Park, Lake Nona, Winter Garden and Port Orange.
Holly Lesnick is owner/director of Grow and Sing Studios, an award winning Kindermusik accredited program. She is a proud mother of two amazing kids, music therapist and Kindermusik University Coach for Kindermusik Internation Corporate.
Is my child uninterested?
We are back in person which has been SO amazing! The connections, the smiles… it’s something we missed so much during our almost 18 months of being only virtual. Being in person with Kindermusik comes with some common questions from parents. These are questions we haven’t answered in a while, so we wanted to revisit this topic and see if we can reassure you that your child is thriving no matter their learning style.
Whether you are in our Kindermusik classes, another parent child class, or even getting back out there with playdates and social opportunities, you may be noticing that your child isn’t instantly jumping right in, or seemingly excited to be there. However, what you see on the surface many not be the entire story.
Children learn in so many different ways. Some learn by listening (auditory), some learn by moving (kinesthetic), and some learn by touch (tactile). Some children, especially in new environments may appear disinterested, when in reality, they might just be processing. Many times parents interpret this passive learning as their children not liking the class, activity, or experience. This might not be the case at all. In fact, when you go home, or when class ends and your child is back in their safe place, they might start showing you all that they learned. It’s quite amazing to see!
The best learning experiences are those that integrate the senses, learning domains, developmental needs, and interests of the child. For example, a great integrated activity might involve singing, language, imagination, listening, creativity, problem solving, and pretend play. This level of integration creates an optimal and meaningful learning environment for each child.
Preparing a safe and secure learning environment is a top priority. When in this type of environment, children are able to access the part of the brain which is responsible for learning and memory. With you by your child’s side, you are creating a safe, loving place to return to at any time. The key is making exploring and socializing an option, but not judging how or when your child may integrate in. Inviting them to join and participate at whatever pace they need without expectation is the best gift you can give as you both return to these kinds of activities.
I hope this eases your mind as you head back to an in-person experience. Wishing you well.
School Year 2021 – 2022 in-person and virtual classes registration is ongoing. We know you’ll find an option that will be the perfect learning experience for your child (or YOU, hint hint, private lessons…). Have questions? Just contact us.
We are currently offering in-person preview class opportunities for our baby, young toddler and toddler music classes as well as a full preview week for our virtual classes. Give Kindermusik a try! In-Person Central Florida Kindermusik classes held in Orlando and Volusia at UCF/Oviedo, Winter Park, Lake Nona, Winter Garden and Port Orange.
Holly Lesnick is owner/director of Grow and Sing Studios, an award winning Kindermusik accredited program. She is a music therapist, and proud mother of two.
Be Like Noah
We would like for you to meet Noah. He is one of our Kindermusik kids who LOVES his class. He jumps and sings and even knows that playing a violin is a cross lateral movement that helps his brain. He tells everyone! Noah smiles like this throughout class, from beginning to end. Be like Noah.
Enter to win a free summer of Kindermusik ($95 credit)!
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Spring into Kindermusik – themes and enrollment information!
Look what’s coming in January!
Kindermusik Village for Babies Newborns up to 18 months Babies under 5 months are free! Click here for info. |
Weeks 1 – 8: Cock-a-doodle-Moo! – Hop on the hayride-it’s time to head for the farm!Weeks 9 – 15: DewDrops – In this class, parents and babies will play and move together to songs about flowers.You’ll also hear traditional Irish music, dance a jig and move to the “Irish Trot.” |
Kindermusik Our Time for Toddlers 18 months – 3 1/2 years old |
Hop on the train, get in the car, board the plane, and Away We Go! This class focuses on transportation, a favorite topic for toddlers who are on the go, go, go! Sing and play along with favorite songs, such as “I’ve Been Workin’ on the Railroad” and “Wheels on the Bus”. to name a few! |
Kindermusik Imagine That for Preschoolers 3 – 5 years old
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Think of it like taking a course inside a child’s imagination. We’ll use the theme of a toy shop to make our pretend-creations, using rhythm and songs with every imaginary saw, hammer, and nail. The result is building the preschooler’s sense of a sequence of events, which is good for storytelling, as well as making his ideas a reality. |
Kindermusik for the Young Child – Semester 1 5 – 7 years old
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Using a small-group approach to music education, Kindermusik for the Young Child provides a pressure-free class where your child can develop a strong musical foundation by learning the concepts, language, notation, and vocabulary of music and its greatest composers. Everything your child learns later in semesters 2, 3, and 4 begins with this early introduction to singing, reading, and writing music and rhythm. Through dances and games that focus on rhythmic development, we’ll learn a keyboard instrument-the glockenspiel! |
Kindermusik Family Time for families, siblings and multi-ages Babies through 7 years old
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Session A (1st 5 weeks) – Animals-a-dancing
Session B (2nd 5 weeks) – Family and Friends Session C (3rd 5 weeks) – How do you feel? Dancing, hopping, rolling, and stomping. In session A, we’ll move like all of our animal friends and develop muscle coordination and spatial awareness along the way.
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Music for Aardvarks with Mr. Richard for families, siblings and multi-ages
Babies through 7 years old
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Get ready for more fun with Mr. Richard! These informal, spirited classes incorporate sing-a-longs, free-form dance breaks, and instrumental jam sessions. It’s an interactive musical party that the whole family can genuinely get excited about!! |
Grow and Sing Studios Art & Book Time 2 – 7 years old
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Each class you and your child will explore a different theme through stories, song and art! During each class your child, along with your gentle guidance, will create TWO unique art projects which are immediately available to bring home. Ms. Holly’s monthly art and book time class will enjoy many spring themes including Valentines, Rainbows, Butterflies, and even BUGS! |
Kindermusik Playdates – one time events for multi-ages Babies – 7 years old
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Our playdate schedule is ever changing and playdates are constantly added. Each month of playdates offers a different theme and focus.Coming in January – THE DRUM CIRCLE!Kindermusik Playdates are a one time 45 minute class for parents and kids on the go! |
Piano Lessons with Mr. Will | ||
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The Simply Music Method that we offer is designed to maximize the likelihood of students acquiring and retaining music as a lifelong companion. Mr. Will has spots available though they are filling fast. He is happy to offer a free trial lesson. All lessons are in East Orlando. |
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Giving Tuesday… Kindermusik scholarship available at Grow and Sing Studios
To us, every day should be a “giving” day, and we strive for that throughout the year. However, we think it’s wonderful that today, the day after Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday that we focus on how we can help others. So, we wanted to let you know what Grow and Sing Studios is doing to contribute.
TOYS FOR TOTS
In November, we started our Toys for Tots campaign. This is our final week to collect toys, and we can proudly say that we have already OVERFILLED our box! We are SO excited to turn in our full box of toys to the Marines this weekend.
KINDERMUSIK SCHOLARSHIPS
Each semester, we make available a certain number of Kindermusik scholarships for families in need. We want everyone who WANTS to benefit from the Kindermusik experience to attend, and we do our best to make this a reality. Grow and Sing Studios offers a number of scholarships per year to Arnold Palmer Hospital’s Pediatric Cardiac patients, as well as Pediatric Cancer Patients. We know medical bills are high, and we are thrilled we can bring some joy during a tough time. These scholarships cover tuition and materials so that families can just come and enjoy the experience. Most recently, we have made available scholarships to Autism Speaks and are excited to meet the families these scholarships have been awarded to.
GIVING TUESDAY SCHOLARSHIP OFFER
We would like to offer a scholarship today to a family who perhaps can’t attend right now for financial reasons, or due to medical costs are not able to attend. We want this family who is awarded this scholarship to be available to attend on a weekly basis and this offer is through May 2014. If you or a friend would like to apply to receive this gift, please CLICK HERE to fill out our easy application. At this time, we can only award one scholarship, but this may change in the near future, so we’ll keep all applications in our file and contact you if you are awarded! Applications need to be in by Friday, December 6th at 5pm. All applications will be reviewed and considered and the recipient will be notified soon. We will not announce recipient publicly. This information stays confidential. Thank you.
Have a wonderful Giving Tuesday and Happy Holidays!
October in Florida!
As our friends from up North start to gear up for cold weather, snow boots, heavy jackets and seat warmers, families here in Florida are finding ways to embrace the new “Fall” Season in our 86 degree weather!
Here are some creative ways we get into the spirit here at Kindermusik with Grow and Sing Studios in Florida (just to name a few)!
We play with colorful fabric Fall leaves INDOORS while reading a story about Autumn!
and make them magical with some “magic glitter”
We use black yarn to weave a spider web, and welcome our “itsy bitsy spider” friend!
and we gear up for what is bound to be the BEST Costume Week EVER!!
Here’s to the start of a wonderful Fall season to friends near and far!
Enjoy this coloring sheet to get you in the spirit! :)
HAPPY HAPPY FALL!
Find out more about our Fall fun:
ITSY BITSY SPIDER KINDERMUSIK PLAYDATES
Grow and Sing Studios Presents: October Demo Days
Time to register!!
While we strongly encourage the children who attend our classes to show their parents respect, we couldn’t ignore the fact that this kid has his priorities straight!
It’s time to register for classes. We start SOON! Fall classes begin the first week in September.
Click here TO VIEW CLASSES
Click here to REGISTER
We can’t wait to have you join us!
Picture Perfect!
As kids are returning to school and our classes are about to head back to session, how about spending some time documenting your kiddos. Consider taking pictures that you will cherish, without the struggle and posing that normally accompanies picture taking. How you ask? Simple. Capture your kids doing what they do naturally. Those are the pictures you will love, and that will be most memorable. Unlike the “I’m attempting to smile Mom, but my face looks like I’m growling instead” pictures. We all know those, right?
When our Kindermusik photographer Rachel V visits a studio class, she focuses on the things we don’t. Things like the way your child’s face lights up when the parachute comes out, or how excited they are to choose their own movement during the class hello ritual. Most importantly, when they look at you and see your love for them written all over your face! Those are the moments you’ll cherish forever. Not the picture of your kid standing next to a wall saying “cheese”.
And so, Grow and Sing Studios’ Ms. Leslie and Ms. Holly have some simple tricks to turn your point and shoot camera into your best friend.
1. Turn your flash OFF. Flash distorts natural color. Leslie’s favorite room to snap pictures in is the playroom. It has huge double doors to outside that lets in tons of natural light. Rachel V captured this picture in their playroom on the floor! By far the Watson’s favorite picture of their kids!
Photo courtesy of rachelvphotography.com |
2. Try to avoid interrupting your child’s play. Allow them to go about their business, and you’ll capture some gems. Try to take the pictures on their level and snap while they aren’t paying attention to you.
Pardon the mess, We were camping and C found pine cones! |
- Document time passage. For the younger kiddos, these stickers below for their shirts are so much fun! For the older kids, consider an annual “survey ritual” like this one. Fill out the survey, and save with a picture in an album each year!
4. Natural settings create beautiful memories. Whether it’s the beach, the mountains, a walk down the street or a bike ride, when a child is fully engaged in their surroundings or activity, you can’t go wrong. Ms. Holly loves capturing her family as they take evening strolls, or play at the beach. Rachel V of course captures those moments in class.
5. Have fun with FUN apps! If you are taking pictures from your phone, there are some really fun apps you can use to tweak or customize your photo. You may want to try Instagram which has fun filters and frames. If you want to create a collage or grid, try Photo Grid, or PhotoFunia. Oh the fun you can have!
Most importantly, take pictures, print some and back them up on a jump drive to keep somewhere safe in case your computer takes a hit!
Our team can’t wait to see you all in classes soon. If you haven’t registered yet, Come join us!!
Click here to view our Fall Class Offerings.
Click here to REGISTER.
Classes start the first week in September!
Content contributed by Ms. Leslie and Ms. Holly, both of whom are mommies of 2, and always snapping away!