- Betsyrosef
Music Throughout the Day
Updated: Aug 6, 2020
Music is everywhere and it can be so easy to put it into your day! It feels weird or intimidating at first, but once you get the hang of it, it can be so much fun!
Today's post is all about fun little ways you can incorporate music throughout your kid's day. Don't be overwhelmed, let it be fun! Here are a few way you can give it a try.
Food Playlists:
In our previous posts, we usually had a food that went with the style of music we were learning about. Now flip it, if you are making Italian for dinner ( Mac n Cheese is a pasta, hence it counts as Italian. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise), while you are cooking it, listen to Italian music! Puccini, opera, have fun!
Making Mexican food, listen to Pixar’s Coco!
Baking "pastries" or bread? Try some music in French. Don't speak french? Sing along anyway, make up words and meanings. It's your kitchen. No. One. Will. Know
You get the picture. Make it fun, be silly, dance,
Music Terms:
Ok, this one is a bit nerdier, I am a music nerd, what can I say. Switch out normal vocabulary for music terms.
Inside voices/ quiet time = piano (soft)
Outside voices= forte (for-tay) loud!
Slow down- Ritardando (ree-tar-dawn-doe)
Hurry up= Accelerando (uh- chel-or-on-doe)
Games in the Car!
Give trips a theme song!
My sister’s friend recently went on a date, and it was the first one she has been on in a long time. Our mutual friend asked her 4 year old what her theme song for going on this date should be. The 4 year started singing “For the First Time in Forever!!!!" from Frozen. So true Tiny Human. So. True.
They might surprise you on what they come up with! It doesn’t always have to be a song with words. It can be a theme or the melody from a classical piece they heard from school or movies!
Name that song!
Put a playlist on shuffle and have them try to see who can guess the song first!
You can do this with Disney songs (bonus if you also know what movie it came from)
OR take it up a notch. Put songs on as see if they can pick the artist and title.
I grew up listening to classical, but I was always awful at remembering titles. This type of game helps them start remembering things like that at a young age, before they have a really hard music listening test in Music History they are cramming for in a week because they didn’t take the professor's advice and start at the beginning of the semester.
Mix in some famous classical pieces (Check out our playlist if you need somewhere to start).
Make a big playlist with different styles of music and see if they can guess what it is? Country, Jazz, Broadway?
Movie Time
My Sister just has an almost 2 year old and a new born (one month old and the cutest thing ever!) and she was explaining Mom guilt to me. She said that, especially with being quarantined inside, you Moms just need a break, so you put a movie on. But then the Mom guilt rears it’s ugly head and you feel bad you aren’t doing something more active like that pinterest/ insta mom that seems to be perfect that you follow.
Well here are some games to make watching TV more active and help them learn so you can tell that Mom guilt to take a chill pill!
Emotions!
Remember the emotion masks from “Music and Moods?” Well keep them! Have your kids bring them out during movie time and tell each other what emotions are going on!
Theme Music:
Our favorite TV shows, kids movies, and even the beginning of Disney movies have a theme song. Have your kids see if they can find WHEN the theme song comes on each time they watch a show!
Questions to Think About
Before they watch it ask them to find one or two of these questions
What is your favorite song and why
Was there a song that sounded
Happy/ Calm
Scared
Angry
Sneaky
Can you tell me about one song that was
Slow
Fast
bouncy/ short
Smooth and flowy
Drawing Time
Put on music without words (classical, movie soundtracks, Jim Brickman, whatever strikes your fancy) and have them draw how the music sounds.
"What does that even mean" you ask? Well, anything! That's what is so fun about this. It helps them explore without a clear "right" or "wrong" answer. It might be colors, it might be shapes, Lines, Circles, full on story with beginning middle and end. Anything!
Freeze Dance
Put on any music you want and dance around like no one is watching. I personally like to play freeze dance with ‘points’ not ‘outs.’ (You get a point for if Mom, or whoever is It sees you move when the music has stopped). The person with the LEAST amount of points wins. This way you can still have a ‘winner’ if you want, but you don’t have unoccupied tiny humans sitting bored in the corner.
Added challenges to Freeze Dance
Is the song smooth and flowy sounding? Move as smooth as you can.
Heavy and loud? Stomp around! OR how can you move HEAVY without stomping
Fast/ Slow? See if your movements can match the Tempo (the speed) of the song!
A quiet song? Move as quiet as you can. Or, move quiet and small/ low to the ground.
A loud song? Move big! How Big can you make your body!
I hope you find a few in here that will work for you. Just remember, it's about having fun listening to something new.
If you want music ideas, HERE is a link to our Spotify channel
If you have any other games you like, drop them in the comments below!