Family Time: Here, There, Everywhere! Week 1

FOUNDATIONS OF LEARNING

Vocal Play: Playing with vocal inflection – the intonations and melody of language – is a critical part of vocal development, which may begin as early as 5-7 months of age, and provides older children the opportunity to explore the complexity of communication. Vocal play allows children to practice the precise coordination of lips, tongue, and breathing necessary to speak words.

Tonal Development: most young children can easily sing minor thirds, major seconds, and perfect fourths. These intervals create a universal foundation for tonal development in children. Descending tones and smaller intervals are easier for a child to reproduce. Imitation and vocal play help children develop audiation, musical thinking, and sophisticated listening skills – fun, interactive ways to recognize pattern and meaning in sounds.

Vestibular System: The vestibular system tells our bodies and heads where we are in relation to the surface of the earth. Are we upside down, sideways, on a roller coaster, hanging from the side of a cliff? The vestibular system helps us feel gravity so we can plan movements to control balance and bilateral coordination. It also plays a role in processing auditory language, visual-spatial relationships, and even emotional security.

Pretend Play: Pretend play is the ability to transform objects and actions symbolically. If you closely watch a young child’s pretend play, you will see that he is learning about the real world around him by exploring imaginary situations. Children use pretend play to “practice and explore what is and isn’t possible. Pretend play gives children the opportunity to try out their ideas and solve problems as they create the characters and “rules” of their world.

Entraining Beat: Our bodies transmit sound vibration and are profoundly and subtly affected by the music we hear. “Entraining” our bodies to music simply means that our bodies are vibrationally in sync with the sound. Because music is “structured sound”, when we are fully entrained with music, it can have the effect of helping us focus our energy to the tasks at hand. An easy way for you to help your family become comfortable with this process is to have them simply rock or move to the beat! Moving some part of your body, if only tapping a finger, is enough to entrain you to the music. In addition to enhancing your physical energy level, music entrainment can be used to change your state of mind, enhancing creativity as well as general performance.