IMA EARLY YEARS MUSIC
0-4 YRS
Our classes offer meaningful development for your child - each session forms part of curriculum informed by the latest academic studies and understanding of childhood and musical development.
Our team of friendly tutors are passionate about helping young children and parents develop and grow their relationships with music.
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5 things we do each class:
1. WE MOVE!
Children love to move to music! Movement and action songs are a fantastic way to develop skills in rhythm and pulse, and to help children develop the motor skills and body awareness they’ll use when they pick up an instrument for the first time!
When we’re having fun finding our ears and our toes for a song, tapping our knees, bouncing up and down, or marching to music, the children are hard at work developing these important musical skills.
2. WE PLAY INSTRUMENTS
We use age-appropriate instruments that the children can control successfully to add to their music-making. We also include free time in each session for the children to explore the instruments freely and enjoy making sounds. Using these, they’ll be developing the motor skills and coordination to make music with traditional instruments when they are a little older.
3. WE EXPLORE OPPOSITES
Music is full of opposites, loud/soft, high/low, fast/slow. We’ll be exploring these in every session, repeating and varying songs to explore different speeds, volumes and pitch. Every song will be exploring some aspect of music – a mouse climbing up a clock to explore pitch, a tortoise and a hare racing to explore speed, and much more – and we also explore these opposites through different voice sounds, movement and dancing!
4. WE SING TOGETHER
The singing voice is everyone’s natural instrument, and children love to sing! Children start to really explore their singing voice at around two years of age, but they are picking up and learning songs long before this. Making animal sounds, whoops, and silly voices are all part of this, as children learn to use their voices to express themselves and make music.
We sing lots of songs, from traditional nursery rhymes, to new songs you might not have heard before, and songs we make up ourselves! Some of the songs we use are drawn from the Kodaly method of teaching music. These are very easy to sing, and use a small range of notes that are best-suited to small children’s developing voices. They are also easily adapted, with new words or actions, so we can see the children express themselves through their own improvised songs!
Sometimes songs are accompanied by live instruments played by the tutor, by simple accompaniments everyone plays together percussion, or simply by actions, clapping or tapping our knees. We keep accompaniment simple though, and tend to avoid backing tracks, so children primarily hear music sung and played by real people, giving them the confidence to join in with their own voices as soon as they can!
5. WE FEEL THE BEAT
Pulse (or the beat), is a vital part of all music, and feeling the pulse is an essential skill for all musicians. Children love to feel it – you can see this when they bounce up and down to music very early on! To help our littlest children join in and develop their sense of pulse you can tap them gently on their arms or legs, rock them to the beat, or tap gently on the soles of their feet in response to the music. Later on they’ll be clapping their hands and marching in time and playing the beat on percussion themselves!
MUSIC TIMEÂ I (0-1Â YRS)
FAMILY MUSIC CLASS
For families with children aged 0-2 yrs to enjoy music together. A unique program for infants and toddlers and their parents/caregivers.
Music TIME I features musical activities that include songs, rhymes, bounces, tickles, moving to music, and listening. Information and guidance on musical devel-opment in young children and home-based activities
is also provided.
MUSIC TIMEÂ II (2Â YRS)
FAMILY MUSIC CLASS
A continuation of the objectives of Music TIME I for parents/caregivers and children (ages 2). Children develop rhythmic and vocal skills as they engage in more independent music making activities that include: singing, movement, and playing hand-held instruments. We´ll be learning songs, moving to music, bouncing to rhymes, and exploring sounds.
For the littlest ones (who won´t be singing themselves just yet!), seeing and hearing their loved ones sing and make music is fantastic for their musical development, and we´ll use touch, movement, and colourful scarves to involve all their senses in making music!
MUSIC MAKERS (3 YRS)
Designed for 3-year-old children. Skills in singing, listening, exploring rhythm and pulse, with opportunities to play some instruments. Visiting musicians demonstrate instruments throughout the session.
We´ll involve our whole bodies through dance and action songs and we´ll be learning basic musical concepts as we play, such as dynamics, tempo and pitch.
Parents and carers take an active part in the class and we have a lote of fun making music together!
4-TISSIMO (4 YRS)
Learn through play and exploration, in this carefully structured course which teaches essential foundation skills for young musicians.
This fourth level of the early childhood music program is intended for children who are 4 years old. The class
focuses on individual musical skills and includes
singing, rhythmic activities, moving to music, musical concepts, musical games, and playing instruments. Children will begin foundational activities in understand music vocabulary.
