One of my favorite parts of the Musikgarten curriculum is its sequential nature. Musikgarten has a nine-year plan for your child, starting at birth, which can help them develop into musically minded people at a very young age. Because the curriculum is so stable, songs are repeated year to year, with new musical elements added as children mature.
In future posts, I will explore the highlights of each of our different classes for you. But for today, I wanted you to have a general overview! Many parents don’t realize that your child can attend our classes for a full nine years without repeating any particular class!
Music for Babies (0-12 months or walking well)
Our babies classes focus on fingerplays, rocking, bouncing and bonding time. In this year you will gain the tools you need to interact musically at home with your little one, and they will begin to form important brain connections building the blocks for later music making.
Music for Toddlers (1-2 years)
Music is very connected to movement, and toddlers love to move! In this class we harness their abundant energy with bouncing, spinning, clapping, jumping and rolling games. We isolate sounds for them so they can practice using their ears, and we give them opportunities to explore their singing voices.
Music for Preschoolers (3-4 years)
Preschoolers love to use their imagination, so in this class we begin telling musical stories. Children take on the role of rabbits, the wind, a carpenter or a cat. We begin to develop very simple ensembles with the children, and they start to really use their singing voice.
Pre-Piano (Kindergarten or 1st Grade)
These students love to be independent music makers, so we give them the power to succeed! We develop age appropriate ensembles, dances and songs where they will have quick success and learn the joys of making beautiful music. At this level we begin to reading and writing of simple rhythmic and melodic tonal patterns.
Keyboard (1st-3rd Grade)
Our keyboard classes are the culmination of 6-7 years of training for many children. The songs they bounced to as babies, danced to as toddlers, sang as preschoolers, and read in kindergarten are simply and easily transferred to the piano. Piano classes are not overwhelming for these children, and they love coming.