Ms. Margot's Early Learning Blog: 2024

Sunday, December 29, 2024

High Contrast and Soothing Music Videos for Babies and Children!

I'm overjoyed to announce a new addition to my family! I'm enjoying the cuddles, bonding, and SINGING that I get to experience again with a new baby. I started caring for my first baby 16 years ago. Luckily I have kept my focus on caring for young children as a children's musician and music educator- so I feel ready and excited for this adventure to start again, and maybe even better prepared and knowledgable than the first time!

Understandably enough, the live filming I was doing isn't as easy now, so instead I have rediscovered the songs from my first album by making animated music videos for them. These songs were written with inspiration from caring for my baby at that time. As I care for my baby now, I'm remembering what prompted each line, and the feelings the words and music evoked in me many years ago. I'd like to share a bit of that with you here, in hopes that these feelings resonate with you, and that these songs might fill your home as well.

"Oh Constellation" was a song I started to write with inspiration from an older student of mine, and my own love of stargazing. I finished the song after having my first baby, and the song took on new meaning. Any new parent shares an affinity to the night, with the necessity of around the clock care. Alone at night, struggling to stay awake, we dig deep for inner strength. Searching for inspiration by connecting with stories in the stars may only be possible in one's imagination, but feelings of being tethered to the universe in some significant way are real and can help us find that strength when needed.

I designed "Oh Constellation" with high contrast, black and white graphics. This is because baby can see these shapes. Your baby will not be interested in looking for very long, but for a moment or two it may help develop baby's optic nerves. Plus it looks kind of cool for the theme of stars and being awake at night with your baby!

I wrote "Time for Peace" when my first baby was around two. There are moments that all of us, parents or otherwise, might wish were more peaceful. Parents of toddlers will understand that particularly well, but my wish was to create something more universal and that would perhaps take on more significant meaning around the holidays. It's an easy song to sing, and I've done this one several times with children's choirs. (All three of the songs I'm writing about today have sheet music you can purchase and use)!

With the animation for "Time for Peace," I tried to tell simple stories of dismay and peaceful resolution with the help of a caregiver, in addition to advocating for peace for all of us around the world. For those of us who experience unsettling times and assist young ones into feeling more peaceful, this wish for universal peace is made with sincere empathy. It's always time for peace, for everyone, everywhere, particularly for our children!

The last song I'll talk about today is "Lullaby." This is another song about which I first had an idea to write based off my work with older children. It simply calls to attention the learning, imagination, and awareness we experience during the day. I added the the verse about soothing to sleep and the dreams we have while sleeping after caring for my baby. I realized that whatever I helped my baby experience would be processed uniquely and kept by them throughout their whole life: "Put it in your pocket, safe with you."

"Lullaby," is designed simply to portray those images and ideas in high contrast. The music reflects gentle rocking, and the flute solo adds a tender beauty that attempts to capture that special moment of bonding made between caregiver and child before sleep.

These songs are all available on ITunes, Spotify, and Amazon! Sheet Music is available at SheetMusicDirect.

If you are new to my Blog, YouTube, Instagram, or Facebook, please follow, like, and subscribe! I’m revamping all of my resources so would love to connect with you! I also have a new website- Msmargotsmusic.com! Check it out to listen to and purchase my albums or book me to teach, perform, or lead a workshop for teachers!

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

Jingle Bell Songs that Bring Joy and Kindness!

For those new to my blog, I’m an advocate for early childhood education because the human brain develops the most from 0-6 years old. Whatever children experience during this window of time makes a huge impact on their lives. At the same time, I know life (and the world) happens, and we can’t always protect our children from everything. That’s okay! There are still going to be so many opportunities to help our kids. The more we care for them throughout their entire development, the more they’ll be able to care for their children- and for our world!

(I also want to say at this time that I am a genuine person and not AI. This blog is older than AI, and so am I! [Insert plug for reading my past articles here]. Also I can write good too- haha funny, actually not funny in a horrible, soul crushing way).

I start my blog like this today because I want to address again the impact of stress on families during the holiday season- as a human, parent, and teacher who has experienced this phenomenon many times now. We all want our little ones to experience the magic and joy of the season, but no matter how much support or resources you may have, the “perfect” holiday doesn’t really exist for anyone.

The added pressure of bringing joy during the holidays may push us past our limits at times. This pressure is added on to the additional stresses we feel with the colder weather and shorter hours of daylight- and possibly more sugary treats and less playtime for your little ones outdoors. The result is everyone ends up cranky! You are not the only one.

So- what can we do about this? Try singing! By using your familiar voice rhymically, your little ones will already have an ear just for you! (Teachers- that sing-song voice you use gets the attention of your young students)! In addition, with its required deeper breathing, science has shown that when we sing, our own stress hormones decrease. If we can sing while our little ones interact with the music by “attuned” listening, with movement, and their own increasing ability to sing, it’s a win-win and everybody will calm down.

It’s likely that this increased stress brought about all of our traditional songs we sing around the holidays. “Ring-a-ting-a-ling” and “Ring Your Bells for Kindness” are new ones I wrote to add to this well of peaceful resources for your family. They are designed to be easy to sing. The bright sound of a jingle bell will also add to changing the mood to one of levity around your house. (Pro tip- make your own jingle bell like the one here with ONE jingle bell attached. That way the sound won’t become too loud and annoying).

Ring-a-ting-a-ling

Jingle bell ring

Ring-a-ting-a-ling

We ring and sing

Ring-a-ting-a-ling

Kindness and care

Ring-a-ting-a-ling

Love everywhere

Ring-a-ting-a-ling

Magic and fun

Ring-a-ting-a-ling

For everyone

Ring-a-ting-a-ling (4x)

Hear the bells' joyful ring

Ring them while we sing

Jingle bells, fill the air

We bring joy to share

Ring your bells for kindness

For friends who show they care

Ring your bells for empathy

For friendship everywhere

It’s our wish to be kind

With our heart and mind

With our song, We bring fun

Love for everyone

Ring your bells for kindness

For friends who show they care

Ring your bells for empathy

For friendship everywhere

For all those who might need

Caring friends today

We’ll let love take the lead

As we sing and play

Ring your bells for kindness

For friends who show they care

Ring your bells for empathy

For friendship everywhere

Sunday, December 1, 2024

Holiday & Winter Songs that Help Young Children Calm Down

With changes of routine to accommodate travel and celebrations, the holidays can be an exciting (and stressful) time for families! Sometimes we don't realize how much that affects our young children until they show us they are REALLY tired and cranky. In order to help my students cope this year, I wrote two songs that incorporate deep breathing.

Can preschoolers practice mindfulness this way? Absolutely! I started more intentionally incorporating deep breathing as a warm up for my classes during the pandemic. It's quick, easy, and helps the brain and body focus and cope with transitions/change. Starting to practice calming breaths at a young age can help develop an extremely helpful, life long coping strategy!

Making the sound of the wind blowing the snow, "Whoosh!" (Tiny Little Snowflakes) and incorporating breathing into a sort of playful freeze dance song (Peaceful Like the Snow) also encourages children to try deep breathing without too much pressure. Give the songs a try to incorporate some (calming) fun into your day!

Tiny little snowflakes

Falling on me

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Falling snow, gentle snow, peaceful like the snow

(Breathe)

Twirling snow, whirling snow, spinning like the snow

(Breathe)

Blizzard snow, frozen snow, melting, melting

Falling snow, gentle snow, peaceful like the snow

(Breathe)

Saturday, November 23, 2024

Thankfulness Songs that Help Young Children Develop Empathy

To continue my study and practice of using music to help develop empathy, this year I wrote a new song about thankfulness. I wanted a simple song that shared ways to show gratitude, one not necessarily tied to Thanksgiving, but one that could be used throughout the year. Gratitude is that awareness that someone is caring for us AND acknowledging that care. It's empathy because we need to be able to understand someone else's intentions.

Luckily, there are so many opportunities to say, “Thank you,” so there are many chances to practice developing that empathy! Every time children are served food, every time children receive help with anything, we can help our little ones to give thanks. Giving your children an opportunity to remember to show gratitude before giving a gentle reminder helps them develop a habit of saying, "Thank you." Heap on the praise when they remember!

And of course having songs that celebrate thankfulness help as well! Here are the words to the two I'm sharing this week:

1. "Thank You"

Thank you for the sun

Thank you for the sky

Thank for the rain

And for the birds that fly

Thank you for the stars

That twinkle in the night

They mean the world to me

(This is another one where I can't find the composer, and another one I learned while teaching at Black Pine Forest School in Berkeley, CA)!

[chorus]

Giving Thanks, giving thanks

We give thanks for the world, we give thanks

We give thanks for our food, we give thanks

We can show our thanks when we eat our food

[chorus]

We give thanks for our home, we give thanks

We can show our thanks when keep things clean

[chorus]

We give thanks for our friends, we give thanks

We can show our thanks when we care for friends

[chorus]

We give thanks for our love, we give thanks

We can show our thanks when we share our love

Here are the words in Spanish!

[chorus]

Gracias, gracias

Gracias por el mundo, gracias

Por el comido, gracias

Tenemos gratitud cuando comemos

[chorus]

Por la casa, gracias

Tenemos gratitud cuando limpiamos

[chorus]

Por los amigos, gracias

Tenemos gratitud cuando preocupamos

[chorus]

Por el amor, gracias

Tenemos gratitud cuando amamos

[chorus]

Saturday, November 16, 2024

Kindness Songs that Help Young Children Practice Kindness!

After writing about developing skills for understanding kindness and empathy for the past few months, I wrote a couple of my own songs about kindness to use in my music classes. The choices I made to include movement, ASL, and taking turns allowed me to engage the students. The songs helped us practice kindness! Here's a video of the songs, and notes on how I used them below.

Kindness grows like a rainbow

Kindness grows in your heart

Kindness is all colors

Love is where it starts

We are kind to _____

We say "I love you"

When we're kind our rainbow

Shines so brightly too, Whoo!

First of all, using scarves is a favorite activity for my classes. In this song, the best part is tossing the scarves on "Whoo!" In addition, if you read my previous blog, you also know that the differently colored scarves are a learning opportunity as well, hence the line, "Kindness is all colors."

The other great thing about this song is that you or your children can choose what to put in the blank for the line, "We are kind to _____." In the video above, you'll see that I chose family, friends, etc. In my classes, however, we took turns putting everyone's name in. If you have a lot of kids, you can get creative on how you do that (a few at a time, take turns over multiple classes, etc).

In my classes, I got everyone's name in, but I didn't return to the "Kindness grows like a rainbow" part until the very end, which made it go faster. Taking turns like this gave everyone a chance to receive that love and kindness from the class, which was the best part! Saying "I love you" is just one kind thing to say that fits with the music. You can play around with different kind things to say for that part as well!

In a world

Where you can be

Anything

Be Kind

It's our world

That we share

It's our choice

It's our love

We play

We laugh

We learn

We love

We say

Kind words

We do

Kind things

We see

Your tears

We care

We help

In a world

Where you can be

Anything

Be Kind

It's our world

That we share

It's our choice

It's our love

This is an echo song, which turns up the listening and participation right away. In a way, it's an act of kindness to fully commit to singing together, and I remember really enjoying hearing the kids' voices in the quick back and forth. My hope for this song is that it shows kindness in actions that children are able to do- and choose to do using empathy!

Before I go today, I would be remiss if I didn't say a few words about Ella Jenkins, who passed away recently at 100 years old! If you aren't familiar with Ella's music, if you follow the link, you'll probably discover that some of the songs your music teacher used with you were on her groundbreaking children's music albums. The best thing about Ella's music was that it was designed to be singable by everyone, even from a very young age. Thank you Ella, for paving the road for children's music!

How Ella Jenkins Revolutionized Children's Music - The New York Times

Saturday, November 9, 2024

Helping Students With "Get What You Get and Don't Throw a Fit" in Preschool Music Class

Looking at these rainbow colored movement scarves drying after a routine washing reminded me of some teachable moments I leaned into recently. This year I am working with many new preschool and toddler classrooms. In our initial work with differently colored egg shakers, bean bags, and scarves, we encountered some discord.

I hand students these materials from a bag, and it’s a “get what you get” kind of situation. Some teachers and parents may be familiar with the saying, “Get what you get, and don’t throw a fit!” I prefer saying something like, “All the colors are so beautiful!” or “All of the [materials] work the same!”

However some students had trouble with this. They had zeroed in on a particular color and felt they should receive that color. When this didn’t happen, one student complained loudly, and when she realized nothing would change, she threw her beanbag across the circle. Others also expressed outrage, but then begrudgingly settled in with the color they had. Still others decided to give it right back to me and not to participate. And, yes, a couple students had tantrums. (Not all in the same class, thankfully).

If we zoom out a bit from this scenario, we can make several connections to typical human behaviors. A big one that jumps out at me is a sense of entitlement, that expectation that if we express a desire for something, that wish is likely to be filled. I don’t enjoy seeing students have tantrums, but I know there is a reason teachers consistently enforce avoiding individual wish fulfillment in group situations like this. Students need to learn that it’s okay to have an outcome that is not their preference, and be able to accept an outcome that reflects fairness and the needs of others (not enough time or colors to give everyone their preference).

Another parallel I see is the tendency to get so emotionally invested in a personal preference as to believe that your preference is the best, and that all others are inferior. We descend very quickly into a dicey area of intolerance if we believe certain colors are better than others. That isn’t to say that we can’t have a favorite color. We can make individual choices that reflect our preference- such as clothing or artistic choices. However, we can’t impose our preference at the hindrance of others in a group situation, causing them harm or injustice.

Again, if we take a broader view of human behavior, things would seem unfair and out of balance if individuals were rewarded for throwing tantrums and expressing intolerance, unaware of the needs of others. You wanted the red egg? Okay here it is for you. (I would need to take someone else’s red egg and give it to the student throwing the tantrum). This dynamic doesn’t change whether it’s one person throwing a fit, or many. Discontent is easily felt and spread, especially if we give in to a lack of empathy.

Until age 6, a young child’s brain hasn’t developed the cerebral cortex enough to show true empathy without the support of their caregivers. (This process continues until age 25, but with less and less support required). However, by helping students practice tolerance and empathy now, we'll hopefully prepare them to continue being tolerant and empathetic in the future!

So... let’s zoom back in. (I know, I got a little metacognitive there). Here’s what I did to help my students- and what you can do! I’m hoping this is accessible for you to try as well. However, this is just one idea! I would love to hear your ideas around “Get what you get, and don’t throw a fit!” Put them in the comments below or on the corresponding posts on my socials. Check out my YouTube below to hear the songs and see the corresponding movement and signs you can use.

1. I played a game where the scarves became butterflies and visited each child. There was no complaining, and students enjoyed hearing their names in the song. (And I got a chance to practice learning their names)! Before I started, I showed students how to make a butterfly by holding the scarf in the middle to make two wings. When they got a scarf, they did this and made their butterfly “fly.”

Flittery, fluttery [student’s name except starting with a “Fl” sound]

A butterfly flew to [student’s name]

(An adaptation of the song “Willoby Walloby Woo,” by Raffi)

2. I said, “Wow, look at all the beautiful butterflies!” (It’s really an impressive sight with all the different colors). Then I sang a song called “All the Colors of the Rainbow.”

I see red butterflies, and orange butterflies

And yellow butterflies, and green butterflies

And all of them are gifts of love add beauty to this world

All the colors of the rainbow

All the shades of light and dark

All the colors of the rainbow

How beautiful they are

I see light butterflies, and dark butterflies

Blue and purple butterflies, and pink butterflies

And all of them together blend in perfect harmony

All the colors of the rainbow

All the shades of light and dark

All the colors of the rainbow

How beautiful they are

For a later lesson, you can sing this version with Spanish words:

Veo rojo, y naranja

Amarillo, y verde

Y todos

Los colores

Estan bonitos

Todos los colores

Todos los tonos

Todos los colores

Que bonitos colores

Veo tonos claros y oscuros

Azul y morado, y rosa

Y todos

Los colores

Cantan en armonia

Todos los colores

Todos los tonos

Todos los colores

Que bonitos colores

(After a quick Google search, I couldn’t find the composer of the song. I learned the song while working in Berkeley, CA, at Black Pine Forest School).

3. Now when a student expresses a preference for one color of the rainbow, I remind them of this song. Students are much more able to not only tolerate but celebrate the color they have. In fact, they express happiness and excitement when they are handed different colors. (Sometimes to the point of bragging- but that’s a topic for another blog)!