From the National Association for the Education of Young Children*

Children are natural musicians, and exposure to music during the early years enhances the learning process by promoting language development, creativity, coordination, and social interaction. Caregivers can play an important role in incorporating music and movement into a child's life.

In music class we will sing the same songs from week to week. We will introduce only a few new songs from the CD collection each week. Notice how repeating familiar songs in class brings out the smiles with ooohs and aaahs.

Why do young children like to listen to the same song, watch the same movie, or simply do the same thing over and over again? Michael Tipper, a memory expert, has a very interesting explanation on why repetition is so very important.

ALL AGES

Some children want to march and run; others want to spend the class no more than a foot away from the teacher; some will sit in laps; while others want to observe from a cozy corner in the room. At The Music Class we recognize that there are many different learning styles, and we encourage parents to let the children be where they are comfortable. A typical class may have all of these different types of children, but all children have one thing in common: they are all watching, listening, and learning from us. So have fun and make music!

• Research shows that music is not only the best learning tool for children of all ages, but also that the earlier you expose your child to the magical world of music, the better!