Last week we did something we’ve never done before: we sent an email to all of our class participants asking for their feedback in the form of a short survey. The results have been eye-opening (in a good way).
I’ll admit, it’s a little scary reaching out and asking people for their honest and anonymous opinions on the work we do. We pour our hearts into creating and implementing each class, but we know they are far from perfect. There’s always room for improvement, and we wanted to take the guesswork out of making them even better for our families.
Awesomely, the consensus so far is that we should keep doing what we’re doing, with some tweaks here and there. Many parents have suggested specific types of songs and activities they would like to see added, along with ways to elicit even more participation and opportunities for learning.
We’ve also gotten feedback regarding the length of our sessions, class sizes, and days on which classes should be offered. It’s been super helpful for future planning.
If you’re interested in asking YOUR families for feedback, you can check out the survey we sent here. It’s super simple, and at some point we’ll probably send out something more in-depth, but for now, the types of responses we’ve been receiving are exactly what we need.
One last note: my favorite thing about the survey results is getting to see just how comfortable our families have become with us. There were more than a few witty comments and suggestions that had us lol’ing as we read through them, and lots of sweet words about how the impact we’ve made on their children. There is absolutely no better feedback than that!
One of the biggest frustrations we faced during early childhood classes at our previous location was the placement of our instruments and equipment. We were constantly redirecting our students away from the guitar, which sat in a floor stand when we weren’t using it, and trying to keep little hands out of the drawers of our rolling instrument cart.
So when we moved to our new studio and had complete control over how the room was designed, our first priority was to structure the room in a way that instruments and equipment were out of reach and no longer a distraction for everyone.
We considered a few different solutions, and then one day Katey sent me a photo of the slatwall that was hung all over the walls of the music store in which we were previously located. Why didn’t we think of that sooner!?
So we picked up sheets of slatwall from our local hardware store, which were easy enough to drill into the walls and then stock with accessories for hanging and storing, which were purchased here.
We also installed guitar wall mounts in our group rooms and in our individual lesson/session rooms so that our guitars and ukuleles could be kept out of reach.
Our storage solutions have not only allowed us to keep our instruments and equipments better protected, but they have also made lots more floor space for our students and families during classes. This has come in very handy as our numbers have grown quite a bit since moving to our new studio!
Listen & Learn for Little Ones is an early childhood music class for children ages 0-3 and their caregivers. Created and led by music therapists Rachel Rambach and Katey Kamerad, this class is designed to instill and foster a love of music as well as develop basic skills for both musical growth and daily life.
The Listen & Learn for Little Ones curriculum is comprised of both original and familiar songs that you can start singing along with at the very first class. Activities are designed based on specific goals and objectives. Skills that are addressed through the Listen & Learn curriculum include (but are not limited to) fine and gross motor movement, rhythmic foundations, intonation, peer interaction, turn-taking, and academic concepts.
As a parent or caregiver, you attend the class with your child to provide support and encouragement — and capture photos and videos of music making in action! Each 45-minute class combines structured activities (movement, singable stories, group instrument play, etc.) with free time for children to explore various instruments and interact with one another.
All classes are held at Capital City Music 3700 Wabash Avenue, Springfield, IL 62711
In my almost 10 years of experience leading early childhood music classes, I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many others who do similar work. We’re therapists (of the music, physical, speech, developmental, and occupational sort), music educators, music specialists, general education teachers, volunteers, parents, and the list goes on. But the bottom line is the same: we all help kids learn and grow through music.
I’ve been writing songs and sharing them on my blog since 2008, and those songs make up much of my early childhood music class curricula. This summer I partnered with a fellow music therapist, Katey Kamerad, and we have been collaborating to provide early childhood music programs ever since.
Katey and I put lots of time and energy into songwriting, recording, crafting, and creating print materials for each and every class session we offer. We go through this process every 6 weeks or so, and while it is exhausting, we absolutely love the work.
But we know that not all leaders do. Maybe you are passionate about marketing but not songwriting. Perhaps putting together your curriculum together completely stresses you out, but you are passionate about putting songs into action with your students. It very well could be that you just aren’t interested in writing your own songs, but you need fresh material.
No matter which category you fall under, we created this site for you. We’ve taken the classes that have already been put into action here at our studio in Springfield, IL and packaged them up so that you can do the same. The songs (including lyrics, chords, and recordings), instructions and material lists are all there and ready for you to implement in your own early childhood classes.
And this is just a jumping off point for us. We have lots of plans in the works for other resources and materials, and in the meantime will be sharing tips, techniques and tool right here on the blog.
So please stop by regularly, and don’t hesitate to share your feedback! We’d love to hear what you need most when it comes to resources for leading children through music.
