Bounce, baby!

For babies, bouncing is pure joy.  If you need a bit of a lift, try watching you-tube clips of babies bouncing. I love the way they insist on more bouncing after the bouncing stops. The next one shows a cute bouncing rhyme.



Finally, here's one featuring a bloke who seems to be very proficient at child bouncing!  I'm a bit concerned about the ruler that baby's holding, and I'm not sure what's happening at the end there, but it's fun to watch, and very musical.



We use bouncing a lot in music classes because it it's fun, and it helps children feel the beat. Syncopated rhymes are good to bounce to, as they emphasise the difference between beat and rhythm. Try Humpty Dumpty, Pop! Goes the Weasel and Little Red Wagon.

Sing and feel good

Singing is good for your body, mind and soul!  

Check out this article - it outlines the many health benefits of singing.  Here's just some:

• Releases endorphins - "feel good" chemicals that give you a lift
• Encourages deep breathing, relieving stress and improving circulation
• Stops you worrying about things (because you are concentrating on your singing!)
• Reduces depression and anxiety.

Singing in a group is particularly beneficial.  Members of singing groups have higher life satisfaction than the general population, and they cope better with life's ups and downs.  They also enjoy social benefits such as a sense of belonging.

It's going to be tricky for me to get to choir in the next couple of weeks, and someone suggested that I just get the music and learn the parts myself.  Sure, I could do this, but that's completely missing the point.  I want to be with my friends, making beautiful sounds together, breathing deeply with all those endorphins coursing through me! Yep, I'm a singing junkie.

Pictured are some of the fabulous altos and sops from Isingonthecake in full flight.  They look happy, don't they?  I love this picture.  Thanks Carolyn for the great shot.  I'm not sure, but I think we might have been singing "Aquarius", judging from the arm action that's happening.

The musical value of rhymes

Rhymes are fantastic for kids in so many ways.

Firstly, rhymes help children understand and feel the beat.  When you say a rhyme and bounce a child on your knee, the child learns that the beat is a steady pulse that continues through a rhyme or song.  The child feels the difference between the beat and the rhythm, and develops an understanding of both long before they are able to name or define "beat" or "rhythm".

Secondly, rhyming helps children understand the structure of words.  If they are able to identify rhyming sounds when they are young, this will help them with their literacy later on. Improvising new rhymes is also great fun.

Thirdly, it is good for children to hear rhymes performed expressively.  This shows them that good reading is artfully done.  It is not delivered in a flat drone. Meaning is conveyed in the way the words are delivered.  This becomes a model for their own reading.

Fourthly, it shows children that there is joy to be found in well-crafted words.

Traditional rhymes are great to use (eg Pease Porridge Hot, Hot Cross Buns, etc etc).  There are many great compilations of rhymes for children.  There are also a great many children's books with rhyming words.

Some of my favourite rhyming books for children include:

- Hairy Maclary and Zachary Quack (Lynley Dodd) - The words are such a delight to say - I love the opening two lines: "It was drowsily warm with dozens of bees/lazily buzzing through flowers and trees".

- Let's Go Visiting (Sue Williams & Julie Vivas, illust) - suitable for very young children

-  Arabella Miller's Tiny Caterpillar (Clare Jarret) - fantastic if you can get through the book without becoming tongue-tied!

- Over in the Meadow (many versions including Jane Cabrera) Jane's version has beautiful illustrations, very whimsical.  Gwen Turner also did a version of this with superb realistically drawn illustrations.

-  The Man from Snowy River (Banjo Paterson, Freya Blackwood, illust.)  Paterson's rhythm, momentum and brilliant story-telling abilities appeal to older children (and adults).

Image from graphicsfairy.com