A parent recently commented to me that it would be nice to know more about the music curriculum in the toddler room, specifically if we are listening to certain music for special events. For example, the week before MSU’s homecoming, we began to listen to the MSU fight song in our toddler tape recorder, looking at pictures of the marching band and Sparty, and practicing our marching!

I thought it would be helpful to also explain the numerous ways your toddler experiences music in the toddler community. First and foremost we are ALWAYS singing. Whether it is a song about an animal on the shelf, a song requested by a child, singing thank you at snack time, singing the cleanup song, or singing our gathering song at the end of our work time in the morning, we sing a lot. We also have a shelf in our classroom dedicated to instruments. There are usually five different types/sounding instruments on the shelf at a time and I usually change 1 or 2 per week. For example one week there was a set of mini cymbals, a rolling xylophone, a music box, a drum and a shaker. We also plan 1 or 2 of our small group activities around music (i.e. rhythm sticks, bells, scarf dancing, drum circle).

We have a small tape recorder that the toddlers can operate. Here we highlight a certain type/instrument/special time with the music. Some examples are the MSU fight song, the singer Raffi, the guitar, train sounds, Suzuki violin, holiday music, the piano, fun children’s music, jazz, the cello and on and on. We usually listen to each selection for about 2 weeks. On the wall above the tape recorder is usually a picture that relates to whatever we are listening to. When we change the music I list it as our small group activity for that day. I like to introduce the new music we are listening to at this time so every toddler hears the name and sees the picture before it is set out.

You may be asking why music is such a large part of our day.  There are a lot of reasons,  so I am just going to list a few: music contributes to language development; it contributes to a rich sensory environment which helps to create more pathways between the cells in a child’s brain which in turn helps in almost every area of school including reading and math; music helps the mind and body work together; toddlers can begin to keep a beat and experiment with pitch; music can be comforting and soothing; music helps a toddler in transition times and serves as an important cue in the toddlers routine ; and of course, it is enjoyable for both toddlers and adults.

I hope this has given you a little insight into how we approach music in the toddler community and why we feel it’s so important.

Thanks again for sharing your amazing toddlers with us! Erin

Image: MSU Alumni band member playing tuba for toddlers on the playground