Big idea:  Village Multi-Sensory Learning
Think about something that you experienced with your child that you hope to hold in your heart forever. What do you remember? The sound of her laughter, the smell of his head, the sight of her sleeping in those footed pajamas, the warmness of his skin right after a bath, the taste of bananas when she tried to feed you her snack? Whatever the memory, you probably recall it through more than one of your five senses. There is a reason for that!
Experiences that integrate several senses simultaneously are responsible for lasting impressions. Each of our five senses (sight, smell, sound, touch, taste) activates specific neurons in the brain. For your child, multi-sensory activities provide more learning opportunities than single-sensory activities. In Kindermusik, we encourage multi-sensory learning. So, while your child listens to and imitates animal sounds vocally or with an instrument, sees the animals in the story, and moves around like them, he is learning….and making musical memories that he will hold in his heart forever.
Everyday connection: Multi-vitamins for the senses. Turn your child’s favorite book into a multi-sensory literacy experience. Hold her in your lap while you read together. Let her feel the pages. If the book features an animal, include a stuffed animal in your time together. Is it a bedtime book? Bundle her up and say good night to the real moon, not just the one in the story.

Big Idea: Our Time Pretend Play
Did you ever have the Jennifer Anniston, Halle Berry, or “insert name of famous person” haircut? Pink hair anyone? While a haircut doesn’t magically transport you into another person’s life, it can be fun to imitate someone else’s look.
Imitation starts young. For your child, imitation is the first stage of pretend play and begins as an infant when she mimics your facial expressions. As imitation evolves, it becomes more imaginative. A child uses pretend play to re-examine life experiences by adding or changing what actually happened. In Kindermusik, we encourage imitation and imagination by working on the railroad, galloping on horses, or even floating down the river. Along the way, your child develops vocabulary and social skills, learns the difference between reality and fantasy, and even experiences emotional support from you as you pretend along with him. So, “Let’s Go Riding Together!”
Everyday connection: Make it a laundry day! An empty laundry basket can transport you anywhere. Is it a car? A train? A pirate ship? A princess carriage? Hop in and let your child lead the way.

Big Idea: Imagine That! Open a Book!

Open a book and open a new world.  Our new book, If I Had a Big Blue Boat, not only helps us explore the sights and sounds of the sea, it helps our language and thinking skills. By reading together, your child will learn and understand new words. Research proves it.  In telling about things that happen in his own day, your preschooler uses new words and begins to develop the concept of beginning, middle, and end, which is good for expressing himself more clearly. And the adventures in the story lend some ideas for his own creative, imaginative play at home. You might be surprised how far his imagination can take all of you.