Research shows that a musically enriched home environment has an influence on the development of a child's musical ability. Through music, early years practioners can aid children's development across the Early Years Foundation Stage.
When planning music activities for very young children in your setting, remember that the more opportunities that the children are given to explore and practise particular skills, the more confident they will become in using them in different situations.
Babies experiment with making sounds that are pleasing to themselves. Early years practitioners can build on this by encouraging babies to interact with them when singing lullabies and rhymes. Songs and rhymes used with this age group should be short and contain lots of repetition.
Babies will be startled by loud sounds, so taking a gentle, quiet approach is most appropriate. As their ability to manipulate objects develops, babies become interested in particular objects with which they can make sounds.
Bonding songs
Use this activity to aid the bonding process between you and the babies in your care, so they can feel more secure in the nursery.
- Hold the baby securely and while gently swaying with them, smile and look into their eyes.
- Sing a variety of songs such as, 'Peek-a-boo' and 'Pat-a-cake'.
- Make sure you use songs with different tempos and sing them in different voices.
- Change the baby's position while singing.
- Make the songs interactive by touching parts of the baby's body as you sing.
Copy cat
- Take photographs of babies making 'music' - for example, when they are clapping, banging a container, hitting two spoons or shaking some bells.
- Show the baby one photo and talk about it.
- Show the photo again and offer the 'instrument' to play.
Musical mats
- Gather together about ten coloured face cloths.
- Glue or sew a variety of objects on to the cloths, such as bells, buttons, scrunched-up silver foil, cotton wool and plastic bubble wrap.
- Sew all the face cloths together or leave them as individual mats.
- Sit the babies beside the mat or surround them with the smaller mats.
- Give them a large spoon and allow them to use the spoon or their hand to make a sound.
- You may have to suggest that they make a sound, but you should be able to leave a baby to play independently after giving them a small demonstration.
- Adapt this activity by placing a bedsheet or large sheet of newspaper on the floor or outdoors on the grass. On one area of the sheet put sand or salt, on another cotton wool, and on a third silver foil. Let the baby move about, exploring all the sounds that they can make.
- Alice Sharp is managing director of training centre Experiential Play (www.experientialplay.com) and director of resource company Wonderbox, specialising in interactive products for use with children under three (www.wonderbox.co.uk; e-mail: info@wonderbox.co.uk).