BABY LOVE MUSIC FUN - Music and Early Childhood Development for Babies and Toddlers and their Adult

Karin Schaupp Cradle Songs Album Competition

2012-01-11T22:32:00.007+11:00

Inspired by the birth of her own daughter Alexa, world-renowned guitarist Karin Schaupp has released an enchanting CD of some of the world’s most loved and beautiful lullabies.

When Alexa was born, Karin, one of Australia’s top musicians, noticed there were very few quality recordings by classical artists aimed at parents and children. She decided to take matters into her own hands.

Karin wanted an album that was not only performed beautifully, but which also contained lullabies that were so universally ingrained within the human psyche that listeners would be able to instinctively sing along, soothing their own child with the familiar voice of the parent.

The lullabies featured on Cradle Songs have been carefully selected by Karin and represent all corners of the globe. Cradle Songs includes dreamy arrangements for solo guitar of lullabies such as Brahms’ Cradle Song, Rockabye Baby, Ninna Nanna, Koori Dreaming, All The Pretty Little Horses and Canción de cuna.

Brisbane paediatrician and lullaby specialist Dr Robyn Brady says of Cradle Songs: ‘When I heard Karin’s CD my first experience was the sense of ‘hands’: a sense that I was within an intricately woven, infinitely gentle cocoon of plucked notes that led me on a journey that is at the same time a going forth and a returning home’.

GERMANY Brahms’ Cradle Song
ENGLAND Rockabye Baby
CUBA Canción de cuna
SPAIN El noi de la mare
EL SALVADOR Dormite, niñito
SOUTH AFRICA Thula Baba
RUSSIA Sleep, My Sad One
WALES Suo Gân
USA Mockingbird
AUSTRALIA Lullaby for Alexa
BRAZIL Lullaby
ITALY Ninna Nanna
IRELAND Connemara Cradle Song
USA All the Pretty Little Horses
JAPAN Komoriuta
YIDDISH Tumbalalaika
AUSTRALIA Koori Dreaming
CHINA Bamboo Flute
GERMANY Schlaf, Kindlein, schlaf

Listen to samples

THE PRIZE

We have 1 copy of Karin Schaupp's Cradle Songs to giveaway

HOW TO ENTER

Just tell us your favourite 'cradle song' from Karin's album

Email hello@babylovemusicfun.com with the subject line 'Cradle Songs" in the subject
Your Name and Address Details
Your Answer to the Question

COMPETITION TERMS & CONDITIONS

Entrant must be a resident of Australia. Competition runs from Wed 11th January until 7pm, Tuesday 31st January 2012.

The winner will be chosen at random by Baby Love Music Fun, Friday 3rd Feb 2012 at 7pm EST and contacted by email. If the winner/s can not be contacted within five days another winner/s will be chosen at random. As always, your privacy will be protected and your email address will not be used for anything other than notifying winners. Prize is not transferable.

Thanks to Karin Schaupp herself for providing the CD to giveaway to Baby Love Music Fun fans and families.

New Aussie Animation Christmas Movie Giveaway Competition

2011-10-12T20:41:00.013+11:00

MOVIE DOUBLE PASS GIVEAWAY

SANTA'S APPRENTICE is a timeless and heart-warming Christmas animated adventure featuring an all-star voice cast including Shane Jacobsen, Magda Szubanski, Delta Goodrem, Hugh Sheridan and Georgie Parker. It follows the story of young Nicolas, a 7 year old Australian boy on his adventure as he struggles with the ups and downs of being the next Santa Claus.

It's a big responsibility that would scare even the bravest boy. Nicolas wants to be the best Santa ever and will learn a few lessons along the way. But Christmas has a way of making even the biggest mishaps alright and thanks to his loving mentors, Santa (Shane Jacobsen) and Waldorf (Hugh Sheridan); Nicolas learns the true meaning of Christmas.

Released last Christmas in France – selling over 100,000 tickets in the first week and 650,000 over the life of the release – SANTA'S APPRENTICE was ranked fourth in the country on its opening weekend behind Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows Part 1.

Release Date: November 10, 2011 Country of Origin: Australia/France
Language: English Running Time: 80 mins Rating: G

THE PRIZE

We have TEN INSEASON DOUBLE PASSES to giveaway to Ten lucky Families.

HOW TO ENTER

Just tell us who your favorite actor is appearing in "Santa's Apprentice"

Email hello@babylovemusicfun.com with the subject line 'Santa's Appentice" in the subject
Your Name and Address Details
Your Answer to the Question

COMPETITION TERMS & CONDITIONS

Entrant must be a resident of Victoria. Competition runs from Thursday 13th October until 7pm, Monday 31st October 2011.

The winner will be chosen at random by Baby Love Music Fun, Friday 4th November 2011 at 7pm EST and contacted by email. If the winner/s can not be contacted within five days another winner/s will be chosen at random. As always, your privacy will be protected and your email address will not be used for anything other than notifying winners. Prize is not transferable.

Thanks to Miranda BrownPublicity for providing the passes to giveaway to Baby Love Music Fun fans and families.

Photos of calm newborn babies listening to music

2011-06-24T21:30:00.004+10:00

Look at these gorgeous photos of newborn babies listening to classical music through speakers in their cots and through earphones! They are so relaxed despite being newborn and separated from their mothers temporarily. The power of music is amazing really.

The article also quotes one of the doctors saying that music by Mozart and Vivaldi works especially well and Mozart in particular reminds mothers of their mother.

The photo of seven babies lined up in cots that all look asleep is cool if it's true. I was sceptical at first because the photo doesn't have any sound but thought they do look really calm from a distance. Scrolling down further I saw the shots from above which revealed they really are. The close up shots are just gorgeous. Sleeping babies are extraordinarily beautiful and I love that music has had a role in achieving these photos. What lucky babies to be born into a musical world.

Luckily even though our newborn babies are not treated to such revolutionary programs here in Australian hospitals, Baby Love Music Fun uses great music and tunes by Mozart and Vivaldi in all courses throughout the program and our Music for Milestones CD also uses tunes by Mozart, Verdi, Puccini, Strauss.

Thanks for bringing your babies and toddlers along to Baby Love Music Fun classes. It's a joy.

2011-06-24T20:08:00.004+10:00

Relaxing after a great day of Baby Love Music Fun classes today. Look out the Crawlers are starting to play along to songs for rolling balls, stacking towers and getting ready for their first birthday and blowing out that candle. The new "Wow" stamp was a hit with the Walkers who were also gorgeous today, loving being tickled, shaking hands with their friends and getting flown around the room by mums and dads. The Walk and Talkers were not to be outdone as they swished and squelched their way on a bear hunt, sang yum, yum to my "Here Is the Bowl" song and tapped in time and sang and danced along to so many other great songs.

Join our Facebook site and LIKE us for more updates like this plus other great music resources and music events around Melbourne, and links to interesting research on music and early childhood development.

VISIT OUR NEW BABY LOVE MUSIC FUN WEBSITE

2011-05-19T20:30:00.003+10:00

BABY LOVE MUSIC FUN

is now at

www.babylovemusicfun.com.au

Word Of Mouth - Ratings

2009-09-10T12:19:00.003+10:00

This is what real people are saying about Baby Love Music Fun classes

Come and try a FREE trial class this week - you can join anytime!

2007-11-09T15:32:00.000+11:00

Here's a great article about the value of music classes for babies as experienced first-hand by this new mum.

Music, Movement with your baby
by rachelcook
(Article taken from Parenting Advice website - Minti)
http://www.minti.com/parenting-advice/23/Music-Movement-with-your-baby/

Music and movement utilizes all sensory parts of the body and mind, and is especially good for developing minds. Music classes are a great way to bond with your baby through dance, song and music rhythms. Bringing music and movement into your home creates a fun, calming effect on your little ones and reinforces what you did that day in your music class.
Form my experience, going to a music class with my little man was such an eye opening experience. You are given a little pack with a music CD and book with other information material for use at home. In class you gather around on a mat on the floor, all concentrating just on the singing teacher. You are also encouraged to join in the singing. My little man was roughly only 3 months old when he started his first class.

The teacher mentioned how babies brains are stimulated by a soprano tone, and so began our wonderous journey into music with my little man, Codi. The teacher would sing in this beautiful soprano voice and immediately all our babies would turn their heads to the sound of her voice. We all mentioned half jokingly, if we could take her home with us!
During the class, we danced and we twirled, we sung to different beats and moved in different formations. I found when I was at home and I played the same music we sung and danced to, my son would be transfixed and mesmerized. It was amazing to experience this when Codi was just 3 months old, as I was quite skeptical to start with.

Bonding
I also found that music and singing helped in my communication and bonding with my son. If he became impatient in the car or in his high car, I would sing his favorites and he would immediately settle and concentrate on me, until I could find that pacifier/dummy or bowl of food. Now in his third term, he laughs at my 'Kookaburra' song, and jiggles like he's dancing when I put the CD on. You also get a book to read based on the term's music theme, in your music pack and it's the only book that I can get him to focus his attention on and sit still to listen to. It's still a 'favorite' today, (at 18 months).
From three months onwards, I also found that these classes gave me ideas for what I could do with him during the day. I'd sometimes hold him swaying with a song, dancing to calm him for nap time or excite him from a distance with... 'go into the kitchen and take a peek' song, as I made his breakfast. In class, he loves the 'kids gathering drum' and finds fun in shaking the casters or listening for that 'humming bird'. It definitely encouraged me to recognize and really experience what it's like to 'get something back' from him, even when he was very little, at 3 months!! I was definitely hooked.

Connection
In his first term I experienced a connection I never thought I would get so early. Indeed they do give something back other than a smile and a kick. In the case with my son, he picked up on the rhythm, laughed back and recognised songs when I played them back to him. It felt like I had a communication link to my son, and we had fun together. I found a higher level of interaction and recognition and a much calmer baby in difficult situations. Other than the music from the music class, he also loves classic jazz in the car (now Delta Goodrum), as travel music and 'fur lise' on the piano, (which I played when he was in utero), and he just fades away into relaxation.

My husband didn't believe me and I am sure he thought I was using my imagination. But each time he put 'talk back' radio on in the car, he experienced loud protests from the passenger in the back. He learnt pretty quickly to put that jazz on I had mentioned to him to put on as his drove with Codi and he told me he put it on really fast to silence the cries. Eventually, this extended to the tough hours between 4-6pm where I would find my husband (on his turn to mind bub on the weekend), putting the actual music CD on from our classes!! Now all we do is both sing these songs to him throughout the whole day, with the grandparents getting in on the act. A few months down the track, he also bangs some tunes (noise) on the piano, very dramatic. He finds the microphone a funny thing, loves shouting and singing into the mic. Whilst in the toilet too, as the sound echos...(the toilet on the plane was also an interesting vocal experience, got lots of smiles as I returned to my seat, hehe).

In conclusion
I really have had a lot of fun with my son learning the world of music together. More importantly how it stimulates their brains and teaches them beat and rythym which helps babies later when they grow up and start learning mathematics. For now, it's just the most useful and heart warming experience I have had in helping me enjoy motherhood and make it more pleasant experience for Codi and the whole family.

2007-10-02T22:11:00.000+10:00

Music 4 Milestones – Activity Idea for babies 3-6 months

Try this Music 4 Milestones activity from the BabyLoveMusicFun 3-6 month program next time you want to share a fun and quality moment with your new baby. You can check out your baby’s eye tracking development, foster language development and bond with your baby all at the same time.

Milestone: Eye tracking
from Victorian “Best Start Child Heath record
4 Month developmental assessment:
o follows dangling ball horizontally side to side & vertically from chest to brow

Where Is Thumbkin?

Put a colourful sticker on your thumb and have your baby lying on a mat in front of you.

Begin singing “Where Is thumbkin” (tune of Frere Jacques)
Where is thumbkin
Where is thumbkin

(wave your thumb and the sticker about 20 cms above your baby’s face)
Here I am
Here I am

(when you have your baby’s attention on the sticker move your thumb slowly from side to side)
How are you today thumb
Very well I thank you

(Move your thumb away and swap the sticker to your pointer finger)
Run away
Ran away

Repeat song for all the fingers:

o Pointer
o Tall Man
o Ring Man
o Pinky

Remember to have fun. Enjoy the privacy of your own home, lose any self confidence you have and go for it! Your baby thinks you and your voice are fabulous and babies make a VERY willing audience.

2007-08-18T10:44:00.000+10:00

Learning Through Fun

"You are worried about seeing (your baby) spend his early years in doing nothing. ... Is it nothing to be happy? Nothing to skip, play and run around all day long? Never in his life will he be so busy again."

- Jean-Jacques Rousseau, "Emile"

People often say (whether they believe it or not) that children are lucky because they are always at leisure. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. "Children, especially infants and babies, are among the busiest creatures on earth. What are they busy doing? Learning," according to Winifred Conkling, author of "Smart-Wiring Your Baby's Brain: What You Can Do to Stimulate Your Child During the Critical First Three Years."

From birth to 12 months, a baby's brain grows to 60 or 70 percent of its adult weight, and he learns an astonishing array of skills: physical, mental, social and emotional. Though children have been acquiring these skills in various settings since time immemorial, more and more modern parents are taking advantage of professionals who, themselves, rely on the extensive information gathered through the study of child development.

taken from article in Home & Lifestyle of The Signal Newspaper - Friday August 17, 2007

http://www.the-signal.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=50150&format=html

2007-06-21T13:00:00.000+10:00

The benefits of music to your new baby's development are enormous.

Using music with your baby can be defined in any of the following ways:

first songs and rhymes

making music

musical games

and simply having music all around them.

In the book "Brilliant Brain games for Kids to enjoy" published by Hamlyn there are several research statistics about the benefits of music to your babies development and I thought I would share some of them with you:

"Early childhood musical (or rhythm and rhyme) experiences, especially if they involve the parents are one of the most powerful ways to acclerate the 'wiring up' of a child's brain"

"Music stimulates all the senses, training your child's brain to organise and conduct numerous activities all at the same time."

"After participating in a programme involving music, movement and drama, disadvantaged children's self esteem scores were significantly higher."

2007-06-20T14:23:00.000+10:00

Roadtest: Activity Books for Babies

I am constantly reading early childhood development books for ideas to use in my classes and thought that you may all be interested in my thoughts on three of the best that I have come across.

Games Babies Play: from birth to twelve months - Vicky Lanky (Book Peddlers)
http://www.bookpeddlers.com/
http://www.practicalparenting.com/

This book divides the games into a chronological order that has inspired the structure of the BabyLoveMusicFun program. The four sections are:birth to 3 months; 3-6 months; 6-9 months and 9-12 months.

I found the book perfect for the first 12 months with my baby and could easily flip to a section have a quick read and get straight into the activity. All the activities were easy to follow, quick to read and were really spot on in terms of the age advised to play the activity and how much they would enjoy it. All of the activities I tried in this book were winners.

Ideas that I use in my program from this book include: baby stretching, parent a acapella, bus baby aerobics, airplane baby, tick tock, play ball, zoo basket, balloon games, megaphone magic, making rain and clothespin drop.

365 Games Smart Babies PLay - Sheila Ellison & Susan Ferdinandi (Sourcebooks Inc)

http://www.sourcebooks.com/
(available at Borders bookstore)

This one is for babies from birth to 15 months and is divided into categories/themes such as bedtime, water/bath time, music, dramatic play etc. Within each category it starts with infant appropriate activties and progresses up through about 15 months.

There is 'wit and wisdom' from other parents who have tried the various activities...which helps make you feel that what you are doing is really worthwhile.

There are some really unique and quite special activities in this book.

For example - Baby's Poem for 12 months and up: which is basically creating a poem with your baby using the words that they are starting to say. You write a list of all their words and then you can go crazy and create songs, sentences and poems with their words. Here's one Roxy and I wrote just the other day:

Moon Mama Moon
Peek Boo Cuckoo
Moo Moo Moo

Brilliant Brain games for Kids to Enjoy (Hamlyn)
(available at Borders bookstore)

This one is for toddlers through to five years so there is great value in this $22.00. I'm using the activities in this one daily at the moment. We are concentrating on the 'fun at home' chapter and this has been great.

The activities are really easy to do...for example go on a rainbow treasure hunt with your baby around house. We had alot of fun going around with the laundry basket collecting blue things the other day - and now guess what, she knows the colour blue!

This book is for the parent who wants to make sure that the quality time they spend with their baby is educational and FUN. There are also research tips all through the book which are not only interesting but help you understand the value of the activities.

Here's one to leave you with:

" by exposing your child to a wide variety of music, you stimulate regions of the brain responsible for spatial, verbal, balance ,memory and other skills'

WOW - all that from the simple gift of music!