Activity Idea: Beginning Music

Infant and Toddler QuickSource® reminds us that infants begin to react to and become fascinated by music during the first 18 months of life. Children also begin to play simple dramatic play and pretend games and caregivers can augment development by providing supporting activities.

Here's an activity called Beginning Music that will provide infants with the opportunity to react to music as they listen to it throughout the days. For this activity, you will need a CD player and some of your children's CDs.

Materials Needed:
Hamilton™ AM/FM CD Player (BOOMBOX)
Putumayo Dreamland CD (LULLABYE)
Classical Music CD (NBCLASS)

Let's Get Started:
1. Between the ages of 6 and 12 months, infants usually begin to attend when music is heard.

2. The caregiver should use music in the infant rooms whenever possible. Such music can include:
       • Humming to the child while trying to get him to sleep.
       • Singing simple songs while playing with the child’s hands.
       • Singing songs with lots of rhyming words and wordplay.
       • Using props, such as a stuffed animal to sing a song (example: a stuffed bear to sing and song about
          a bear, etc.).

Furthermore....
Extend this activity by allowing infants to play musical instruments along with the music played during the day, or have them explore different instruments during music time.

If using POCET™, this activity corresponds with the devlopmental guidelines shown in EC1: Reacts to Music.