Parent Engagement Through Music
Supporting Children Starts with Supporting Parents.
Active Music-Making in Early Years to Develop School-Ready Skills: In Settings and Homes.
Parents are a child’s first teacher. Research shows that children who have more parental input, rich and varied experiences, vocabulary and activities at home in early years, are more likely to have strong school ready skills in place by age 4/5. Those who start without these skills in place will rarely catch up; the attainment gap will widen as they go through school.
You will be aware from recent press coverage that recent research finds that about half of the children starting school in the UK (Reception year) in 2022 were not developmentally ready (School Readiness 2022 survey by Kindred2 published January 2023).
School Ready skills include:
- Communication and language
- Phonological awareness
- Self-regulation
- Listening and attention
- Group skills, sharing and co-operation
- Gross and fine motor skills
- Spatial awareness
- Sequencing and pattern awareness
All of these skills can be boosted with an effective pre-school music provision in the setting and at home. Settings can support parental engagement with effective active music making to boost school ready skills.
Educate and equip parents with the knowledge, confidence and resources to harness the brain boosting power of music:
- Invite parents to take part in a parent education music workshop
- Share regular posts/communications about the benefits of music
- Share/Signpost to music resources
Parent Education Music Workshop
I partner with Boogie Mites for webinars about how music can support Early Years development. They have many years of experience delivering tried and tested workshops to both practitioners and parents. A workshop within your setting to encourage parental involvement is a fantastic way of engaging parents in their child’s learning, and building great relationships. Boogie Mites have provided the following tips and resources for you to trial a parent music workshop.
Format and outcomes of a Parent Education workshop:
If possible, invite parents to arrive for 15 minutes of parent-only time before children join the group at the end of the pre-school session. Cover the introduction, benefits of music, encouraging parents to join in with their children during the session, and the objective of regular practise at home.
Boogie Mites have written a workshop plan for parents and children aged 3-4 years, that you can access via their Customer Hub. It also gives you a taster of songs from Boogie Mites School Ready Programme if you are not a currently a licensee setting.
Sign up to access the taster songs and parent workshop plan here: https://ex246.infusionsoft.app/app/form/school-ready-taster
They have also created a parent information sheet covering music and its links to the EYFS. Please print this off and give out at the sessions or share this link: https://bit.ly/parent-information-sheet-3 via email and social media.
Boogie Mites Parent Education Posts and Music Resources
Following an onsite workshop, share regular posts/messages to remind parents about the benefits of regular practise at home. Extend their music knowledge by sharing infograph images and ideas for home practice. Parents can also purchase digital resources for home use, and we would encourage practitioners to share the following paragraph with the parents from their setting:
BOOGIE MITES DIGITAL RESOURCES FOR HOME USE
Harnessing the brain boosting power of music
Practising music activities at home with your children will boost your child’s school ready skills, and it’s a great fun activity to share together.
The digital resources pack includes MP3’s of all songs on the programme, instructor videos, workshop videos, notes for home use and lyrics, or there is a physical CD/notes pack option.
Why not enjoy the magic of music at home with your children, to ensure they get the repetition, to maximise the potential benefits (and because it’s fun!)
School Ready Literacy Parent Pack
School Ready Maths Parent Pack
The bonus is: Boogie Mites songs are enjoyed as much by adults as by children and they provide a fun way to learn together, bond and create magical music memories.
Take a look at this blog, which you can share with parents of pre-school children, coming up to transition to big school –Helping Your Child Develop School-Ready Skills Through Music.
Join The Boogie Mites Music Club Facebook Group
Practitioner Resources:
If you’d like to take Boogie Mites School Ready programmes in-house, then you can find more information on this link: https://www.boogiemites.co.uk/shop/school-ready-training-package/
There is also the option to purchase a parent resources sharing package, and you can find out more about this by emailing Sue@boogiemites.co.uk
Boogie Mites have also recently launched a brand new Facebook Group, which you can join here: Boogie Mites ABCD™ Music Community | Facebook
Watch out for information about Boogie Mites App launch, coming soon.
Happy boogie-ing!