Browse the cumulative list of “Playing Music” suggestions. Trigger your own playfulness, discover new ideas, adopt or adapt favorites.  You receive one suggestion with each Lesson.  Here they are grouped by type of activity and titled for easy reference.   Check back occasionally for additions.  Level 1 Activities include Listening, Singing, Moving, and Playing “Musical Instruments.”  CCS Curriculum Overview

The most effective way to get your child engaged in the music activities is for you to become engaged yourself.  Sing, dance, and play with the melodies and rhythms with your child.  Nobody is watching you—except your little one, who will love your songs, chants, and movement!  Your child will not care if you are out of tune, non-rhythmic, or have two left feet, but will be delighted by your involvement. 

Listening

Listening is a basic activity, valid in its own right.  Little children are far more focused listeners than adults.  If your child is content just listening, don’t feel you need to “do” more with listening activities. 

To Do or Not To Do—Instrumental activities are designed primarily for listening.  Do not feel that you have to “do” something with the instrumental activities.  If you feel “so moved,” gentle movement while listening is appropriate, either with babe in arms or independently.  Gentle bouncing or swaying with the beat can be very musical.  Make your movement accompany, rather than dominate the music.

Singing

Singing to your child is as important to your child’s music development as speaking to your child is to your child’s language development, whatever your skill level.  You may also find that singing can be a magic pacifier.

U-Sing Your Voice—Singing is one of the most important ways to engage in Tonal and Rhythm Activities, and it can become one of the most playful.  Sing one of the Tonal or Rhythm Activities to your child while you are making dinner or doing laundry.  The “aural toy” will not only enhance your child’s music development, but will also pacify your child while you are busy, assisting with your multitasking!

Start-Stop—Sing one of the songs or chants once through and stop.  Wait for your child’s glance or smile to start again.  Sing the same song or chant one time through again and stop, waiting for your child’s cue to start again.  This “game” can go on and on, as your child delights not only in the music, but in the power of controlling your “on button.”  This “game” can be effective while your child is playing with other toys, seemingly not interested in what you are doing, yet cleverly being in command of the music with a quick glance or coy little smile.

Family Sing—Play CCS Activities when loved ones visit, and engage the whole family.  It will be a delightful experience for your child to have loved ones engage in CCS Activities as a group.  Just make sure that loved ones respect your child’s “aural space,” rather than expressing their joy in your little one’s precious response by laughing or talking during the activity.

Silly Syllables—Be “silly” occasionally and sing songs or chants on syllables other than “BAH” and “TOO.”  Try “LOO,” “LAH,” “HAH,”  “MAH,” “BOO,” MOO,” “PING,” or any other “silly sounds,” choosing one syllable for an entire verse, and changing syllables with each verse.  Use the regular “BAH” and “TOO” most days rather than the variety of syllables, as your child will attend most to rhythm and tonal with the consistency of “BAH” and “TOO,” and will initiate “playing music” with “BAH” or “TOO.”  It is always fun, however, to be “silly” once in a while.

Singing Cabinets—Surprise your little one on a typical day in the kitchen.  Open a cabinet or drawer and start chanting a Rhythm Activity or singing a Tonal Activity.  Close the cabinet door or drawer and stop singing, as if opening makes the cabinet sing.  Perhaps different cabinets or drawers sing different songs or chants.  Maybe the pot on the stove sings when you lift the lid.  You may discover that your refrigerator sings as well!

Moving

Movement is basic to music and to music development.  Flowing movement is as important and as musical as movement to the beat.  Various kinds of play in movement enhance music learning, providing the movement accompanies rather than dominates the music. 

Finger Play—Employ spontaneous little finger games, like walking your fingers up or down your child’s body while you sing the song or chant.  Borrow from the intuitive games that you naturally play with your child.  Just make sure that the music dominates the game rather than the game dominating the music.

Gentle Movement—Gentle movement is always appropriate.  When holding your child, sing or chant and move with your child—rocking, bouncing, dancing—whatever is appropriate to the song or chant.  Or, you might tap on your child while engaged in the songs or chants.  Gently tapping is appropriate, as is rubbing the back, or anything that keeps momentum going.  Occasionally, you might gently move your child’s arms, hands, or legs, to the music.

Sit-Stand—Try standing with the Rhythm Activity, babe in arms, engaging in gentle movement.  Sit for a more restful Tonal Activity and then stand again to engage in the Play Song.  Just alternating standing and sitting with the various activities, making some more active, will add playfulness.

Airplane—Make your arm fly like an airplane while singing a song or chant.  Change arms with each verse.  Make your movement accompany the music rather than drawing attention to the “airplane,” and remember that airplanes fly smoothly rather than in beats.  Flowing movement is as important to music development as is movement in beats.  If you see your child paying more attention to your arm than to the music, pull back to more subtle movement. 

This Little Piggie—Borrow from the classic rhyme, “This Little Piggy Went to Market,” using a song or chant instead of the rhyme.  Wiggle each of your child’s fingers or toes with the music, changing toes or fingers with each verse of the song or chant.

Riding a Horse—Little ones love “Riding a Horse”—sitting on a parent’s leg below the knee, being moved up and down.  Put your child in the saddle and move your leg up and down to the rhythm of a song or chant.

Fred Astaire—Pick up your child and dance around the room.  Move beyond bouncing or swaying, and move energetically around the room as if an open dance floor, with you and your little one the featured couple.  Now that you and your little one are both more attuned to the music content, it will be easier to move with energy and still accompany rather than dominate the music.

Carnival Ride—Simulate a carnival ride with a wagon or favorite riding toy.  Give your child a ride while you sing a Rhythm or Tonal Activity, circling a tree or a chair with each verse, or traveling a defined space.  Make each special ride just long enough to accommodate one song or chant.  Your child will enjoy this activity again and again.  Give favorite dolls and stuffed animals a ride.  Change directions with each song, chant, or verse, or define the path of the ride differently for Rhythm Activities than for Tonal.

Flowing Arms—Move your arms in a flowing manner while you sing a song, chant, or Art Song, gracefully exaggerating arm movements, sweeping the sky and exploring the space around you in seamless motion, bending and extending arms.  Let the arms flow throughout the song or chant without regard to beat.  Your child may not yet be able to imitate your flowing movement, but will experience flow through your demonstration.  You might encircle your little one with your graceful arm dance, or, make one arm dance in a flowing manner with your child in the other.

5-6-7-8—Dance with a song or chant as if choreographed.  Exaggerate movements, style, grace.  Use flowing arms.  Move around the room, creating new “steps,” bending knees and punctuating with dramatic flare.  Put on a show with and for your child.  

Imaginary Scarves—Sit on the floor with your little one and move your arms in a flowing manner.  Imagine having a wispy scarf in each hand.  Make them dance.  Make them flow.  Make them interact with each other and make them flow independently.  Look for and encourage your little one’s imitation with flowing arm movement.            

Dance With the Dolly—Use a favorite doll or stuffed animal as your dance partner.  Dance around the room with the doll as naturally and as dramatically as you do with your child.  Look for and encourage your child’s imitation with the favorite doll.

Bouncy Bounce— Hold your child on your lap and lift your heel with each beat of the song or chant, bouncing your child in the meter.  Your child will feel the beat as well as hear it.  Try bouncing one verse of Macro Beats and another of Micro Beats.

Rock-a-Meter—Sit in your favorite rocking chair or glider with your child and rock to the beat of the song or chant.  Your child will feel as well as hear the beat.  You may find it challenging to rock to any meter other than Duple.

Playing “Musical Instruments”

A “musical instrument” for a young child is any object that stimulates musical behavior.  Toys and household objects can be used effectively with music activities to engage a child, encourage interaction, and stimulate “Music Babble.”  Nearly every toy can in some way stimulate musical play, if the toy is presented musically in the context of meter or tonality.  If the toy reflects or accompanies the music, it is a musical instrument.  If it takes over the activity, it is simply a toy.

Toy Dance—Make one of your child’s favorite stuffed animals or dolls “dance” with the Tonal or Rhythm Activity.  Just make sure that the toy does not take over the activity.  Props, like words, can distract a child from the music.  If you are singing and the toy is dancing rhythmically, then the toy is supporting, rather than taking away from what your child is hearing.  Your child might surprise you sometime with “Music Babble” that makes the toy dance.

Wheeled Toy—Try making one of your child’s toys on wheels interact with the Tonal or Rhythm Activity.  “Drive” the car or truck on the table or floor, while singing a song or chant.  Let the motion of the toy reflect the song or chant, changing direction with each beat or verse.  Sing the song or chant repeatedly with the action of the toy on wheels.  Make the toy accompany rather than dominate the music.  Your child may surprise you at another time by non-verbally communicating a desire for you to play the “music game” with the toy.  Or, the toy might stimulate your child’s “Music Babble,” while playing with the toy alone.

Hammer—Use the classic toy hammer with a cobbler’s bench, or a wooden spoon on the floor or table, and chant Rhythm Activities while pounding in rhythm.  The more you chant while pounding in rhythm, the more your child will naturally chant rhythm while playing with the hammer or wooden spoon, engaging in “Rhythm Babble.”

Blocks—Sing one of the songs or chants while stacking blocks or other stacking toys, as if each block is part of the song.  Playing this way repeatedly can stimulate “Music Babble,” as your little one “sings along” to “play the game.”

Toy Start-Stop—Add to the “game” of engaging a toy with a Rhythm or Tonal Activity.  Start the activity with the toy dancing or truck rolling while you sing.  Stop momentarily both the singing and toy at the end of a phrase or verse.  Start again.  Stop at the end of a phrase or verse and wait for your child’s cue to begin again.  Continue the game repeatedly, encouraging your child’s cue to command the “on button” for the toy’s activity.  Playing frequently in this manner will model that your child can make the toy dance by his own “Music Babble.”

Child Instrument—Move your little one’s arms or legs to Rhythm or Tonal Activities, as if exercising the limbs.  Playfully bend and straighten or raise and lower arms or legs with the beat.  Explore flowing movement, too.  Play with your child’s arms or legs as you do with toys in any other “Playing Music” suggestion.  Most days, let your child move to music himself, but it is always fun for your child to be your “musical instrument.”

Float Boat—Use a little boat, rubber duckie, or favorite floating toy to play with songs or chants in the tub.  Lay down the toy with the start of the song or chant and let it float throughout the verse.  Pick it up and start it again with each new verse, song, or chant.  Look for your child’s imitation to “make the boat sing.”

Story Books—Pick up one of your child’s storybooks and begin a Rhythm or Tonal Activity, as if you are reading it from the book.  Try turning the pages rhythmically with each pattern, phrase or verse.  Frequent “reading” of Rhythm or Tonal Activities can entice your little one to imitate your “reading,” stimulating Music Babble.