Schoolhouse Review Crew: Music Together

Music Together is an early childhood music and movement program for ages birth to age 8 and the grown ups who love them.  Not only do they offer classes both across the U.S. and overseas that you can attend, they also have resources that you can use to teach your children at home.  The Music Together program is based on the ideas that: All Children Are Musical, All Children Can Achieve Basic Music Competence, Participation of Caregivers is Essential to Child's Musical Growth, and Musical Growth is Best Achieved in a Playful, Musically Rich, Non-Performance-Orientated Environment.  We have had the opportunity to use and review their Songbook For Teachers and the accompanying Music Together Family Favorites CD.  







The Music Together Family Favorites CD has been the winner of multiple awards.  It is a compilation of some of the most loved songs and activities used in their on going programs.  The CD includes a 32 page family activity booklet and 19 songs including:

Hello Song
Biddy Biddy
Splishing and Splashing
Ridin in the Car
Stick Tune
She Sells Sea Shells
Playin in the Kitchen
Palo, Palo
John the Rabbit
Spin and Stop
Mississippi Cats
One Little Owl
Goin for Coffee
Obwisana
I've Been Working on the Railroad
Dancing With Teddy
Allee Galloo
May All Children
Goodbye, So Long, Farewell

You can listen to samples of the songs here.    The CD is $14.99 or $9.99 if bought as a download.  Each individual song can also be purchased as a download for .99 each.

The 112 page companion songbook was designed especially for people who work musically with children in preschools, homeschools, early elementary classes, church groups, or clinical settings.  Each of the 19 songs has a music page, plus teacher pages outlining suggested activities for all ages and settings, infants, preschool and older children, and children with special needs.  The songbook also includes sections on how to use the book, the philosophy and principles of Music Together, types of songs and activities used, types of instruments and props needed, and working with special needs children.

The cost of the songbook is $29.95.  Or you can buy the Songbook/CD combo for $39.95.  If you purchase the combo you can use the coupon code" Schoolhouse" and save an additional $2.  Click here to order.

Some of the suggested instruments to go along with Music Together include: egg shakers, rhythm sticks, triangles, tambourines, maracas, jingle sticks, claves, toneblocks, and drums.  We did not have any instruments, so we made out own.  The children used unsharpened pencils as rhythm sticks and we made tambourines out of paper plates stapled together and filled with navy beans.  We made shakers out of beads and empty water bottles and jingle bells with small bells and pipe cleaners.  For drums we used pots and pans and spoons.

We have had a lot of fun with Music Together.  Sometimes we just play the CD while the children are playing, cleaning, or we are doing morning P.E.  Other times we have set aside time in our day to do the activities that are included in the songbook.  The layout of the book is very easy to follow and understand, and you can easily see what you will need to complete the activities you choose.  One of our favorites is John the Rabbit.  The songbook tells us that the activities are: large movement, fingerplay, call and response, songbook illustration, the Music is: E Minor, Starting Pitch B, and a swing meter, and the Recording includes: guitar, bass, shaker, and body percussion.  Two of our favorite activities is to make a rabbit with your fingers and pulse him to the beat and  hopping up and down on the beat.  They also like to make up vegetables the John stole out of the garden.

Playin in the Kitchen

 There are a lot of fun activities to go along with all of the different songs and it can be used with a variety of ages and needs.  I also love the different illustrations in the songbook to go along with the different songs.  You can choose how often and how long per day you want to spend on Music Together.

Flying like a crow in the old oak tree

Most of all, I really like the philosophy of Music Together.  Music is important and should be fun for young children.  Even though we as parents may not be the best singer or most musical person, Music Together makes it possible for us to just enjoy music and get a little silly with our children.  Someday they won't remember that we didn't sing a perfect D pitch, but they will remember dancing the Teddy Bear Waltz with them.

Lily and her teddy were exhausted after dancing together!

To see what other crew mates had to say click here.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of Music Together for the purpose of writing a fair and honest review.  I received no other compensation.