Confessions of a Music Mom Here We Grow Again!

By: Mrs. Gray

Hello, My name is Mrs. Gray, and this is my "Confession of a Music Mom. " My past articles have been a reflection of our experience with our oldest daughter's musical journey. Kierra's journey began at 4-years-old and has been full of twists and turns. However, through encouragement, perseverance, and hard work, she has continued this journey. We have learned so many lessons along the way and have seen firsthand the fruits of her labor.

What you may not know is that we have a 4year-old daughter named Kylie Grace, and boy does she love music! She loves it so much that we decided to begin her musical journey at the age of 3. We were amazed at how well she took to the piano, along with her natural desire to sing. Now, at the tender age of 4, she will soon be advancing to level 2 of our Little Music Essentials Piano curriculum.

Having a young adult child and a toddler is a huge gap and a beautiful surprise for our family. We've learned some amazing principles from our oldest daughter's musical journey that will give us greater insight into the journey that Kylie has ahead of her. So far, we've been applying two essential principles that have significantly helped jumpstart Kylie's music journey.

Principal 1

The first principle is surrounding her with the joys of music through family events, entertainment, and exploration. Kylie has a play piano, a small guitar, and other instruments that allow her to explore on her own and with others. This exploration has grown into her writing music using pictures where she will sit at her piano and create songs using both melodies and lyrics. She understands that her older sister is a songwriter and also makes up songs, so she is simply mimicking what she is exposed to. The second one is establishing a routine practice schedule and she works well with a routine. Establishing this at such a young age will be very beneficial as she continues to grow both musically and academically. She's now gotten to the point where she asks to practice. I know that this may flucuate as she gets older, but we are laying a great foundation. I encourage any parent to introduce music to their child at a young age, however in doing so understand that it is a journey filled with moments of success and challenges, so don't give up!

Principle 2

The second one is establishing a routine practice schedule and she works well with a routine. Establishing this at such a young age will be very beneficial as she continues to grow both musically and academically. She's now gotten to the point where she asks to practice. I know that this may flucuate as she gets older, but we are laying a great foundation. I encourage any parent to introduce music to their child at a young age, however in doing so understand that it is a journey filled with moments of success and challenges, so don't give up!