Kids do the darndest things

Hello readers!
I hope this blog is very interesting and insightful for you to read. I wanted to write about music, and how it effects children. In my 10 years babysitting, 6 years as a camp counselor, and the 4 years I have gained in college as a Music Education major, I have had the most outrageous experiences with these kids. I have worked with kids 0-17 years of age, and it never ceases to amaze me what a profound impact music has. In this blog, I will be sharing my stories and experiences that I have had in all of my lines of work.

Please keep in mind that I am talking about music these kids' everyday life. Music is everywhere! Commercials, toys, phones, radios, stereos, ipods, all allow for constant stimulation of music in these kids' lives. What is so fascinating, is the way in which they are impacted by it! Toddlers bounce and move, and even begin to say their first words when they hear a song that they recognize. Their eyes light up and they smile because they can recognize and identify the music. Each family is different, because we all come from different backgrounds. This means each child responds differently to different kinds of music. As a child, I grew up with 80's rock bands like Queen, Rush, the Eagles, Pat Benatar, Chicago. etc. When I hear that music, I feel a connection, and an identity because that is what my ear was trained to listen to. My roommate however, grew up with 90s soft rock and R&B. Whenever she is stressed or worried, she is always listening to that music because it is a familiar place for her. But that is enough about my life.

This first story is not my very first "Epiphany" moment, but it certainly had me laughing. I was babysitting for a family of three. The age range was 0-4, so they were very young kids. I was playing with the oldest child, some action figure game that involved an entourage of spider man, batman, transformers, and power rangers. The middle child was playing in his room down the hall, probably in a fort of some kind meant to keep out snipers. The baby was sitting up, very tired and particularly cranky that day. She started crying so I picked her up and did the usual bouncing and cooing one does to try to calm a baby. Out of no where all I hear  "Go insane, go insane, throw some glitter make it rain. Let me see them hands, let me see them hands" coming from down the hall. Ah yes, the ever popular Keisha song was being screamed out of the two year old, we will call him "jumper" for now, who had emerged form his room. Not only was he enthusiastically belting Keisha down the hall, but proceeded to swish his hips and stomp his feet with so much sass, I thought Beyonce wouldn't stand a chance against this kid. When the baby heard it, she stopped crying, almost immediately and started to laugh. That was a very good thing, since I was absolutely dying with laughter at this point. So there we all were, laughing and crying and playing together. When I asked jumper where he'd heard that song, he looked up at me and said "my mom likes it. she plays it all the time, and we sing it with her". That was so profound to me. Keisha is not particularly an excellent example of musical literature, but she has songs with a beat, that make you move. For this family, it is a way for them to bond, to laugh and to play together, which to me is such an incredible thing.
Do have any songs you sing with your family? or kids? Tell me about it!
-Rosey