Waldorf-Inspired Early Childhood Music and Movement
In this ongoing course, we focus on relationship and learning about ourselves and our world through movement, drumming, singing, fingerplays, stories, and sharing, using music and imagery from several of the world's cultures.
Mx. Erika Rose, LMHC, MT-BC (she/they)
Average rating:
4.8
Number of reviews:(418)
What's included
1 live meeting
45 mins in-class hours per weekClass Experience
The class meets via live video chat. I use fingerplays, songs, instruments, verses, visual images, books, and structured choice-making and sharing in a way that is engaging to children of this age group, while aesthetically much more appealing than "sing-songy" kids' music, and which keeps children of differing energy levels and learning styles engaged without relying on "winding them up." My work with early-childhood and middle-childhood learners is inspired by Waldorf/Steiner Education in the sense that it centers imagination, rich aesthetic experiences, relationships, simplicity, nature, practical tasks, and predictable rhythms. I have always felt that many aspects of Waldorf Education mesh nicely with many of the philosophies of music therapy and expressive arts therapy, which is my formal background. I do adapt the Waldorf method quite a bit in that I reject the aspects of Waldorf education that are based on concepts we now know to be pseudoscience, I do not endorse automatic avoidance of all modernity and popular culture without assessing whether it does in fact have value, and I shift the general aesthetic a bit to be one that is more multicultural as my worldview is one that is actively inclusive and affirming of all people. My classes differ from typical early childhood Waldorf teaching in that I use folk music from African, Asian, Latin American, Native American, Caribbean, and African-American traditions in addition to European traditions and I often include stories (generally with musical/dramatic elements) told from a picture book or series of illustrations The course has a predictable structure and rhythm from week to week, with subtle and intentional changes, and of course responsiveness to what children bring in the moment. A typical session looks like: • Welcome/hello song/names/optional sharing of what country or state we are in • Movement/active songs • Sharing: Take one minute to find and tell us about something round, something fuzzy, something from a plant, etc. (will post in classroom in advance if asking for anything that might need adult help) • Fingerplays • Structured improvisation with instruments • Let's go on a walk: we see what we can discover in an array of scenery and small toys set up beforehand • Story with music and images (either improvised or students' choice) • Closing song
Other Details
Supply List
No specific supplies are required to enjoy the course. If you are able, please bring simple percussion instruments such as maracas and drums. These can be as simple as pebbles in a container and a box or chair for drumming. For families who have not taken music classes on Zoom before: Please be aware that I do use "mute all" at times during the class, as this is the only way to make live music possible. I have encountered some families with very strong opinions about teachers muting students, and I appreciate the various views around this. Unfortunately, the only way to make a live music class work is to use "mute all" at certain points, as Zoom only permits one audio stream at a time and features a lag, so multiple people singing or playing instruments will sound like disorganized noise. I unmute as appropriate for call-and-response music, choice-making, sharing, and so forth. Unfortunately, Zoom no longer allows the host to unmute meeting participants (this is a good thing for reasons of privacy, but makes our class more complicated!). Students will need to unmute. If you are able to teach your student how to operate the mute button or are able to stand by to assist, this is helpful. If your household dynamic is such that an adult is not always able to provide hands-on assistance, I completely understand this, but please just be aware that I cannot hear your student speak if they are muted and do not know how to unmute. Also, if your student does understand the mute feature, please explain to them beforehand that I am not muting them personally and I unfortunately have to mute at times so everyone can hear the music correctly.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined February, 2020
4.8
418reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
Master's Degree in Psychology from Lesley University
I am a music therapist/expressive arts therapist by training and have worked extensively with children of this age group with and without disabilities in a variety of contexts (eclectic, nature-based, co-op, Waldorf, Montessori, public special education, private therapeutic day school). I have also participated in Waldorf parent-child classes as a parent.Reviews
Live Group Class
$10
weekly1x per week
45 min
Completed by 171 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 3-7
3-10 learners per class
