Book 'n Song

I just got back from taking Brooke, my little one, to story time and our local library and let me tell you, she loves it!

Now that she’s one, everything is more fun.

She’s getting into the movements of each song and she’s very observant of the librarians when they read.

I lead baby and toddler developmental music classes at library branches all across Miami (check out our Developmental Programs page for details!) and Brooke has given me so many ideas for things I can add into my sessions. (More on that in an upcoming blog post!)

Because she and I spend so much time at the library, I have tons of opportunities to grab books for my developmental music classes.

Recently, I found a few gems.

Jane Cabrera has a series of books that incorporate and expand on popular songs. This week in my sessions I’ve been using “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” “Over in the Meadow” (my favorite!) and “If You’re Happy and You Know It.”

These books are beautifully illustrated and lend themselves perfectly to book n’ song activities because they incorporate concepts I’m already addressing in my sessions (identifying animals, movement, numeral identification, and counting just to name a few).

I typically use all my own original songs in sessions, but during my developmental music classes I like to also incorporate pre-existing, well-known songs so parents can sing along right away and use these songs at home.

Be sure to check out Jane Cabrera’s books – she has quite a selection to choose from.

And if you’re looking for even more books to add to your book ‘n song collection, be sure to hop on our newsletter list today. I’ll be sending out a list of the “20 Best Books to Use in Book ‘n Song Activities” next week to newsletter subscribers – you don’t want to miss out on that!

Now I’d love to hear from you…

What is your favorite book to use in your book ‘n song activities. Leave a comment below to let us know!