Make Music

Music making is fun and easy. Every human being has the aptitude born in them for making music. Here's some ideas.

Create your own song doing a pat-a-cake with your child. They may not be able to do anything complex, just hold your two hands up so they can pat them on the beats. Start with some names, any names will do, family names are fun so at my house: Paul and Amee, Amee and Paul, Bodhi and Bodhi and Amee and Paul. Then move onto pets, friends, relatives: Shanti and Todd and Henry and Babs. Now try adding a simple rhyme, maybe what you're cooking for dinner: chicken and rice and mac and cheese, we always say thank you, excuse me and please. or 'let's get upstairs and brush our teeth, then into our jammies and ready for sleep'

Tupperware Symphony:

Take some sealable Tupperware containers and make a percussion orchestra. Try uncooked black, kidney or other beans in one. Try rice or couscous (again, uncooked) in another. I've found metal Tupperware at 99 cent stores, looks like a dog bowl with a plastic lid - makes great sounds with beans in it. Try doing a train song with these like, hmmm: "Little Puffer!" But make sure the tops are sealed well, or ... you can imagine! For a bass drum to keep the beat, a round laundry tub (or plastic iced/drink bucket) can work very well turned upside down and beat with a wooden spoon. Pass around an instrument to each family member or friend and get an organic groove going. Then add some simple singing with 'vocables': hey, ya, nah, hey, ya, nah, or doot, doot, shoobie, doobie, doo." Have fun and even record or video it and send to us for our site!!

Here's a great site for more sophisticated homemade percussion ideas: www.rhythmweb.com/homemade/