Kindermusik with Sarah

“If you want a highly competent population with limited behaviour problems and no violence, then you don’t have any choice but to invest in early childhood development,” he said in a recent interview. “Since parents have the dominant effect on a child, you want to make damn certain you give parents every opportunity to be good.”

He’s unapologetically blunt and 80 years old, but Dr. Fraser Mustard continues to be a tireless advocate for early childhood development and the importance of working together as a community to focus on the preschool years to prevent problems down the road.

Thank you again, Dr. Mustard, for reminding me how important the job of parenting is, and that if we need help to do it better, we should expect to have the support of our community.  When we invest in kids, we invest in our own future.

No Comments »

And its still April!

I will be available on an as needed basis by e-mail or phone, but there will be no classes from Saturday, April 28th to Sunday, May 6th, 2007.  Priority registration for the May/June Adventures intersession classes will continue for currently enrolled families, and will open to others on a first come, first served basis May 8th.

So what are my fabulous plans for these 9 days off?  Absolutely nothing.  Nainai is heading to Jilin to visit family, but Julia, Xiaotian and I are staying close to home.  If you would like to join us for a swim or a romp in the park, get in touch.  Its much too nice out to stay inside!

Have a good break, and we’ll see you again the second week of May.

No Comments »

Tuesday, April 24th, 2007   12:21 am

There is a crew of 6, armed with shovels and a weak attempt to keep their voices low, planting a tree outside our bedroom window.  In the dark.

I hate Earth Day.

No Comments »

I posted a tentative version of the Spring and Summer schedule tonight, which gives a general outline of what I am planning for the May/June intersession.  Take a look, and if you have any suggestions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!

What that schedule doesn’t show are the grand, and at this point rather incomplete, plans I have for July’s day camp sessions.  I hope to offer 2 - 3 week long sessions at different locations (one in town and one in Shunyi, 3rd as numbers warrant) for kids 4 to 7 years old.  The camps will feature Kindermusik Adventures Tell Me A Tale, as well as related crafts, games and sports.  The day camps will feature a child:adult ratio of no more than 6:1, and will be staffed by at least one, possibly 2 “camp counsellors” as well as myself.* 

I am looking for advice on whether this should be a full day or half day session, so if you are at all interested in the session and have an opinion, please let me know.  And heck, if you’d like me to come to your school/club house/church/community centre and offer a session, please let me know.

So there you have it.  May and June intersession classes on the schedule now.  Week long day camps tentatively scheduled for July 2-6, 9-13, 16-20 respectively.  No classes planned for August at this time, and a return regular weekly classes (but with a whole new line up of curricula!) in early September.

*Speaking of camp counsellors, do you know any English speaking 15 - 20 year olds who can carry a tune, like working with kids, and are looking for 3 weeks of servitude relatively well paid work in Beijing this July?  Yes?  Good!  Because I don’t, and I would like to ASAP!  Resumes can be e-mailed or faxed.  No photos, please.

No Comments »

Here is a wonderful and thoughtful response by Julia at Here Be Hippogriffs to a weekend article from the Washington Post Magazine entitled Pearls Before Breakfast, her struggle to appreciate the classical music her father loved, and raising a kid who just doesn’t really like music in the way that children are, apparently, supposed to.

And my personal theory on why a virutoso drew the attention of only 7 out of over a 1000 people and made $30 busking in a subway station?  People don’t go to subway stations to stand still.  I think if a virtuouso of any kind was playing along the roadside during my commute, I would likely curse him under my breath for slowing down traffic when I needed to get to work.  I love music!  But asking people to stop in the street to appreciate it is a bit much.  These weren’t people out for a morning stroll.  They were on there way somewhere!  And my best bet is that almost half of them already had a phone or mp3 player in at least one of their ears anyway.

My daughter Julia discovered the joy of the harmonica this weekend, about the same time as Julia’s son Patrick did.  Was something in the air?  But after seeing her wheezy joy, I am only feeling a wee bit guilty about sending them home to 12 unsuspecting families when we start the new ABC Music&Me for 4 to 6 year olds at Ganeinu International School next week.  Perhaps a complimentary pair of parental earplugs would be a nice touch?

No Comments »