How Parents Can Continue Their Child’s Musical Education In Lockdown
COVID-19 has taken the whole world by storm with the majority of countries around the world in national lockdown to prevent the spread of the disease. With this being the case, one of the things most parents of musical children are struggling with is finding engaging ways to continue their child’s musical learning despite most not being musically inclined or a trained teacher. To that end, here are some ways in which you as a parent can help to ensure that your child progresses musically despite a lack of knowledge and musical training.
1. YouTube and BandLab
There are so many brilliant (and FREE) online resources for anybody to access these days. It can be something as simple as some Youtube tutorials geared towards your child’s particular instrument or musical interest such as DJing, there’s something for everybody.
You can also access sites like BandLab which is a free online DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) if your child/children want to create their first hit! BandLab can also be downloaded as an app on the Apple or Android App store, although there are some limited features to this compared to the online version. Finally, BandLab is a great collaborative tool being used in schools at the moment so if your children are missing their friends this could be a good way for them to interact and connect despite lockdown.
More info on BandLab here: https://www.bandlab.com/
2. Virtual choirs/bands/orchestras
A lot of the previously in person ensembles are organising virtual rehearsals and performances whilst their members can’t get together in person, find out if your son or daughter’s ensemble are holding virtual sessions over Zoom or Skype. If your child’s ensemble isn’t going down the virtual route, there are plenty of ones that are and if you look online, you’ll find something!
A few music teacher friends of mine have levied the traction of TikTok to recruit musicians from all over the world to create a virtual performance, if your kids are TikTok mad then get them searching for opportunities on there!
3. Music With Henry
This is geared towards babies and toddlers and is “centered around the joy of connection between adult and child”. It is run by brilliant Stave House founder Ruth Travers and would be the perfect virtual option for you and your child to continue or even start your musical journey together. This is suitable for ages 0–3 and can be accessed entirely online via zoom for a small fee during these current times.
More info on Music With Henry here:https://stavehouse.co.uk/music-with-henry/
4. Stave House
If you have a child who is slightly too old for Music With Henry, you can look at Stave House instead! This is an early childhood music teaching method focused on teaching your child music and music theory through songs, tactile materials and games. I’m fortunate enough to be a licensed Stave House Practitioner so have seen first-hand the great things this method can achieve!
More info on Stave House here: https://stavehouse.co.uk/about/
5. Classical 100
Classical 100 is a free resource created by Classic FM featuring a collection of 100 classical songs coupled with learning activities and information on each piece of music in the collection. You can rest easy knowing that this program of music and learning has been curated and vetted by experienced music teachers to ensure maximum learning and musical progress for your child.
More info here: https://www.classicfm.com/classical-100/abrsm-music-education-resource-free-lockdown/
I hope this brief list helps give you some ideas as to what you can do as a parent or guardian to provide your child with some musical enrichment despite the current restrictions.
