Infinite Potential

Several years ago I spoke at a child care providers that was sponsored by Children's Resource Network/4C. The key note speaker was Charles Ill who was head of early childhood development for Ottawa County. He put a slide on the screen that struck me so profoundly. I wish I could find him and ask for a reproduction of the slide... I've drawn it up to the best of my ability to use the computer. It shows how we invest in the amazing potential of the brain.


The blue line roughly represents the the brain's potential for growth and change. There are biological events around 7 years and 13 years of the chemical (hormones) pruning of unused neurons in order to streamline and focus on the well connected neural pathways the child's experiences have deemed necessary.

The red line roughly represents the financial investment made towards the child's potential.

I believe there is always potential but I also acknowledge the vastness of an infant's possibility.
I also believe that the parents are the child's best teacher. I am not an advocate of early childhood education without the close involvement of the parents' participation. What would our society be like if we really invested in nurturing the infant family with financial and emotional support?

I commend all the grandparents, uncles and aunts who've given Kindermusik gift certificates or who've even brought their grandchildren to classes. I believe that's a very meaningful investment in their potential.

Find out more about gift certificates or to enroll

Come and dance in the well tended garden of our children.
Happy New Year.

Do you LIVE in your living room?

Once when Claire was about 2 she discovered the scissors. Luckily the newspaper was nearby...actually right in the heavily used walkway going into the living room. She worked for almost 2 hours singing and cutting the paper into tiny pieces. (How long is a child's attention span?) (How happy was I for two hours to do things on my agenda?) She was getting very accomplished with those scissors and I was so proud of her new skills!

She was an absolute gray mess!!!! And the living room, already quite lived in, was a disaster. As my friend, Jody would say: "Signs of a struggle!"

Well actually, signs of LIFE. And for that I am grateful.
Today Claire who is 17 is very dexterous, making many things with her hands from her beautiful lampwork glass bead earrings to beautiful violin music.

In Kindermusik Our Time we begin working with our hands and fingers while we singing "If You're Happy and You Know It". Time for children to explore their little hands and the many things we can do with them! They look so intently at their hands and you can almost see them thinking: "So THESE are thumbs!"

So when you find life in your living room remember this:

A House Becomes a Home When You Can Write "I love You" On the Furniture

Life is short. Enjoy it! Dust if you must, but wouldn't it be better to paint a picture or write a letter, bake a cake or plant a seed, ponder the difference between want and need?

Dust if you must, but there's not much time, with rivers to swim and mountains to climb, music to hear and books to read, friends to cherish and life to lead.

Dust if you must, but the world's out there with the sun in your eyes, the wind in your hair, a flutter of snow, a shower of rain. This day will not come around again.

Dust if you must, but bear in mind, old age will come and it's not kind. And when you go- and go you must- you, yourself will make more dust!

It's not what you gather, but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived.

author unknown
Peace, Yvette

I think, therefore I am!

I Believe In Music
I believe in music because I am human. I believe our universe resonates with vibrations that inspire us to musical expression. I believe music changes the chemistry of our brain and opens us up for deeper connection of self, community and our world.

I believe our innate musicality is the tool we use to learn our languages as babies. Our ears are sensitive to the melodies and rhythms of what is spoken around us even before we are born. We notice immediately subtle changes in timber, dynamics, accents and style in order to understand more than just the words. It is in order to understand the communication.

I am, therefore I think musically.

Stepping beyond spoken language in singing or wordless music, we go deeper into our human expression. It is powerful during celebrations, worship time, for patriotism and in marketing. Music can calm us, move us to fervor, or bring us to tears and can remain in our memories for our entire life.

I am, therefore I hum and whistle and sing.

It is inarguable that music moves us. I find proof in watching babies when they hear music. One of my favorite Kindermusik memories is of 16 month Ella at her first Kindermusik class. She was a little uneasy, not really knowing if she was to be dropped off or not. She looked at me suspiciously as I tempted her with the egg shakers. As I began singing our “Hello” song still worried and frowning she began the universal toddler dance. She just could not keep herself from dancing.

I am, therefore I sway and dance.

Musical experiences in community bring everyone to a new level of joyful connection. It’s like an electrical charge when our Kindermusik class keeps the beat while playing rhythmic patterns or dances to an accelerando or sings in a round. There’s an intensity of concentration, a joyfulness of unity, and pleasure in sounding and moving together that brings us all, parents and children to revel in each other.

I am, therefore I clap and stomp to the beat.

I think, sing, dance and clap, therefore I am!