Introduction
About the SING.PLAY.LOVE. Kit
We can't wait to show you how fun and exciting learning through music and play can be!
Music combined with play, rich picture book literature and YOU as your child’s play partner create the engagement a young child needs to learn and grow.SING.PLAY.LOVE. songs, books, and learning activities can be powerful tools for supporting the development.
Lesson Takeaway
What we can learn.
Motor Imitation
Teaching Your Child to Imitate Your Motor Motions
Children learn by watching, hearing, feeling, and interacting with
the world around them. And universally, children imitate what
they experience through their senses.
Gestures, sound effects, facial expressions, actions with objects,
and motor movements can all be mimicked. Activities that include
imitation of these actions encourage focused attention, body
awareness and self-control.
While imitation skills can develop on their own, some children
need help to develop these skills. You can be key in this process
by modeling behavior, providing processing time and verbally
encouraging them to imitate the motions or sounds you share.
Here are some fun ways to encourage your child to develop
imitation skills that provide a foundation for many social and
language skills to follow.
Sing
Read and sing a long!
Play the Song
Learn how to add signed words and motions.
Play
Here are some simple ways to enrich and extend your child’s learning of imitation and
other key developmental concepts.
Imitation to Engage
Create opportunities for children to transition from one activity to
another or re-engage and focus their attention on you with motor
imitation. Turn your voice off as you begin to perform a simple
motor motion such as touching your head or marching in place.
Gain eye contact with children as you smile and perform the motor
motion. Change to a different motor motion when all children have
joined your fun imitation game and focused their attention on
YOU.
Animals on the Move
Play an animal locomotion game by getting on all fours and
moving around the room as you make the animal sounds. You can
also stand to “stomp like a horse” or “flutter your wings like a
hen” as you move around the “barnyard.” Instruct your critters to
strut their animal moves on their way to the dinner table or
bathtub. It makes transitions easier and much more fun!
Anticipate the Animals
Our wonderful illustrator Luanne Marten has given us a clue on
each page of our book. She helps us anticipate what animal we will
meet on the next page by looking for the one peeking into the
activity on the far-right side of the page. Show your child this
clever trick, then ask them what animal you will see when you turn
the page. Provide ample praise for “reading the page” to know
what happens next!
Follow the
Leader
Follow the leader is a classic game and perfect fun for practicing
imitation skills with children or family members. Participants line
up and the first person in the line is the leader. The leader does
movements as she walks around the room and the other members
of the line imitate. You can also play a stationary form of the game
where all children stand or sit in a circle and the leader chooses
what fancy move friends or family members will perform next.
Lights, Camera,
Action!
Acting out familiar stories is an excellent way to facilitate speech
and language while you develop imitation skills. Children can act
out or imitate the characters in a book. The Three Billy Goats
Gruff is a great story to act out with fun lines, drama, and sound
effects. It is often helpful if you can act out a character’s role to
model for your children. It is also a short enough story that you
can work it out for several small groups to have a turn engaging
with the story.
Love
More things to enjoy. Recommending Reading.
Check out these books that help your child learn to imitate your motor motions and facial expressions:
- Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodking
- The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams
- The Napping House by Audrey Woods
- Red Hat, Yellow Hat by Sandra Boynton
- Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes by Annie Kubler
- If You’re Happy and You Know It by Annie Kubler
- Sometimes I Feel Like a Mouse: A Book About Feelings by Jeanne Modesitt
- The Way I Feel by Janan Cain
Here are some picture books we love about farm animals!
- Barnyard Dance by Sandra Boynton
- Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown
- Noisy Farm by Rod Campbell
- On the Farm by Brooke Vitale
