Kindermusik in the UK and Ireland: Maestro Educators

Maestro Educator

status was awarded to a number of educators recently for having programmes reaching a large number of families. Read some of their stories here:

Katrina Claydon, Lancashire:

Kindermusik has been a whirlwind of the most amazing emotions. I have crossed paths with families in all walks of life and have enjoyed meeting and getting to know each and every one of them.

“One of my main aims in life is to know that in some way I can make a difference in the life of a child. Kindermusik helps me to exceed this goal with its amazing curriculum, music and commitment to the development of the whole child."

Having spent my first year teaching in the USA where Kindermusik is a household name, it was quite an exciting challenge to then return to the UK to offer this amazing programme to families in and around the Lancashire area. I set up classes in March 2007 with 7 families, and after 24 months am delighted to be reaching over 200 families each week through my studio programmes (Village, Our Time and Imagine That), workshops within childrens centres and through schools, nurseries and pre-schools. One of the areas that has been highlighted to me in my work has been using music as an amazing tool within the special needs sector (Music & Inclusivity). I have been so emotionally blown away by the way my approach to teaching Kindermusik’s amazing methodology and curriculum has provided so much joy and educational value to all the children I have met and worked with.

2008 started off on a high note with the award of Maestro educator Conductor’s circle being awarded to my programme in recognition of my perseverance and vision in building a far-reaching programme and therefore being listed in the top 1% of Kindermusik Educators worldwide!

"Kindermusik is all about families coming together and friendships being made in a musical, fun, nurturing and educational environment.

Top

 

Finola Ryan, Co Clare:

A 3 year old child in my Our Time class recently remarked "Finola's job is singing.  That's a nice job."  I think she summed up very nicely how I feel as a Kindermusik Educator.

My Kindermusik programme began in January 2006 when I was teaching piano and violin in County Clare, in the west of Ireland.  I trained as a Kindermusik educator to expand my instrumental teaching in a creative way with younger students.  I then began an Imagine That! and Kindermusik for the Young Child class as an introduction to music for younger children.  As my programme expanded with the addition of Village and Our Time classes in September 2006, I relocated to Glor Irish Music Centre, a modern and spacious theatre in my local town.  Since then I have added a Family Time class to the programme.  I was awarded Maestro status in 2007 and again in 2008 as my programme expanded to cater for over 60 families in the locality, and I hope that will continue.  Kindermusik is a wonderful programme and a very rewarding job, with great support both from the International base in the US to a growing network of local teachers throughout Ireland and the UK

Top

 

Cath Smithson, York:

Before discovering Kindermusik, I was a full-time primary teacher with responsibility for music within the school. I felt the need for a change and licensed to teach Kindermusik in 2003 as well as qualifying as a massage therapist. I envisaged myself doing a little of everything – working part-time in school, massage therapy and pre-school music, but Kindermusik has grown so much that there is little time for anything else! No-one had heard of it when I started, so it was a case of shouting from the rooftops, tramping the streets and building up a loyal group of families. I gradually taught more and more Kindermusik classes in York and now have about 130 families coming to classes each week. Kindermusik’s presence in the UK is getting bigger all the time and it’s wonderful to be see a growing community of educators across the country and to be part of an international organisation which prides itself on top quality music programmes and ongoing professional development. Being self-employed is hard work but I get a huge amount of pleasure from teaching children and parents alike.

.Top

 

Vanessa Webb, Surrey:

I decided to change careers whilst my children were young. I have always been musical and wanted to find a job that used my previous business skills but also involved teaching music to children. Kindermusik impressed me because of the quality of teaching and amount of childhood development learnings built into the programme and stood out for me versus other programmes in the area. I started teaching Kindermusik in 2002 with just 2 classes - I now teach  all Kindermusik curricula to around 130 families in Camberley and Chobham, Surrey with waiting lists for many classes. I often wish there were more hours in the day to meet the demand.

 I believe the programme is popular because parents recognise how much thought has gone into the lessons based on the latest research. Importantly,  parents can continue the Kindermusik experience at home with quality CDs, story books, home activities and instruments. Many families have been with me since they were very young and its great to see the benefits of  Kindermusik  on their development as they move through the different curricula. I only wish that more families could experience Kindermusik and as UK Area developer I am committed to making this happen.

Top

Jan Holt, West Sussex:

About six and a half years ago I trained to become a Kindermusik educator while I was living in Canada. Before getting married I had been a Junior/Middle teacher in the UK specialising in Music. After having 4 children of my own I became more interested in the under 7 age group. I visited my local Canadian Kindermusik programme and was impressed by the educators and their joyful and creative approach to teaching. I also recognised that a curriculum developed by experts in the fields of Music and Child Development would be satisfying to teach and would far out shine anything I could try to create by myself.

I decided to train to be an educator in Canada and shortly after this my family and I moved back to the UK. I was fortunate to know a woman in my town who had been running her own nursery rhyme sessions for local families and was needing to leave the area. She asked if I would teach some of her sessions and gave me the opportunity to introduce the families to the Kindermusik Village and Our Time programmes. I kept one of her sessions going and 50 of the families decided to change to Kindermusik. I began by charging £2 a week plus home materials. As the parents began to trust me and saw how the children really enjoyed the new programme and benefited from the materials I then put up my prices.

At first I wanted to run 5 classes a week and found that word of mouth was adequate to keep these full. As the children grew I then started to open Imagine That and eventually Young Child sessions. I decided to not have long waiting lists but to open up more sessions. When two new preschool Music groups opened in the locality I decided to advertise in the local GrapeVine magazine, a directory for all local events.

When my 7 year old son suddenly developed juvenile arthritis my husband Scott and I decided that we needed to be as flexible as possible with our work hours as our son needed constant hospital appointments and was off school at least 2 days a week. With a strong Music and Performing Arts background,( he had already been working as my administrator) Scott decided to train as a Kindermusik educator and to concentrate on teaching the 3 - 7 age group.

As our business continued to grow we took on another educator Kim who teaches an Our Time class. We will be running 20 sessions a week after Easter which will cover all the Kindermusik age groups and we run Kindermusik camps in the summer. I teach two Music Box sessions as lunchtime clubs in a local primary school.

We are fortunate to have a great facility where we can keep all our equipment and instruments. We have a reception/play area area outside the hall where classes take place and so there are families usually in both areas through out the day.

As an encouragment to those considering teaching Kindermusik or just starting. If you cannot find the perfect facility at first don't be too dismayed. When I began teaching I rented two halls. One had no adjacent parking and I had to unload and then park some way up the road. My youngest child was at nursery school and I would run after classes to be able to pick him up on time. The hall would be chilly in the winter and too hot in the summer but despite these difficulties parents kept coming and my numbers kept growing. The quality of musical experience they were having with Kindermusik was the most important factor for them.

 

Top

Features

Try a Free Class