Where to now for early years music? Back home.

Early years remains one of the key age groups for Youth Music funding and support. What's changed and how far have we come in the last decade in making sure all children have rich musical experiences in their early years? Working with families must be the key.

Music Education Hubs will be working with children from age 5 upwards.

So where does that leave the under 5s?

There are many ways to give children the best opportunities to develop their early potential as musicians - musicians working in children's centres - excellent idea; training and equipping staff to play musically with children and spot the developing musicality - yes of course.

But parents, carers, families and homes must be a key part of the mix. Many homes offer  a rich musical environment, and parents/ carers do so much to encourage (or discourage!) musical play. Music projects with young children often try to involve parents and carers when they drop off or pick up children, or to come in specially for song times and musical play.

Not only is this great for musical development, but also anecdotal evidence suggests, it's great for bonding and stronger family relationships too. Singing with children goes hand in hand with talking and language development. Paying attention and listening to musical play is bound to help parents notice developing skills and coordination. Responding and developing musical ideas leads to a conversation in sound, and the start of group music making and cooperation.

Next week at mac birmingham we are welcoming musicians and early years staff to a seminar looking at practice from midlands projects which have brought families into focus in early years music.

I'll make sure we share some of the discussion here on the Youth Music Network.  

mac is also managing the latest phase of the innovative Moonbeams programme in Birmingham children's centres.

‘Moonbeams - Valuing Very Young Children's Art’ has grown from a series of action research projects carried out across settings in Birmingham between 2001–2011.

Moonbeams projects researched the potential way in which Artists and Educators collaborated with young children (0-6yrs) and their families.

It engaged all participants in researching the relationship between the process and product. The projects were documented and highlight young children's rich potential and competencies as Makers, Dancers, Musicians, Painters, Photographers and Creative Thinkers.

"Every child is an Artist, the problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up” Pablo Picasso

Watch this space for news of a Moonbeams conference in November.