MAD Academy classes combine music, movement, rhythm and dance and are designed to be fun, funky and physical. We specialise in music and dance because we understand it plays an integral part in children’s happiness and growth. It also helps them to learn by engaging the whole body and activating multiple parts of the brain at once – it’s the way nature intended children to learn.
Our curriculum is designed to develop children’s early musical and physical skills and ensures activities are age appropriate, helping children to learn and progress their skills in a co-ordinated way.
Music
Classes are packed full of music, nursery rhymes and songs, all carefully chosen to stretch and develop each age group. We focus on singing from memory and always include a song without accompaniment to hone vocal skills. Our songs are rich in vocabulary and varied in musical style. We play lots of musical games to improve children’s listening and responding skills and always listen to a wide variety of musical genres from Bach to the Beach Boys, from Jazz to Reggae. Our instrument time encourages creativity and exploration while other activities focus on introducing children to musical concepts such as timbre and notation.
Movement
In our baby classes many of our activities focus on sensory stimulation and increasing physical awareness. In the older classes we use fun and exciting props to help children develop spatial awareness, as well as their gross and fine motor skills. We also specialise in high energy, physical games designed to develop children’s control, co-ordination and dexterity.
Rhythm
We believe that even the youngest baby can learn to develop a sense of rhythm. That’s why we have lots of activities in our baby classes which allow them to hear and feel a beat with different parts of their bodies. In every MAD Academy class for our walkers and above, as well as our songs and dances, there is a dedicated section designed to cultivate children’s beat competency. They learn to listen for a beat, identify the rhythm, keep time to a piece of music and move to the beat with their whole bodies.
Dance
Each one of our songs has a specially choreographed dance or routine for each age group that ensures everyone keeps moving! Many are high energy dances, with lots of big move
ments that children love, but we also have calmer, quieter songs with hand actions. All have been choreographed to develop children’s co-ordination, balance, agility and sequencing skills. Children learn to follow instructions which increase in complexity as they get older and to develop their physical memories
.
