Melenie for MILESTONES
MILESTONES -- A playlist for at home is back for our second release in the series, which features a set of songs that will surely spark nostalgia or the urge to dance or possibly both. Curated by Melenie Yap Chesneau who is a long time friend of ours -- also mother, music aficionado, and taste maker -- shows us what "Family Dance Time" means to their family. Melenie is also the Co-Creator of Filipino Story Time - Seattle, which hosts in-person (pre-pandemic) and virtual book readings for parents and children that highlight Filipino stories, culture, and language.
We spoke briefly on "Family Dance Time" as her theme for this MILESTONES release. Enjoy the write up and playlist below! 💕
Hey Melenie, thank you for taking time to contribute your Playlist to MILESTONES. We know you have your hands full these days, so we're really grateful you could take part. Your theme was 'Family Dance Time', could you give us a little detail as to what that moment of the day means to you and your family?
This moment of the day usually happens after dinner, and the kids still have some energy in them before bedtime. We usually like to play games set to music like musical chairs, freeze dance, red light, green light or just have a dance party! We choose songs that are upbeat and ones that they may have recognized from watching current shows, like "Motown Magic" or movies, "Sing" and "Trolls" - all of these feature covers of songs that are well-known/loved by parents, and the children learn to love as well.
It's a fun way to bond as a family!
I would like to expose my children to music by iconic R&B/Soul/Pop artists - this playlist features songs from the late 60's - early 90's. Hoping that they will correlate this music to the fun family games they played in their childhood.
Fun Family Games Set to Music:
Musical Chairs - learning social skills such as fair play, sportsmanship, encouraging others, listening skills, as well as spatial awareness and a developing sense of safety.
Red Light Green Light - helps children build executive function through play. Executive function plays a key role in emotion regulation and impulse control — helping kids pause, think and then make a decision before immediately reacting.
Freeze Dance - helps children become more aware of their impulses to learn self-control, also develops listening skills and self-regulation (starting and stopping).
Dance Party - gives children creative expression, an appreciation of music, builds strength, and coordination.
"Research shows that exposure to music can also improve children’s ability to learn, with it impacting on children’s memory, cognitive development, and expressive ability. Patterned activities such as clapping to music or jumping in time to a beat stimulate brain function and help the brain to organise thoughts and behaviors." - https://www.storytimelane.com.au/musical-chairs