Lets Kick Start Wonders of Music with Greenery!

‘Sounds of the Forest’ and ‘Green Guardians’

In our project ‘Wonders of Music with Greenery’, we also included the ‘Sounds of the Forest’ program by the National Parks Board, where children learnt about native flora and fauna, and the ‘Green Guardians’ program by Gardens by the Bay, which promotes eco-friendly practices among families. Our children had completed these programs during the school holiday in June!

N2, K1 and K2 children working on the activities from the ‘Sounds of the Forest’ activity book

N2, K1 and K2 children working on the missions in completing the Green Quest in the ‘Green Guardians’ programme

Art Exploration with Recyclables

Our infants had fun creating artwork using recyclables, such as bottle caps and toilet rolls. Through this activity, they explored different textures and developed their fine motor skills by grasping and pressing the materials onto their artwork. It also introduced them to the concept of reusing everyday items creatively.

Making of Musical Instruments and Multicultural Music Exposure

From July to September, the children explored elements of nature, such as parts of a tree, seashells, seeds, rocks, water and more, and created different musical instruments using the natural elements.

Children exploring different parts of plants and trees

Children sorting parts of the plants and trees into 3 categories- leaves, branches and seeds

Children drawing and labelling different parts of a plant

The N2 and K1 children had a fun time making their own paper using recycled papers! They eagerly tore the used paper into tiny pieces, mixed it with warm water, and carefully shaped it on a cloth to create their own unique designs.

The K1 and K2 children explored rhythm, one of the elements of music, by playing the African drum known as the Djembe drum!

The children crafted different musical instruments using twigs and branches they collected.

N2, K1 and K2 children making handbells with twigs and branches

IF, PG, PN, K1 and K2 children making shakers filled with twigs and branches

In August, the children used recycled materials to create rainsticks and shakers and filled them with different natural materials.

IF children using materials like branches etc to create shakers

PG children using cloves, soya beans and pebbles for their shakers

PN children using green bean seeds, red bean seeds and rice for their shakers

N2 children using barley, macadamia shells, and seashells for their shakers

K1 children using branches, red bean seeds, soya bean seeds and sago for their rainsticks

K2 children using green bean seeds, pebbles and soya bean seeds for their rainsticks

The children continued their journey of exploring multicultural music with the handmade instruments. They crafted an array of musical instruments using paper products like paper plates, bowls and cups. —like hand drums, rattle drums, maracas, and other percussion instruments—using everyday items like paper plates, paper cups, chopsticks, popsicle sticks, and beans.

PG, PN and N2 children making shakers with paper plates

PN children making maracas with paper cups

IF, PN and N2 children making hand drums with paper plates

K1 children making rattle drums and African drums with paper plates and empty toilet rolls

Moreover, the children explored the musical potential of everyday items like carton boxes, paper rolls, cardboard, bottle caps, and corks, transforming them into various types of drums and castanets.