A unique program for early childhood music has made its home at Wilshire.
East Dallas Children’s Music, which offers classes for children newborn to 9 years of age and features the Musikgarten curricula, has relocated to Wilshire in cooperation with the music ministry.
East Dallas Children’s Music was founded in 1989 by Cathy Mathia, an internationally known early childhood music and movement specialist. She is licensed and certified at the highest level attainable by the Early Childhood Music and Movement Association.
Mathia has been a church musician since she was 11 and holds bachelors’ degrees in organ performance and music therapy and a master of music degree in choral conducting. She was the early childhood music specialist in the Piano Preparatory Department at SMU prior to founding her own studio. She also is co-author of the God’s Children Sing curricula published by Musikgarten.
Musikgarten operates on the assumption that all children have musical aptitude and that early childhood—a time of rapid growth and brain development—is the optimal time to begin to develop this potential in an active, joyful, and developmentally appropriate way. Classes promote musical literacy—the ability to “see what you hear and hear what you see” in notation, as well as singing and rhythmic skills, aural perception, language development, motor coordination, ensemble skills, and social interaction.
“This is an ideal way to prepare a child for later instrumental or vocal study, to be a more perceptive listener or thinker in the arts and other disciplines, and to be a better learner in school,” Mathia said.
“Only Musikgarten offers a comprehensive, sequential plan for the musical development of your child from birth to age 9. Each level of Musikgarten, from the infant program to the introductory keyboard program, stands on its own and fits the developmental needs of the child. Class time is educational, fun and purposeful—a rarity in today’s world which often confuses entertainment with education.”
Wilshire members may be particularly interested in the God’s Children Sing I and II classes, where parents and preschool children grow in faith together while experiencing God’s love through music and movement. God’s Children Sing I is for children 16 months to 3 and a half years and God’s Children Sing II is for 3 to 5 year olds.
There are also adult beginning keyboard classes offered.
While these programs are open to the community, Wilshire members will receive a 10 percent discount on tuition.
(214) 452-3100