| Musical Beginnings: The Benefits of Song |
As a parent, music undoubtedly plays a key role in your child’s everyday life. You use it to communicate, build a sense of security, play and soothe. But what you may not think about are the long-lasting benefits it provides. Many studies have proven that music affects the brain in various ways and can actually improve many abilities. "There's an undeniable biology of music," says Harvard University medical neurobiologist Mark Tramo, M.D. "In our brains, millions of neurons form circuits that are uniquely activated when we listen to music. These circuits may also be involved in memory, attention, emotion, motor control, and language."
Music plays a vital role in The Little Gym curriculum, with originally composed songs incorporated into almost every aspect of our classes. Active songs help expand children’s vocabulary, musical games teach them to cooperate, and lyrics provide directions and cues that help sharpen their listening skills and increase their attention span.
So the next time you’re at The Little Gym, remember that the songs aren’t just a cute or funny addition to class. The music is helping to increase the number of connections in your child’s brain, enhancing its functioning, and playing a vital role in their on-going development.
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WELCOME NEW STAFF
Thank you to everyone, parents and staff, who helped make our first seemester such a HUGE success! We have some wonderful news that we are very excited about.
First, we would like to thank Brei, Laura, Kylee and Kristin for a job well done. Their efforts helped to create the loving, nurturing environment we want for your children to learn in. As our Winter/Spring Semester comes to a close, we say a fond "farewell" to Kristin and wish luck in her future endeavors. For our Summer Semester however, we welcome our new The Little Gym Team Members, Maria Reader, Amy Acord, and Ashley Sparrow
Maria comes to us from Peak Elite where she taught everyone from toddlers to teens. Prior to that, she worked at The Little Gym of Anchorage, AK. She moved to Corvallis 1 year ago with her teenage daughter. We are very excited to have her join our team. She will teach some parent/child and pre-k classes and also lead our Parent Survival Nights (PSN) as well as our "demo teams" (see below).
Amy was a top OSU gymnast from 1994-1997. After taking some time off to have her son, Amy is back to work. She has worked in the local Police and Fire depts. as well as local children's camps. Luckily, she loves teaching. She has taught in several different venues and will play a key role our grade school program with some pre-k classes here and there.
Ashley will be in charge of 2 days of camp along with Maria, Kylee and Laura. She has lots of experience with children and has the most "bubbly" personality we have seen in years (did I just say "bubbly"?) We look forward to having her greet each and every one of you.
Please help us in welcoming Maria, Amy and Ashley to the team.
Laura and Brei will continue to teach our Parent/Child and Pre-K classes. They are both certified with The Little Gym International for Parent/Child instruction.
Second, we would like to thank you parents who have been here from the beginning and have already signed up for fall, you get a $25 discount on an Awesome Birthday Bash at The Little Gym for your child. This is our way of saying thank you for your support.
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EXCITING NEWS AND CONTINUED SAVINGS!
The savings continue.....Remember how we granted everyone who signed up for Fall Semester$25 off an Awesome Birthday Bash at The Little Gym for their child? If you have not signed up for fall yet and still want the $25 "Birthday" discount, all you need to do is reserve your child's spot for fall with a $50 deposit before July 3. That's it! If you need to change the day and time of the class later because your plans have changed, no problem. We are very easy going that way and want to do everything possible to make enrolling easy for you.
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Summer Fun! Our Summer Session begins June 15 and is packed with tons of fun. We have fun summer themes including Ninja's Hideout (an intro to our upcoming Karate classes), Guppies to Puppies (where there will be pets in the gym), Fantasy Castle (we will have prince and princess in the gym for sure), and many more. We have 3 hour camps for 3 - 8 year olds that have corresponding themes. At camp the children will do gymnastics, crafts, eat a snack and have a BLAST!!! Space is limited in some classes and camps already so call today! | |
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Our curriculum is based on teaching through gymnastics, skills that the children are able to learn and do and feel a sense of accomplishment. We have added a few new programs to the mix with the same The Little Gym philosophy; you don't have to be the best, just try your best.
In the fall, we are introducing our new Sports Skills class. It is 30 minutes of gymnastics and 30 minutes of sports. Our goal in this program is to teach fundamental sports skills (throwing, catching, kicking, striking) and basic game play and technique in a fun, non-competitive setting. We focus on the big sports; baseball, football, soccer, basketball as well as hockey, frisbee, golf and many others. "Cracker Jacks" (ages 4-6 yrs.) and "Mini Jacks" (3-4 yrs.) is just the thing to introduce your child to sports skills - or to prepare your little athlete for the "real thing"!
In the winter we are planning to introduce our Karate program. Our Karate is basic, non-combative martial arts. It is designed for children ages 4 - 12.
In the near future, we are unveiling our "Demonstration" teams. These teams are called the Mini Flips and Mini Jets (4-6 years old) and of course our Twisters (intermediate grade school girls) and Hot Shots (intermediate grade school boys). They will do different demonstrations throughout the summer and into the fall and winter. Some possible venue ideas are festivals, farmers markets, OSU basketball games, etc... These classes are yet to be determined and are by invitation only. If you have questions, please ask one of our team members.
Sincerely,
Denise & Randy McCoy
The Little Gym
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email: tlgcorvallisor@thelittlegym.com
phone: 541-753-0950
fax: 541-753-4815
web: www.tlgcorvallisor.com |
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