Parents: Suggestions for JAM-centered Activities with Your Children

Good afternoon!

Once again, I turn to Smithsonian Jazz for guidance.  This time around, I found great suggestions on what parents can do to make Jazz Appreciation Month "real" for their children.

For convenience, I list most of their ideas below. You can find these and other interesting tid-bits on the Smithsonian Jazz website.

• Take your son or daughter to hear "live" jazz such as the jazz band of your local high school or college.
• Play jazz music while driving in the car or sitting at the dining room table with your family and talk to your children about the music.
• Play different tracks from jazz CDs for your children and their friends and ask for their reactions. Try different pieces of music and when you find some that they like, consider exposing your child to more music by that artist.
• Suggest that your child log on to www.smithsonianjazz.org; to www.ArtsEdge.kennedy-center.org; or to another child friendly jazz site.
• Take your children to visit a jazz exhibition (such as the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, DC), jazz museum (the American Jazz Museum in Kansas City, or the National Jazz Museum in Harlem in New York City), jazz center (the Jazz Heritage Center in San Francisco), jazz home (such as Scott Joplin's home in St. Louis), or jazz park (the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park), if you live near one.
• If you live in or near New York City, take your child to a Jazz for Young People Concert, at Jazz at Lincoln Center.
• Read to your young child. If you are the parent of a child aged 4-8, read (or get your child to read) The Jazz Fly by Matthew Gollub and Karen Hanke, "The Sound That Jazz Makes"by Carole Boston Weatherford and Eric Velasquez, "Once Upon a Time in Chicago: The Story of Benny Goodman" by Jonah Winter and Jeannette Winter, "If I Only Had a Horn: Young Louis Armstrong" by Roxanne Orgill and Leonard Jenkins, or Chris Raschka's "Charlie Parker Played Be Bop".
• Contact your local jazz society to see if it offers a jazz education program.

There's something on this list that will appeal to everyone. It doesn't take a lot of time or money but it could open up a whole new world for the children in your life.

What can you think of that can get children and adolescents interested in jazz? What have you tried in the past that has worked for you? I would love for you to share some of your experiences with me and the readers of the blog!

Thank you.

DM

Comments

[Neal - Sax Station]

Cool post Donna. When I saw the title though I thought you meant have the kids jam out! Having a kid just meet a musician you know from your family, a friend, etc and hearing them play stuff can be cool.
Another idea to branch out from learning by reading sheet music would be to play along with a jazz record by ear. I did that when I was younger with my music teacher and it's a lot of fun, plus you're playing with an awesome backing band.
-Neal