Reesey, the Singer and the Artist

Reesey has always shown interest in music. Ever since I bought her a copy of Barney Sing-A-Long when she was just a few months old, she would watch it nonstop and eventually, she would stretch out her arms as she sways to the tune of her very first favorite song, The Airplane Song. After Barney, I introduced her to other educational videos like Brainy Baby to which she did not show the same amount of interest so I switched back to Barney. When my husband let her watch Dora for the first time, it was also music that caught her attention. A few months after, I bought a collection of Barbie movies and "The Princess and the Pauper" instantly became her favorite. She would dance and turn around while singing along with Princesses Aneliese and Erica. She also loves singing "Part of That World" with Ariel of Little Mermaid, "Right Here in My Arms", "Always More" and "I Need To Know" with Ro of The Island Princess, and all the songs of "The Princess and the Pauper".

I read in a parenting magazine before that it is important to be conscious of your children's interest and encourage them to engage in activities that would nourish their interests and hone their skills. Apart from music, Reese also loves to draw and color. So I always buy her crayons, color pens, drawing books, coloring books and recently, a plastic young artist's mini-drawing board.

Below are other suggestions that you might want to try to support your children's interests:


-Introduce them to different art forms such as music, drawings, and crafts.

-Read books to them. Choose books with pictures in vivid colors to catch their attention. Exposing them early to books, comics or magazines will develop interest in learning about new things by reading.

-Take them outside. Let them enjoy nature, play on the streets (as long as it is safe), run after butterflies, or have a picnic. Let them discover the world.

-Enroll them in classes on performing arts be it ballet, voice lessons, drama class, piano lessons or martial arts. They will never find out where they would excel in if you do not let them try.

-Engage them in sports. Start with playing catch when they start walking. You can also jog or brisk walk together.

-Allow them to socialize. Let them play with other children and let them learn from each other and discover things together.

-Set playdates with friends' children and schedule different activities for them, say Barney marathon this month then pizza making next month. Princess party for girls and ball games for boys would be fun too.

Be creative. What is important is that we let our children have fun and learn at the same time. It's one of the reasons I enrolled Reesey in a pre-school at an early age of two and a half. She can have fun and learn at the same time. Now, she has friends of her own and does not have problems being around other kids. At night, she would sometimes sing to me a new song she learned from school and even if I cannot decipher the words or recognize the tune, I would gladly listen and let her sing to me over and over again.