Music at Peachtree Childtown

At Peachtree Childtown, we believe that every child is musical and deserves the opportunity to explore and enjoy music in an atmosphere that is free from fear of pressure to perform, while acquiring a foundation for future learning in all areas of development.

Our music program is:

• child-centered - The individuality of each child is acknowledged and celebrated. Every child is allowed and encouraged to flourish in his/her own way.
• developmentally appropriate - With well-researched and piloted activites woven into each class, we use comprehensive tools for understanding the interests, skills, and appropriate learning methodologies for each stage of development, encouraging the development of the whole child. These activites are:
  • age appropriate - not just chronologically, but, more importantly, developmentally
  • individually appropriate - acknowledging unique personalities, learning styles, and family backgrounds
  • integrated through all domains: cognitive, physical, emotional, and social
  • interactive - learning through interaction with materials, adults, other children, and their own environmental space;
  • varied - increasing in difficulty and complexity as children develop their skills and understanding
• concerned with the whole child - Carefully integrated selection and development of activities in every class sets the stage for optimal learning experiences for the child. These are:
  • process-based, not performance-oriented. Our process approach places more value on the learning experience itself. We provide experiences for all developmental levels with no pre-determined level of achievement demanded. Our goal is musical children who have a lifelong love of music rather than child musicians.
  • fun for the children and for their families - Young children respond and participate when something is fun and enjoyable, repeating a favorite book, activity, song, or musical game over and over again. This repetition creates opportunities to build and extend an activity, leading to mastery of skills and learning of concepts.
    

Music at Peachtree Childtown is taught by Merri Williams, a music educator with over 38 years of experience in teaching music to children of all ages. She holds a degree in music education as well as being licensed and certified by Kindermusik International. Ms. Williams is also a member of the Music Teachers National Association, the Decatur Music Teachers Association, the American Orff Schulwerk Association, and the National Federation of Music Clubs. She is also an accredited Simply Music teacher, specializing in piano instruction.