Key takeaways:

- Guest Speaker: John Webb, a long-time colleague of Kate’s, is introduced as a key influence in developing Tales Toolkit. He leads the webinar, focusing on integrating music into storytelling for early years education.

- Music’s Role in Stories: Music is ubiquitous (films, TV, radio) and enhances storytelling by emphasizing emotion and character. It adds structure through repetition, making mundane tasks (e.g., lining up) fun and engaging for children.

- Early Musical Development: Research shows infants engage in musical turn-taking with mothers, matching pitches. Music is fundamental, retained even in dementia, and involves simple elements like fast/slow, loud/quiet, high/low, which children intuitively grasp.

- Music in Tales Toolkit: Music doesn’t require mastery; it can be simple chanting, singing to known tunes, or creating new songs. It mirrors mark-making, allowing children to explore sounds spontaneously, aligning with Tales Toolkit’s child-led storytelling approach.

 - Movement: Pair sounds with actions (e.g., jumping for frogs, wobbling for jelly) to enhance engagement and motor skills. Songs like “See How I’m Bouncing” incorporate movement, silence, and animal-themed actions for self-regulation.

- Encouraging Participation: Chanting is a low-pressure starting point for shy staff or children. Modeling spontaneous song creation (e.g., about a child’s Lego play) encourages independent music-making. Familiar games like “Doggy, Doggy, Where’s Your Bone” use simple tunes to build confidence.

 - Independent Child Songs: Model spontaneous song creation in stories, personalize lyrics (e.g., using a child’s name), and encourage small-group play to inspire children to create their own music.

- Closing: Kate and John emphasize fun, silliness, and child-led creativity in music, aligning with Tales Toolkit’s ethos. The webinar ends with thanks and an invitation to continue discussions on the forum.

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