When you think of summer camp, you might conjure memories of sing-a-longs, swimming with friends, and sharing s’mores around a campfire. This summer, creating those childhood memories is more challenging as parents search for safe, meaningful and engaging activities. Enter BKCM’s popular virtual Piano Explorers Camp, which offers little ones a chance to create music and memories with friends, new and old, near and far. What better group activity to bring together friends from across the street—or even cousins from across the ocean—than hamming it up on the ivories?
Piano Explorers throws a pinch of adventure into the summer family routine and takes musical fun to the next level. Intended as a multi-level beginner course, mini maestros plunk their way through fun and familiar melodies while learning key names, finger positioning, and rhythms—all at the hands of BKCM’s expert group class instructors. Students just need access to a computer, wifi and a piano or electric keyboard with full size keys.
These camps are open to preschoolers entering kindergarten, first graders, and those going into second grade. They can embark on a one-week piano “Trek” or a two-week piano “Expedition.” The skill level varies incrementally from students who are brand new to the piano (“Scouts”) to those with one-to-two years experience (”Pioneers”). This provides organic opportunities for campers to foster mentorship, listening and teamwork skills by sharing their knowledge and learning from one other’s skill level.
Each class begins with a “welcome” music game followed by a play-along session, and an ear training game. After some one-on-one time with each camper, each session ends on a high note with an all-inclusive lively show-and-tell/group jam. Each week has a theme, and the kids have materials, books, songs and drawings to “take home” and keep.
“Parents particularly enjoy the final performance where the campers not only perform on the piano (many for the first time) but also sing, move and drum to new songs,” says Brian Drye, Director of Community Music School at BKCM. “To see the joy on students faces who are getting their first taste of practicing and performing is incomparable. I love that many students return for private lessons and upper level classes, becoming a part of the conservatory family for many years.”
Keeping with the music camp tradition, each Piano Explorers camp offers a creative, supportive and good-humored environment, setting the stage for activating young minds and igniting imaginations. They strike just the right balance between stimulating early childhood brain development and fulfilling summer’s primary purposes: independent exploration, the satisfaction of skill mastering, joyful discovery, and playing with friends.
Offered throughout all of July and August, you can find out which week(s) of camp work best for your family’s schedule, and begin your registration at https://bkcm.org/pianocamp.
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This article is sponsored by Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. Please support businesses that support A Child Grows.