So we are on day 54 of Little Musician and I have tried everything to get my daughter to clap to the beat on the second to last activity. She use to do it at the start when it was slow but lately she hardly claps at all.
She insisted a teddy clapped along with her and then she clapped the teddy hand and then I’d have to pause it while she goes and gets a teddy for that section but now the teddy wont even clap.
I’ve tried clapping her hands for her, I’ve tired laying on the bed and clapping feet, I’ve tried getting dad involved and encouraging. I’ve tried going back to the slower beats but nothing seems to help…
I’m always clapping and role modelling and I guess I just hope that one day soon she will copy and join in. She enjoys the rest so I’m not worried I’d just like to know if any one else does anything different that might help during the beat section of Little Music?
My son isn’t a big clapper. He always goes too fast or haphazardly. He does much better when we march to the beat.
You could try giving her drum sticks! You might regret it long term though lol
You have tried everything else I do, except one thing. We practice the rhythm at other times not with the music or computer on. We march in rhythm or clap/ slap our legs. I have some kids who can do it without the music but not with it. We also do fairy claps with just the fingers.
I give them straws and they call them “batons”. They use them to keep the rythm and later to conduct the orchestra!
My niece refuses to clap herself sometimes, but she will help a toy frog to clap…
My 2 year old never claps and my older two don’t last through a whole song. I do encourage them to clap but I don’t like pressuring them too. I have clapped her hands for her but she doesn’t always like that either. I haven’t figured out what to do about it yet. I hope they get something out of learning rhythm even if they don’t clap.
Here are some tips that might help:
Clapping yourself and being cheerful and enthusiastic about it! – Kids are copycats and they would copy what you do ( Dont try to keep on adressing your child, “c’mon, are you going to clap too”, etc Just enjoy it yourself. She will join you in good time :yes: ! And watching you clap, hearing it and comparing your clapping with the character on the screen, already provides 
illustration
Try marching to the beat, using drums, cymbals, any percussion
Clapping teddy bear’s paws would work too! 
What about jumping to the beat, make it into a game!
Any of these variations would help with learning the beat and sense of rythm. You do not need to feel that clapping is the only way to do it!
Thanks every one, I think I’m going to try and make it more of a all body experience (marching) and mix it up a little bit more.
NPlight- Straws for drumstick might work, and I think its time to give her a conductor stick (a straw) because she always “signs” music when were are listening to music on LM and the sign is very much like conducting an orchestra, so that may just do the trick.
Thanks for the fresh ideas
off marching we will go…
Never thought of that, but that’s a good tip!
I’ll be trying a few of these ideas! My daughter usually decides she will start clapping in the next section, eg with Bach or another composer, after the clap along is finished
Thanks all. Some of the tips might help my 5-year-old too. He is not willing to clap all the time. At the very beginning, when I clapped I asked him to follow me he was reluctant. Now he always asks me to hold his hand and do it with him. If I don’t do it, he just claps a few times then lies down telling me he is so tired. I will try these tips to see if he is motivated to do it all by himself.
My son claps some days but on other days he doesn’t. To keep him on track with learning the rhythm I pat his back so he can feel it.
The day after I had written this post I noticed my daughter clapping to the beat of her leapfrog alphabet song, she was trying to show another little girl how to do it, I was impressed. I introduced the marching during the clap along and moving around the room and it is working really well. Thanks everyone on here!
Mela bala I like the patting on the back idea also,
In addition to some of the ideas used here, I have also tapped random body parts for say, 8 beats of the music or whatever the natural progression is. So, clap for 8, pat our noses for 8, pat out heads, bellies, touch one elbow, ears, and so on. We also have a little collection of percussion instruments that has a lollipop drum in it (google it) and a few others from the Melissa and Doug band in box for example. However, one day they got some markers from the art table to use as rhythm sticks and for some reason prefer those above all else? My daughters old music teacher used to give a pair of little wooden disposable chopsticks to each child in class. I have also patted my son’s back, tapped on the tabletop to the rhythm, etc. I suppose hand puppets only brought during this time might be fun, too. I forgot to mention, sometimes I will call out “clap, wait, clap, wait” to the beat and encourage them to do the same, as well.
Hope that helps!