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Four Part Harmony: The Maestro Mom
By Krishyon Young
Web Exclusive

Bass, Tenor, Alto, Soprano. When they all come together harmony happens. The deep tones of the Bass, solid and rich, the Tenor with its melodic tenderness, the Alto with mellow full earthiness and the Soprano and her high and bright heady and ringing tones, all contribute to this masterful math equation of music. Certainly one voice alone is beautiful, but four has an unearthly effect on the mind and heart. When the four parts work together they “sing”.

Body, Mind, Heart, Soul. When they all come together harmony happens. They play on each other as musical notes enriching and complementing the whole. Using Four Part Harmony can bring your Homeschooling efforts to life, help restore balance and help your home and school “sing”.

Body: Get outside. Physical exercise is needed every day no matter the season. Skip rope, hopscotch, chase butterflies, ride bikes, run for fun, take a walk, climb trees, swing, play catch. Go sledding, snow shoe, do yoga out doors. “Take it outside,” my mother used to tell me. Healthy food feeds the mind and helps bodies function well. Don’t ignore this crucial element. For some children it will make all the difference. If you skip this step, certain children will not have what they need to succeed in the other three areas. Keep tabs on your children’s reaction to different foods. You may need to eliminate or limit an item to help a child concentrate and feel healthy. Watch how a little fresh air and good food can calm a cranky kid and stop sibling skirmishes.

Mind: Read. Find out what the mind craves and feed it. Does your child love poetry, puppets, puzzles or pyramids? Find out what they love this week and jump in head first. Try the library, search on-line, check out the book store (yes, even TV can work). Offer it all up buffet style and see what entices your child. You may be surprised; he may choose the leafy green science book over the sugary sticker book. Read every single day. Don’t stop reading to your children just because they know how to do if for themselves. Read subjects that interest them. Read both fiction and nonfiction books to your children. Read for fun.

Heart: Cuddle and kiss your kids.Watch the balance carefully between school Marm and loving mommy. There need to be times when you are not harping on your children to do this or that. Just close your eyes to the mess, if you have to, and spend time with each child without making a reference to their half-finished math lesson or their neglected piano practice. They need you to be kind, forgiving, positive and available. Read books that they like and visit the museum or beach with no agenda in mind (you will find they do plenty of learning without your prompting). Just hang out and have down time, time off when neither you, nor your child, are thinking about the pressures that can at times creep into your home because of school. Tell your children how much you love them everyday. Remind your family everyday how unique they are and what you see that is special about them. Ten to One: if a reprimand or correction is given, ten positive pats are needed. Catch children being good and let them overhear you praising them to others. Remember why you are doing this: you love them.

Soul: Pray and Play. What refreshes you and your family? Attending church, time outdoors in nature, quiet time together, family gatherings, sports, working on projects together, all of the above? Find out what refreshes your spirit and make time for it as you would any other important thing on your list of To Do’s. It is one of the essential parts of life and rehearsing the soul helps keep it in tune. Nothing will stop the music faster than a maniac for a maestro. Mom, when you are burned out, you can wave your arms and call out directions all day but you will be ineffective. Do what it takes to keep yourself in the game. If you need a night out every week, make it happen. Plan an afternoon at the movies with friends once a month. Make a standing date with your husband on Friday nights. Do whatever works for you. I hide in a corner of the local library sometimes. It’s free and I can get a little peace and quiet to do my favorite thing: read.

Putting It All Together in Musical Terms. Poco à Poco: Little by little. Slow down; be realistic with your time and efforts. Nothing gets you down faster than never coming to the end of something. There is an interesting saying that vocalists use: “People only remember the ending and the beginning, nothing in between.” Arrange your To Do list to have a healthy start and a sure ending. No one likes to be left wondering, “Is it over? Do I clap now?” By the way, encores are allowed and repeats are sometimes necessary.

Modulation: To shift to a different key. Sometimes things need to change in music; this can happen when a different feeling is sought. The same thing happens with children. Watch for it. I hear moms worry because something isn’t working. That is your signal that it’s time for a modulation (drop what’s not working anymore). It takes nothing away from what you have been doing; it only enhances the next section and even renews interest when it has waned (for both mother and child). Listen for the modulation and go with it, it will work. You can always manage a repeat of material if the need is there.

Prelude: A short piece preceding a more substantial work. Get children excited about what they will be learning. Try a field trip or a few new projects or books to prepare and enthuse before you get into the heart of a piece of work.

Intonation: The manner in which tones are produced with regard to pitch.
Mom this is for you: set the tone of the home. Do your best to keep things on a positive note. Watch your pitch. If you find yourself getting too loud you are ready for the…

Interlude: A piece of instrumental music played between scenes. Take a break from the routine for awhile. You won’t fall behind (behind whom?) if you take a week off to sit back and enjoy the music of your children playing.

Interpretation: The expression the performer brings when playing his instrument. Each child is different and will learn and perform tasks in their own sweet way. Accept and respect that. Don’t try to force them into a role in which they are not able to succeed.

Fermata: A tone or rest held beyond the written value at the discretion of the performer. If something is working, do not stop just because you planned something else or you are at the end of some preconceived lesson plan. Keep going as long as it’s enjoyable.

Forte: A symbol to play loud. Loud is fine. It is part of some children’s nature to be loud. People are made to be lots of things, loud is one of them. Sometimes children just don’t notice the difference between loud and soft the way adults do. Go outside and do an experiment (I do this with children’s choirs often and it works well). Have the children sing or speak loud and then soft. Ask them to notice what it feels like to do both and have them explain to you the difference they noticed in themselves. Have them then sing soft and gradually become louder. Then go from loud to soft. Help them understand the different levels and when is a good time to use which voice. You can also do this with a tape recorder, letting them experiment with volume.

Dissonance: Harsh, discordant, and lack of harmony. Also a chord that sounds incomplete until it resolves itself on a harmonious chord. Lets face it, things aren’t always going to hum along nicely. Even when it seems as if your days are passing without much “school” happening, don’t get discouraged. Remember: the baby or the sick grandparent or the remodel or the backyard sandbox IS THE LESSON. Somehow (because home is where the heart is at peace) it all resolves itself on a harmonious chord.

Adagio: A tempo having slow movement, restful at ease. Make time for plenty of variation in your days and weeks. Lie back in the hammock and read sometimes.

Allegro: A direction to play lively and fast. Busy days aren’t bad. Plan for “go days”, as we call them at our house. I have all the music lessons on one crazy day so the rest of the week I am not in and out a thousand times. On our “go day”, we pack a picnic and take time to visit a park we like near the piano teacher’s house.

Capriccio: A quick, improvisational, spirited piece of music. It’s a gorgeous warm and rare day in the middle of the winter. Get out and enjoy it. Take advantage of the fact that you have complete control over your schedule. We use every opportunity to play at the beach before the chilly New England wind moves in. That means we are often in our swimming suits on the way to the ocean when we wave goodbye to the kids on the school bus. We sled when there is good snow and skate when the pond is frozen. P.E. never was this fun at my school growing up. Have fun and be flexible. Who is to say you can’t snow shoe at 9 am, sleep at noon, and do math at 9 pm? It’s your party!

Polyphony: Combining a number of individual but harmonizing melodies. Also known as counterpoint. Find other families who have similar interests. It is so much fun to get kids together for field days or science clubs. Moms get to visit and kids have a great time learning and playing with their friends. Structured or not? It works great both ways. Meeting at the park or planning a cookout and family ball game can be just enough counterpoint to keep things interesting.

Monotone: Repetition of a single tone. The same thing day after day will make everyone cranky. Workbooks and only workbooks are boring. Waking up to nothing fun planned for weeks on end can have the same effect. Mix things up and add your four part harmony to each day. Get outside and play, go to the library and find a new book, invite a friend over for lunch, take a meal to someone who could use a visit. Think of others and you will find you suddenly have a dynamic and vibrant tune humming through your home.

Etude: A musical composition written solely to improve technique. Often performed for artistic interests. Even the most avid unschoolers learn the times tables and spelling at some point. It’s not against the ethical code of child-led learners to play math games or correct a child’s poor grammar. Drill won’t kill. Contrary to popular public school thinking, children LOVE to learn and study. When they are ready, and that could be at age 3 or 13, they will show you signs. “How do you spell ‘grandma’?” “Will you help me write a letter?” “I want to make a jungle for my play animals. Do we have a picture of a jungle?” Some kids love to time themselves while doing math, others can’t stand it. I enjoy both types at my house. Don’t assume your children do or don’t have an interest in something “academic”. Ask them or just make it available and watch. Math and science software installed on our computer sent my son into euphoria. He taught himself faster than I could have, had I tried. On the other hand, this child likes me to give him writing ideas and assignments. Hey, I am not complaining. I have a daughter who asks me to teach her math because she doesn’t like it, but wants to learn. She also reads seriously challenging literature and writes without being prompted. Once a skill is learned, I have found children enjoy their new knowledge and the exciting places it can take them.

Coda: Closing section of a movement. Even a good piece of music must come to an end. Enjoy every nuance, notice the variances, and tap your toe to the tune while its here. Having your children in your home makes everyday meaningful and each day unique. Cherish your days as the Maestro Mom; they will end before you know it. When all is quiet in your home, you will have memories to play over and over in your mind. You will never regret the days filled with the melodies and harmony of children. Bravo! Bravissimo Maestro Mom!!

Krishyon lives in New England with her husband Tony, and is Maestro Mom to her six children, all of whom homeschool. She has been a Children’s Musical Theatre director and is a longtime conductor of children’s choirs. Writing and lecturing on such topics as homeschooling and attachment parenting, Krishyon encourages mothers to realize their importance in their children’s lives: “You are their world. Respect that amazing fact, don’t betray that Sacred Trust.” Krishyon and her family have taken their little band on the road, homeschooling in Los Angeles, Toronto, Boston, London, Edinburgh and Athens.