Suzuki Early Childhood Education

Suzuki Early Childhood Education is a music education program for kids from birth to age 4. The program uses music as a vehicle to help the whole child’s development. In addition to developing musical skills, the program fosters social, emotional, cognitive, and kinesthetic abilities in children participants.

Parents attend the lessons with their child, and serve a critically important role in the efficacy of the course as their child’s primary teacher. Children, parents, and instructors work cooperatively in SECE classes, which provide extraordinary enrichment and growth in myriad skills for life. SECE lessons are the perfect beginning to a child’s journey with music.

LEARN MORE

LEARN MORE ABOUT SECE

Click below to read an article about a presentation by SECE trainer and McMaster’s University professor David Gerry on his research comparing a parent-involved course like SECE with some other popular, but fundamentally passive, childhood music courses.

READ THE ARTICLE

Common FAQs

What is the age range of the children who enroll in SECE?

SECE training is available for children from birth to age four. If your child is old enough to leave the house for an hour, they are ready to start an SECE program. By the time a child reaches age four, SECE training will naturally flow into private instrumental Suzuki piano lessons for kids.

Ample research demonstrates that babies are taking in and learning from their first moments of life. While very young children and babies may not be demonstrating learned skills, babies who participate in SECE training are bonding more deeply with their parent in classes as they absorb and participate in creating music, and learn to count. Through their joyful experience interacting with music in SECE classes babies and young children are also learning and developing socialization skills, self-control, language skills, body awareness, and self confidence.

To see some of the research on the amazing benefits of very early music education for infants and toddlers, you are invited to explore some of these links:

  1. A 2012 study at McMaster University concluded that “one-year-old babies who participate in interactive music classes with their parents smile more, communicate better and show earlier and more sophisticated brain responses to music.”
  2. We can do Small Early Childhood specialist Dorothy Jones and her daughter, SECE teacher Sharon Jones speaking about their experiences seeing the value of prenatal musical exposure, and early childhood musical education.

In both the classes and at the home, the parent’s involvement with their child’s SECE program is central. The child’s parent must be in attendance and participating for their child to attend a class.

Parents need to make the commitment to be present and engaged in SECE class with their child, and to regularly listen to the class recordings at home with their child. No musical skills or background, however, are required of the parent.

The class combines songs, rhymes, and movement. It also incorporates a large number of diverse musical instruments, from rain sticks to wood blocks to triangles to Orff glockenspiels, and everything in between. Different songs are associated with specific instruments and/or specific props. The class operates on a two-week rotation. Songs visited in one class will be revisited two weeks later. Through such reinforcing repetition very young children will develop confidence and eventual mastery over the songs, rhythms, and games in the SECE course. The pace of the class is designed to keep very young children engaged. Thus, the pace of the class will move quickly. Young children also get the opportunity in SECE classes to practice waiting and taking turns.

Currently, SECE lessons are taught as thirty-minute private lessons at a rate of $160 a month.

All families participating will need to buy a CD of recordings and accompanying pamphlet, called “Lullabies, Action Songs, and Rhymes. ” These can be purchased here.

These can be purchased here: http://www.suzukiece.com/Pages/cart.htm

Mp3s of these recordings can be purchased here: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=lullabies+action+songs+and+rhymes&crid=3KKLMKFZIO5LZ&sprefix=lullabies+action%2Caps%2C124&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_16

Please call 865-401-0439 or send an email to info@knoxvillesuzukiacademy.com expressing your interest in enrolling.

The Knoxville Suzuki Academy SECE teaching is led by beloved KSA violin and viola instructor Cameron Rehberg, who did his SECE training under Lynn McCall.