Week 11

Danny went right in to the studio today, but without his cello and on his hands and knees. That kitty really wanted to romp and play today. Riley gave Danny a choice of being a boy or going home. He expressed desire for a lesson but appeared to be fighting his wiggly body. The boy did win out eventually.

Riley helped him again with the greeting bow. He was very good at pulling out his endpin and plucking his strings so I could tune his cello. I had him count how many plucks I did, and then try to imitate. He accomplished one out of three or so but it was hard to tell if he was purposely adding an extra one each time. I laughed and asked him if he was being silly and he gave a big grin. I wanted to do some knuckle knocks and ski jumps, but he was ready to switch to the practice bow. We talked about how many bow holds he has done (91) and praised him for that. He doesn’t understand how many that is, but Riley reported that they had counted all the fingers and toes in the house to help him try and understand. He got kind of wiggly as I sang “Up Like A Rocket.” He loves new ideas but tires easily of repetition. I think this is one unique thing about Danny – most kids I’ve worked with love the familiar. Danny’s dad may have some insight into this. Riley is great at creative ways of saying the same thing, so I’m glad for her ability to keep him interested that way.

We did add a new activity of finger bowing with the practice bow on his first finger. He did quite well. Riley can have him go from green to red as well as green to yellow with various Twinkle rhythms. I got behind him and helped him bow on his finger. He wanted to lean backward on me, so that activity didn’t last very long. Riley got him focused again by offering her foot to bow on. Danny got wiggly again after a few more repetitions, so I showed him the rhythm handshake with bow hands and palms facing. Although I was leading the rhythm, I could feel him moving with me in the “tucka” rhythm. He even got a little dance groove going there for a bit!

With all his wiggles, Danny still lasted for a good 15 minutes. He’s so excited by music and sound, and he appears to be really trying to keep his body wiggle-free long enough to work on some fine motor skills. Perhaps we can practice some gross motor skills next week. I’ll ask Riley to practice some fun dancing games with Danny in their “practice” this week, to the tucka rhythm of course, that they can do for me at his next lesson. Maybe moving his feet on a chart to colors that correspond with his practice bow?

My original plan was to have 2 lessons a week, 15 minutes each, which is common with a 3-year-old. With crazy schedules and with Danny’s longer attention span at first, I neglected to consider that. Perhaps this is something to think about again. Maybe an extra lesson when practice has gone especially well? Or just more mini-lessons at my office again?