Today I was invited to perform a music demonstration for a Head Start class. (3-4 year-olds). I love watching the children learn. They sang the ABC’s as I played violin. They listened to the strange noises I made on the body of my flute. “It sounds like an elephant!” They felt the vibrations on the bell of my clarinet as I played the lowest note, an E below middle C.

They remembered the name of the flute and violin, but they forgot the clarinet’s name, maybe because it was the third instrument and their buffer was full.

While there are challenges, preschool age is a great time to start children on an instrument, because they are so excited about music and ready to learn.