A Music Center offers a space where children can explore and create music using a variety of musical instruments. Playing instruments and moving to music improves children’s fine and gross motor skills.
Music fosters creativity as children experiment with sounds, rhythms, and melodies. Music allows children to express their emotions and develop a sense of self. These activities also help enhance memory, pattern recognition, and auditory discrimination.
The photo above shows the whole Music Center. Since I didn’t have enough room on the shelf, I added the Sterlite plastic drawers beside it for more musical instruments. The Sterlite drawers contain triangles, handbells, and jingle bells. The turquoise box on the top just holds our class box of tissues.
On the wood shelf, I have a white basket on the very top that contains a CD player and a wireless iPad/iPhone player. The top shelf has scarves and rhythm sticks in the white baskets. The second shelf has castanets and bean bags in bushel baskets. The bottom shelf has tambourines and tick tock blocks in bushel baskets.
What’s in the Music Center?
Scarves
These are our scarves for music and movement activities. The polka label is from my free set of labels on Teachers Pay Teachers. I search for musical instrument pictures on school supply websites or Google images. (Unfortunately, I can’t share my music labels due to photo copyright. I wish I could!)
Rhythm Sticks
I used white baskets for the scarves and rhythm sticks because they don’t fit in the bushel baskets. I also think the bags that are made for wine bottles would work well to hold rhythm sticks if you have a place to hang the bag. Read more about my music props here.
Castanets
I like to put most of my musical instruments in these bushel baskets because they have a handle on them. When I pass out the instruments, or when my leader is collecting them at the end of the song, the handle makes it easier to carry the basket around the group. These wooden castanets were bought in Target’s Dollar Spot. They sell them there every year (I think in the Fall, maybe).
Alphabet Bean Bags
These are our letter bean bags. We use them for some alphabet activities, but also just for any kind of bean bag song.
Tambourines
Our tambourines — these came from Lakeshore.
Tick Tock Blocks
Triangles
These triangles either came from Target’s Dollar Spot or the Dollar Tree (I’ve seen them in both places.) Sometimes it’s not easy to catch the dollar musical instruments at Target and Dollar Tree. I missed the triangles for two years.
Set of handbells
Jingle Bells
I found these jingle bell bands on clearance at Michaels and bought several. I’ve also seen them in educational supply catalogs.
Books to add to the Music Center
Include books about music, instruments, and famous musicians. Choose interactive books with songs and rhymes for sing-along activities.
Let’s Make Music, by National Geographic Kids
Hello, World! Music, by Jill McDonald
Wild Symphony, by Dan Brown
We All Sing With the Same Voice, by J. Philip Miller
I Spy Music Instruments, by Danielle Simmons Press
Welcome to the Symphony, by Carolyn Sloan
The Story Orchestra, by Jessica Courtney Tickle
Trombone Shorty, by Troy Andrews
Music Players
This is my CD player and wireless iPad player. This is not an expensive iPad player, but it works great. I found it on sale at Staples for $25. I play music from my iPad all the time, but I have the CD player there in case I have a substitute teacher. I also have one special CD for the sub with the class’s favorite songs and a clean up song CD. The rest of my music is on the iPad.
Find more ideas on teaching music in Pre-K and Preschool!
Want to see more Pre-K Centers? See All Pre-K Centers Here
Also, be sure to check out my friend, Bren’s Music Center here.