What A 45-Minute Grown Up & Me Music Class Actually Looks Like

A lot of parents tell us the hardest part of signing up for a first class is not knowing what will happen once they walk in. Will my kid have to sit still? Do I have to sing? What if my toddler just wanders around the room?

So here's what a Rockness Grown Up & Me class looks like from start to finish. Classes are for ages 0 to 4, they run 45 minutes, and grown-ups stay for the whole thing. The order is the same every week.

Hanging out, then the hello song

We start with a meet and greet. Families come in, settle on the floor, and spend a few minutes together. Kids look around, grown-ups say hi to each other, and the teacher comes around to say hello.

Then we sing the hello song. It has words in different languages and motions to go with them, so everyone is singing and moving together. We dance, and there's always a crazy dance where everyone gets as silly as they want.

Shakers and the Hungry Bag

Next the shakers come out. We dump them on the floor while everyone counts to four, and then the kids grab one and we have a shaker party. There's a lot of shaking, moving, and dancing. Every song has a call to action, something for the kids to do with their shakers or their bodies.

When the shaker songs are done, we collect them in the Hungry Bag. Kids drop their shakers in one at a time. For a lot of kids, the Hungry Bag is as big a highlight as the shakers.

The Mystery Discovery instrument and the drums

Every week there's a Mystery Discovery instrument. It's something the kids probably haven't seen before, and it's different each week. Kids get to hold it, look at it, and try to make a sound with it, then pass it to the next person in the circle. While that's happening, the teacher brings a djembe, a hand drum, around the circle so each child can play it.

After that, we pass out drums to everyone and go through some drumming exercises together. Kids who aren't ready to drum can watch, sit in a lap, or tap along on a grown-up's knee.

The PBS KIDS for Parents page on music and movement at age 2 says two-year-olds respond with their bodies to changes in tempo and loudness. You'll often see that during the drums, when kids bounce along and speed up or slow down with the beat.

Birthdays, counting, and a dance party

If anyone in the class has a birthday that week, we sing happy birthday to them. Then we count to 10 in Spanish and sing a song together.

Then it's time for the dance party. We bring out dance props and everyone gets up and moves. Grown-ups dance too. Babies dance in arms, and toddlers usually run, spin, and fall down on purpose.

The goodbye song and stickers

We end with a big goodbye song, and it has a kazoo solo in the middle.

Class never ends without stickers. Every child gets one on the way out, along with hugs, handshakes, and high fives from the teacher.

What you do as the grown-up

You don't need to know the songs or have a good voice. Sing along, do the motions, and help your child when they need it. The same PBS page says parents should sing with their kids no matter how well they sing, and that two-year-olds often ask for the same songs over and over, the way they do with favorite books. That's one reason we keep the same order and many of the same songs each week. After a few weeks, a lot of kids know what's coming and start doing the motions before we get there.

It's also fine if your child doesn't join in right away. Some kids watch for a few weeks first, and some stay on a grown-up's lap the whole time. We wrote more about that in why your child sticks to your leg in music class. If your baby is very young, your baby's first music class covers what to expect at that age.

One small thing: leave snacks in the bag during class. Here's why we don't bring food to music class.

👉 The best way to see it is to come to one. Every location offers a free trial class. Find a class near you and pick a day.

See you in the circle,
The Rockness Crew
Rockness Music