Story

Performing songs for families and seeing the kids and their parents laugh and smile while they sing along is what fills the heart of child performer and kids songwriter, Katie Brock. However, it wasn’t until she attended Westside Music Together classes with her own children that she was inspired to be a music educator herself, as well as write her own children’s songs and perform them.

Interviewed by Lorrie Holmes

Q & A on KATIE BROCK

KiDS NEWS & REViEWS: Our first question is not for Katie but rather for Katherine of West Side Music Together since Katherine is responsible for the creation of this story. So Katherine, can you please tell us why you offered to sponsor this story when I followed up with you about a recent story where we featured your music program.

KATHERINE: “Sure! We are so happy to sponsor a story on our alumni Music Together teacher Katie Brock. She taught Music Together with us for 13 years and we are thrilled to support her adventures in songwriting and performing! After working at Music Together for a number of years Katie began experimenting with her own songwriting and it was clear she had a gift. I love the playful lyrics and sweet melodies she creates and it’s been a joy to watch her build her repertoire. She has such a creative spirit and a giving heart and I wanted to help her share her gift more widely so more families can experience what her songs have to offer. After teaching at West Side Music Together for 13 years we would of course welcome her back in a heartbeat but we are thrilled to support her new adventures in songwriting and performance!”

Let’s make kindness contagious!

Written by Sammie Vance

Hi I’m Sammie Vance. I’m eleven years old and I live in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I love to spread kindness and encourage others that they can too! In 2017, when I was 8 years old, I heard about buddy benches at a church camp. A buddy bench is a place for when someone is lonely, shy or bullied, where they can sit on it and others will know to ask them to play. I had been lonely and knew other kids were too, so I knew my school needed them. I drew a comic explaining how a buddy bench worked and spoke to my principal. He said we would try and get one in a year since collecting 400 pounds of caps needed for one 6 foot bench may take awhile.  

Being the go getter that I am, I did this project differently because I collected lots of plastic caps and lids myself to make the buddy benches! I spread the word by asking lots of friends, classmates, pharmacies, coffee shops and other businesses to help me collect caps. With the communities help, we collected 1,600 pounds of caps in only 2 months! This was enough for 3 buddy benches for my school with plenty of leftover caps to help other schools get started. 

Advocacy has no age limit.

Written by Kate Gilman Williams, Youth Author & Animal Advocate

Today we introduce you to another youth change-maker, Kate Gilman Williams, who devotes most of her time with her Kids Can Save Animals initiative. Kate will tell you in her own words below, what this is all about. Thank you for sharing your story with us today Kate, so more children can think about ways that kids can save animals too!

My name is Kate Gilman Williams.  I am 10-years-old and live in Austin, Texas.  I will be in 5^th grade this school year.  When I was 7, I traveled to South Africa and met an incredible safari guide named Michelle.  Michelle taught me so many things about animals.  She also told me that humans were the biggest threat to animals, causing many of them to be endangered and even face extinction!  

Hi, everyone.  My name is Sachi Bajaj and I am the founder of a youth waste management organization called Me2UFoundation. We are so proud to have recently qualified for some funding with a challenge called What Cause Inspires You. We are finalists for this and the idea of receiving this funding opens up so many possiblities for how we can further help developing countries with basic needs.

Sachi Bajaj, Founder

Our primary goal at West Side Music Together hasn’t changed. It’s still to encourage families to make music together at home. Teacher to Parent, Parent to Child, and Teacher to Child – inherently, it’s that connection that we continue to strive for. This has always been the primary goal of Music Together – and it’s right in the title!

Katherine Deane,
Teacher and Centre Director
West Side Music Together

Written by Lorrie Holmes

Artwork Created by Anais Ginzburg-Maly, Age 8

IS INTEGRATIVE HEALTH OUR FIRST LINE OF DEFENCE FOR OUR KIDS?

Reviewed by Lorrie Holmes

As we all begin to make sense of what we call our new normal, we start to look at where and how to find some stability in a time of so much uncertainty. And so we have called upon the advice of someone who we believe can provide us with the tools to armour ourselves both physically and emotionally. We hope you get as much out of this interview as we did with holistic nutritionst, Juliana Avella, from Made Simple Nutrition. She offers her expertise and teaches us about the importance of coming up with a plan for the whole family that starts with our diet as our first line of defense.

I am Lexi and I am turning 13 in 3 weeks!  I painted this Earth with the tree coming out of the top to symbolize all the roots of life coming from Mother Earth. Each part of this is precious and necessary in order to sustain its very existence.

Lexi, Youth Artist

In a time of uncertainly for our future, it’s so refreshing to draw upon the voices of our youth. They are the future. This world that we are trying to protect for them has extra meaning this year with all that is going on around us and under the surface. I found this painting that our young artist, Lexi, created to be very symbolic as she displays it with the roots on top – uprooted – like our planet at this time. But the roots are still there and waiting to be planted again. Luckily, it’s in good hands with the visionaries I’m about to introduce you to who have been very busy protecting and nurturing our planet and all those – big and small – on land and water – who live here with us. Who share this space. Although it’s a scary time, we have also seen a lot of beauty and kindness with so many people reaching out and connecting, like the roots in this image. Let’s continue being respectful and mindful of each other. And as we spread the kindness amongst each other, we can lean on and shelter each other when necessary. As the saying goes, we’re all in this together.

Everyone can be a hero. All you have to do, is look inside of you, you can be a hero too.

Written by Lorrie Holmes

We are so excited to share our Community Helper Creative Arts Theme. And it’s all about teaching our kids who the real heroes are in our communities – THE FRONTLINE & ESSENTIAL WORKERS! Watch our video below to enjoy our Everyday Heroes Song – it’s the perfect way to explore Community Helpers with your young kids! Be sure to download our song, book and printables for free!

The most important message our kids need to hear right now is now about what co-vid19 is, but about who their adults are – the people who will care for them and carry them through this storm.

Dr Deborah MacNamara

KiDS NEWS & REViEWS: Parents want to be honest but not terrify their children at this time. What would you recommend we tell our kids? What should they know and what can they handle? What is helpful and what is detrimental to share and discuss? Can you break this down for us by age groups.

DEBORAH: The most important message that our kids need to hear in relation to Covid-19 is that we will take care of them and get through this difficult time. While we don’t have all the answers about Covid-19, the reality is that information doesn’t make a child feel secure – relationships do.