Make Music at the Library!

You’re never too little to start having fun with music! In fact, music helps children gain language skills, fine motor skills, emotional expression, listening skills, and more. When babies are exposed to music, they have less stress, enhanced concentration, and improved vocabulary and creativity. Children learn through their senses – exploring music can engage both touch and hearing. As children grow and play with instruments, they engage in experimental thinking and learn cause-and-effect relationships. Familiar songs can also teach pattern recognition while signing slows down language and exaggerates syllables to make them easier to recognize. 

Plano Public Library offers a variety of early learning programs designed to introduce children to music and learning. Keep reading to find out about sessions happening at the library this spring. 

Baby Bach (Ages 0 to 18 months) 

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Mini Maestros (Ages 3 to 5 years) 

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Books 

Want to explore more music at home? Check out these titles from the library’s collection: 

Trombone Shorty by Troy Andrews Book | Book and CD Set | eBook | eReadalong | DVD 
Hailing from the Tremé neighborhood in New Orleans, Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews got his nickname by wielding a trombone twice as long as he was high. A prodigy, he was leading his own band by age six, and today this Grammy-nominated artist headlines the legendary New Orleans Jazz Fest. 

88 Instruments by Chris Barton Print 
A little boy can’t choose which instrument to play, so he decides to try them all. 

Wild Symphony by Dan Brown Print 
Invites children to travel through trees and across seas with Maestro Mouse and his musical friends, who visit with a sequence of animals on spreads that incorporate clues to a coded message. Young readers will meet a big blue whale and speedy cheetahs, tiny beetles and graceful swans. The poems combined with the music tell a story and reveal a funny or interesting side of each animal’s personality. 

My Family Plays Music by Judy Cox Print 
A musical family with talents for playing a variety of instruments enjoys getting together to celebrate. 

De Colores = Bright with Colors by David Diaz Print 
Presents the words and score of the song De Colores which is sung in many parts of the Spanish-speaking world. 

I Know a Shy Fellow Who Swallowed a Cello by Barbara Garriel Print 
An adaptation of the folk rhyme “There was an old woman who swallowed a fly, ” featuring musical instruments. 

Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe Print | Spanish 
When Pokko plays her drum in the forest she suddenly finds herself surrounded by an entire band of animal musicians. 

Violet’s Music by Angela Johnson Print 
From the days she banged her rattle in the crib, Violet has been looking for friends that share her love of music. 

Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo by John Lithgow Print 
A concert gets out of hand when the animals at the neighboring zoo storm the stage and play the instruments themselves. 

Every Little Thing by Cedella Marley Print 
In this illustrated version of Bob Marley’s song, a young boy, with the encouragement of three little birds, enjoys life and will not let anything get him down. 

Squeak! Rumble! Whomp! Whomp! Whomp!: A Sonic Adventure by Wynton Marsalis Print 
Takes readers (and listeners) on a rollicking, clanging, clapping tour through the many sounds that fill a neighborhood. 

Zin! Zin! Zin!: A Violin by Lloyd Moss Print | eAudiobook 
Ten instruments take their parts one by one in a musical performance. 

The Life of Selena = La Vida de Salina by Patty Rodriguez Print 
Born on April 16, 1971, in Lake Jackson, Texas, Selena Quintanilla was destined to be a star. Her career started at a young age when she became the lead singer in her family’s band, Selena Y Los Dinos. 

I Got the Rhythm by Connie Schofield-Morrison Print | eBook 
On a trip to the park with her mother, a young girl hears a rhythm coming from the world around her and begins to move to the beat, finally beginning an impromptu dance in which other children join her. 

The Deaf Musicians by Pete Seeger Print  
Lee, a jazz pianist, has to leave his band when he begins losing his hearing, but he meets a deaf saxophone player in a sign language class and together they form a snazzy new band. 

Octopus’s Garden by Ringo Starr Print 
Presents a picture book rendering of the classic Beatles song and includes an accompanying CD recording and audio reading by the song’s writer. 

Your Name is a Song by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow Print 
Frustrated by a day full of teachers and classmates mispronouncing her beautiful name, a little girl tells her mother she never wants to come back to school. In response, the girl’s mother teaches her about the musicality of African, Asian, Black-American, Latinx, and Middle Eastern names on their lyrical walk home through the city. Empowered by this newfound understanding, the young girl is ready to return the next day to share her knowledge with her class. Your Name is a Song is a celebration to remind all of us about the beauty, history, and magic behind names. 

Jazz Baby by Carole Boston Weatherford Print 
A group of toddlers move and play, hum and sleep to a jazz beat. 

Because by Mo Willems Print | Korean 
A series of events, some seemingly very insignificant, lead to a young girl attending a life-changing concert. 

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STEAM Kits 

Explore concepts using these kits, which include books and manipulatives to encourage hands-on exploration. 

Boomwhack Music 

Hand Chimes 

Preschool Junior Rhythm Band 

Xylophone Music Kit