Carrots Are Orange

Montessori Parenting & Learning

  • Montessori
    • Principles
    • Curriculum
      • Geography
      • History
      • Language
      • Life Science
        • Botany
        • Zoology
      • Math
      • Peace
      • Practical Life
      • Sensorial
    • Classroom
    • Theory
    • Materials
    • Courses
    • Printables
  • Activities
    • Art
    • Fall
    • Montessori
    • Outdoor
    • Science
    • Summer
    • Fine Motor
  • Parenting
    • Montessori Toys
    • Montessori At Home
    • Mindfulness
    • Social & Emotional Learning
    • Special Needs
      • Anxiety In Kids
      • Gifted Children
      • Executive Functioning
      • Sensory Processing Disorder
  • Printables
  • Resources
    • Book Lists
    • Gift Guides
    • Montessori Materials
    • Montessori Toys
  • Newsletter
  • About
    • Contact
Home » Montessori » Why Easy to Do Listening Activities Are Good for Kids

Why Easy to Do Listening Activities Are Good for Kids

This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure .

“Do you hear that sound? Be still.” I began the listening activities.

The children immediately calmed their bodies and nodded their heads in excitement.

Listening activities are by far the most popular activities in a child’s learning environment whether indoors or outdoors. I encourage you to give a listening activity a go. You won’t regret it.

Why a Listening Activity is Good for a Child

I learned about listening activities during my Montessori music and sensorial training. I had a day of learning the Montessori music curriculum. What I adore about this content is how the Montessori community honors music as a means to learning by moving, listening and singing.

Children learn self-regulation, gross motor, pre-math, grace & courtesy, and focus. I was especially taken aback by the listening activities.

A young boy sitting on the beach

In today’s world with so much visually flying around all of us, not just our kids, none of us actually listen very much anymore. Remaining present is something I struggle with on a daily basis.

Stopping to listen helps ground me.

For our kids, listening will certainly have the same benefits and then some not the least of which is a positive impact on brain development.

Listening Activities for Kids

So here is a list of easy and doable listening games about which I learned recently. We can all do these in our classrooms and in our homes.

Silence Game

A classic Montessori activity that I knew of prior to this class. However, our instructor taught us differently. He positioned it as “Let’s sit here for a minute and listen to the sounds”. Let me tell you that works a heck of a lot better for my 3-year-old than “Let’s Be Silent!”

Exploring with Ears

The instructor played a series of sound effects and asked us “What do you hear?” The sounds ranged from a pencil breaking and falling to the fall of a roller coaster. Each with a specific end and beginning to it. We listened to a cd but the BBC has an AMAZING sound library equipped with learning activities FREE for you to use. Here is another sound library that you might find useful. Also, many libraries offer sound effect CDs. Ask your child what he hears.

Go on a Listening Walk

The instructor played two recordings of The Listening Walk by Paul Showers. The first recording was a reading of the book with sounds. The second recording was a reading of the book with only the sounds. Ask your child what he heard in each version. I highly recommend owning the book but your local library should also have a copy. It is a lovely book.

Find Sitting Spots

This idea came from a new friend in my Montessori program. She explained how her class listens from various sitting spots around the school and at various times of the day to notice the different sounds. So simple.

Record a Walk

Create your own Listening Walk. Record it on your phone or however, you’d like to record the walk. Then play it back with your child. What do you both hear?

Match Sounds with Images

Prep images, lay them out on the floor in front of your child. As he listens and hears a sound, ask him to identify it on the cards.

Create a Sequence

Create a visual walk. Take the sounds heard from your walk or The Listening Walk book and ask your child to lay the cards out as he hears the sounds.

Scavenger Hunt with Your Ears

Create a grid of images and as your child meanders and walks throughout his neighborhood or home, he can mark off those sounds that he hears and identifies.

Where’s Waldo?

Play a short “sound scene” and ask your child to identify a few sounds within that scene.

Thank you to my music instructor Joseph Weisnewski for guidance, direction, and inspiration. I think that is enough to get you started on this musical journey!

Name that Sound

We used white noise a lot when my boys were younger. The app we used is “White Noise Pro” and cost a mere $2.99 to download. It was really my son who started this activity. One afternoon he grabbed my iPhone and I noticed he was playing with the white noise app. This went on for quite some time and he repeatedly asked, “Mama, what’s that sound?”

So, voila.

Simple.

This app is wonderful because the sounds include but are not limited to:

  1. A cat purring
  2. Rain
  3. A fan
  4. Dishwasher
  5. Hair Dryer
  6. Clothes Dryer
  7. City Streets
  8. Railroad
  9. Lightning and Thunder
  10. Grandfather Clock
  11. Frogs
  12. Crickets
  13. Wind Chimes
  14. Fire
  15. Waves Crashing
  16. Shower
  17. Sprinkler
  18. Vacuum
  19. Airplane
  20. Heartbeat

Conversation and learning seem almost endless.

So when your child asks, “What’s that sound?” Ask him or her what he or she thinks, then guide him or her into a definition and description. I am in the process of creating category cards to go along with the oral lesson. So, play a sound and ask your child to grab the card of the sound he or she believes he or she heard…and there you have it.

Have fun!
Marnie

You might enjoy 10 Fun Five Senses Activities for Sight & Hearing!

Ideas for Outdoor Learning

Outdoor Learning Rules to Teach our Kids

Outdoor Montessori Activities for Sensorial

Outdoor Montessori Activities for Practical Life

Outdoor Montessori Activities for Language

Outdoor Quotes for Learning & Playing

75+ Activity Ideas for Outdoor Learning with Kids

20+ Unique Outdoor Activities for Kids

How to Bring Outdoor Education to Montessori

How to Make Outdoor Activities for Kids Fun 

Easy & Creative Montessori Outdoor Language Activities 

The Ultimate List of Outdoor Activities for Kids

10 Ways to Create an Outdoor Learning Space

How to Connect the Indoor & Outdoor Classrooms

The Best Tips for the Outdoor Classroom 

[Activity] How to Make a Worm Tower 

12+ Creative & Inexpensive Outdoor Activities for Toddlers

[Activity] Beautiful Art in the Outdoor Classroom

Ultimate List of Fun & Easy Outdoor Games for Kids

This post includes tons of outdoor games for kids!

Tagged With: Auditory, Easy & Inexpensive, Kindergarten, Preschool, Sensory

About Marnie Craycroft

Marnie hails from Maine where she spent summers buried in sand and winters buried in snow. She is the daughter of a nearly four decade veteran of the public school systems. Teaching has always been a part of her life. She founded Carrots Are Orange in 2010.

Carrots Are Orange is a Montessori learning and living website for parents and teachers.

Marnie graduated from Wesleyan University in 1999 with a BA in Economics. She spent nearly a decade working in investment management. In 2006, she earned her MA in business from the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business.

Marnie moved to the west coast in 1999 and currently lives in Boulder with her husband and three sons. She is Montessori trained. Her work has been featured on Apartment Therapy, Buzzfeed, PBS Kids, BabyCenter, the Melissa & Doug blog, Huffington Post, and WhattoExpect.com. Besides writing, passions include running (usually after her three sons), photography, and outdoor adventures.

« Storytelling Language Activity with Kids
Tell Me, Show Me, Involve Me {Language Development} »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Recent Posts

  • Resist Painting – Toddler & Preschool Activity
  • [2020] Montessori Black Friday Deals
  • [2020] The BEST Gift for 8 to 12 Year Olds
  • Teaching Kids Compassion – Pay It Forward
  • The Best Board Games for Kids, Homeschoolers, and Families

Copyright © 2021 Carrots Are Orange · Disclosure & Copyright · Site by Design by Insight

  • 27