Maria, age 16
Maria's journey
Music is Expression
It was in 1991, aged just 16, I stood on a makeshift stage in our local library—props, a simple backdrop, and an audience of wide-eyed 3 to 5-year-olds from challenging backgrounds.
Many had never entered a library, never felt the hush of a performance, never seen a story leap alive through music, acting, rhythm, and movement.
Our council-funded "Bringing Books to Life" project gave them books, pencils, snacks—and most importantly—vivid memories of music making stories dance. Their laughter, questions, and shining eyes showed me something profound: a child’s musical and creative identity begins not in classrooms, but in joyful, early experiences we create for them before school starts.
That summer ignited my life's work in early years music.
Maria XX
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Why it matters
Music Develops the Whole Child
Don't miss the early years window from birth to 5 — this is where the deepest changes and development happen. Let's make these years count.
I saw how music and play build the foundations of brain development, language, emotional growth, and social skills—long before children reached formal schooling.
Yet today, in early years settings and homes, music is too often an afterthought: random songs without progression or purpose.
That's why I founded Maria Moon Music CIC—a social creative enterprise dedicated to making music count in childhood education
While resources like the government's Early Years Child Development Training cover essential areas (personal, social, emotional, physical, language, maths), we provide the music-specific "how"—practical tools to weave music into daily care as both a core subject and cross-curricular powerhouse.
It's time for you to acquire a better understanding of what early years music can do for your baby or toddler under 5. Join us to ensure your child do not miss out on this critical window.
"Music has the power to make stories come alive and give children a voice."
The Challenge
Music Is Misunderstood
Early years music is just not done right—from preschools and nurseries to childminder settings and even early school reception classes. Too often, it's reduced to a handful of repetitive nursery rhymes sung half-heartedly at circle time, with no structure, progression, or understanding of its developmental power.
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Inadequate Approach
There is a way in which a child under 5 best understands the world and music learning— Music is about listening with understanding and meaning. Most early years music sessions do not nurture the rich nature of the subject, listening and exploring sounds to rhythm, pitch, stories or social skills. Music is often a transition "filler" rather than a core subject.
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Undertrained adults
Childminders, carers, and nursery staff get little to no CPD on musical pedagogy. They rely on instinct or YouTube, missing opportunities to link music to EYFS areas like 5 key musical elements, music as communication, physical responsive development, and individual emotional growth.
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Unfocused Approach
Unlike English or maths, music is treated as optional "fun or extra," ignoring evidence that it is by far the best subject to re-wire the brain for pattern recognition, emotional regulation, and literacy foundations before age 5. It is the best tool to create and expand the connections in your child's brain.
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The time is now
Why Music is Your Best Tool
The under-5 brain is in its most rapid growth phase—synapses form at explosive rates, and musical experiences shape neural pathways for life. Edwin Gordon and Maria Montessori agree that in the first 18 months we make more neurological connections than at any time in our lives. So do not miss this critical window.
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"I know that, between 0-5 years, consistent rich Musical experiences are the key to unlock your child's potential for life, and yours too!"
Maria, Founder and Director
I've met many parents who are professional singers and musicians, or carers who play instruments but that doesn't mean they can teach music to children under 5.
Although we are educating in the 21st century, we still largely use techniques that are too narrow, singular, or not suited to today's children in both approach and methodology. We need to broaden our minds and consider this: if I leave my child's or children's music education until they start school at age 5, will that impact their development? Will it be enough? The answer is no.
The greatest impact happens from birth to age 2 and then it consolidates before age 5. We must embrace music in the home or insist that it is incorporated into our children's early years education. To me it's non-negotiable.
Maria
MA Educational Leadership 💠 PgCEi Ed. 💠 ATCL Voice 💠 ABRSM Piano and Music Theory 💠 Early Years Music Educator
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