Get to Know Us - Mrs. Jennifer Cleveland

Mrs. Jennifer Cleveland is a licensed Kindermusik Educator, and has been teaching for the better part of a decade.  She is also a private piano instructor. For over 15 years she has taught music to young children in both schools and church. Prior to beginning her work with Kindermusik, she was a music specialist for the Richardson ISD.

Formally educated at Samford University, Mrs. Jennifer obtained her Bachelor's degree in Music Education.  Mrs. Jennifer has two sons, Dawson and Carson, with her husband Tracy. Her confidence in Kindermusik extends to her own children, having enrolled them both in infancy. She has seen the benefits of our program demonstrated in Dawson and Carson through their coordination, language skills, musical recognition and more.

Mrs. Jennifer will be teaching out of both our McKinney and Murphy locations. We are so excited to have her on our team!

Introducing: Emily Espinoza!

We are very pleased to announce the newest music educator to our team: Emily Espinoza!

Miss Emily grew up in a family of musicians and was involved in choirs and musical performance from an early age. As an adult, she developed a love for early childhood education and graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas with two degrees in 2008: a BS in Child Learning and Development, and a BA in Psychology. Currently Miss Emily enjoys teaching music at a local preschool. She also likes to spend free time at home practicing her guitar and singing and dancing with her two year old son.

In Kindermusik class, Miss Emily likes to give every child and parent a chance to explore their own creativity and express themselves through music and movement. She strives to help everyone in class unlock their "inner musician" in an environment that is comfortable and fun!

Miss Emily will begin teaching next week. Look for her at our Garland and McKinney locations. So glad to have you on our team, Emily!

New Classes Starting in Garland!

We are pleased to announce new classes starting in two Garland locations. Join us at Firewheel and Holford Recreation Center. Visit our website to register, or email us with any questions!

The classes in Firewheel will take place at:

Yoga Synergy Spa
125 Cedar Sage Drive
Garland, TX 75040

The classes are:

Village (nb-18mo)
Mar 5-Apr23 (8 weeks)
Tuesdays 12:30-1:15 p.m.

Family Style (nb-4 yrs)
Mar 1-Mar29 (4 weeks)
Fridays 4:30-5:15 p.m.

The Holford classes will take place at:

Holford Recreation Center
2314 Homestead Place
Garland, TX 75044

The class is:

Family Style (nb-4yrs)
Feb 25-Mar 25 (4 weeks)
Mondays 9:45-10:30 a.m.

FREE Gift In Classes This Week: Heart Shakers

We were very busy this weekend in my house preparing a special free gift to be handed out in this week's classes. To celebrate Valentine's Day, I made heart shakers! Students will be receiving them in all cities: Allen, McKinney and Garland!

It's fun to make instruments at home, and this sweet version of a maraca is entertaining and easy! My staff and I are excited to play and learn with you this week!

Get To Know Us - Ms. Susan

Today we are featuring our newest educator, Ms. Susan!

1. What is your favorite color? I like them all. If I had to choose, I'd say red.

2. What is your favorite animal? I LOVE dogs of all sizes and colors!

3. What is your favorite food? Spaghetti and meatballs.

4. What is your favorite song? White Coral Bells. My mother (who had a beautiful voice) used to sing it to me when I was a child.

5. What is your favorite Kindermusik memory? I am building my Kindermusik memories now. But I can tell you that the best thing about teaching music is making friends.

Get To Know Us - Mrs. Jennifer

Today we are pleased to feature Mrs. Jennifer's trivia!

Favorite color: mustard yellow

Favorite animal: owl

Favorite food: Italian 

Favorite song: O come let us adore him 

Favorite km memory: It has happened several times now, but it is so sweet to me when kids transition from passive observers/ energetic explorers to excited in the music and movements and following along enthusiastically. I love watching kids grow throughout my class! 

Get To Know Us - Mrs. Sheri

Last but certainly not least, our very sweet Ms. Sheri shares her Five Fun Facts!

1. What is your favorite color? Green

2. What is your favorite animal? My Boston Terrier, Georgia

3. What is your favorite food? Hard to choose a favorite, but probably Tex-Mex...or a really good chicken-fried steak.

4. What is your favorite song? So hard to choose!  My favorite Kindermusik song is Dance, Little Baby  from Dream Pillow.  My favorite hymn is Great Is Thy Faithfulness.  My favorite 80s song is You're the Inspiration by Chicago.

5. What is your favorite Kindermusik memory? My son, Kyle, leading a circle dance when he was two!  My least favorite is when a little boy named Jake threw a stick & hit me in the head!

Get To Know Us- Mrs. Cara

This week we will have a special feature to help you get to know your friendly Love & Grow music educators! Each day we will share "5 Fun Facts" about one of our teachers. We hope you'll check back each day to share with your child some trivia about their favorite instructor! Today I am sharing facts about myself.

1. What is your favorite color? Purple!

2. What is your favorite animal? Dogs

3. What is your favorite food? Mexican food!  Chips and salsa, yummm!

4. What is your favorite song? I love singing Skinamarink with my 2 and 4 year old!  And we like to rock-out to Adele's Rumor Has It.

5. What is your favorite Kindermusik memory? Singing There's a Little Wheel a Turning in My Heart and a sweet little girl was in my lap and I teared up while singing!  I was a bit embarrassed, but it's a sweet memory.  Also, I have precious memories of the intentional touch activity in Village with my daughter, Lainey, who would laugh so dearly while I massaged her.  We still do the massage when I change her diaper to share laughs together.

Introducing Susan Geffen!

We are very pleased to introduce to you the newest Member of the Kindermusik Love and Grow family, Susan Geffen!

Ms. Susan is a licensed Kindermusik educator who has been teaching arts education to children since she was in high school. Music is her calling, and she is active as an educator, a pianist, a speaker, a piano adjudicator, and even as a managing editor of Clavier Companion, a magazine devoted to the piano and piano pedagogy. Her M.A. (under the tutelage of composer Robert Rodríguez) is from the University of Texas at Dallas, and she has a Permanent Professional Certification from the Music Teachers National Association. She is also a member of the Music Critics Association of North America.

Whether her students are three or seventy-three, Ms. Susan believes that music enriches every life and that Kindermusik classes are an exciting, joyful, and meaningful way for children to begin their musical journeys. 

Look for Ms. Susan to be teaching the following classes: Village in Allen (Wednesdays), Young Child 2 in Allen (Fridays),  as well as Village and Our Time in Firewheel (Tuesdays). 

Spring Registration & Discounts

Image Courtesy: www.melbournemodernquiltguild.com 

We thank you for a fantastic Fall! We've enjoyed getting to know your families and sharing music with you! We truly hope that you will join us in the Spring. If you've never taken a Kindermusik class, we'd love to share music education with you!

Click here to view the 2013 Spring schedule. We proudly serve Garland, Allen and McKinney, Texas!

Enroll early, before December 20th and save $5 off Home Materials. If you are currently enrolled, you will also save an additional $5 for re-enrolling!

If you have any questions, please email us.

Meet Our Teachers

Cara Phillips

Cara grew up in a musical family, as the daughter of two music educators.  She plays Piano and French Horn, playing both in college on a grant.  For several years she was a French Horn player for the Rockwall Community Band and a brass quintet called Rockwall Brass.

After earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Missouri State University, Cara taught High School Chemistry for five years. She continued her education to add a Masters in Counseling, focusing on children and adolescents.

Cara has two young children and found Kindermusik as a parent, when she took her children to classes. As a Kindermusik mom she loved the bonding time she had with her kids during class and the developmental benefits they were receiving.  Cara loves to share her passion for music with families in her own Kindermusik classroom.

Sheri Dacon

Sheri Dacon is a licensed Kindermusik educator with over 20 years of music teaching experience.  Before teaching Kindermusik, Sheri was an elementary music teacher for 9 years, most recently with Garland I.S.D.  She has served at her church for many years as children's choir director, and as a vocalist and pianist.  She is active as a piano accompanist for local student choral groups and soloists.  Sheri earned her Bachelor of Music degree from Hardin-Simmons University with a double major in vocal performance and music education.  She is also a trained Orff-Schulwerk specialist and has led early childhood music workshops for schools and church groups.  

Sheri is married and is a mother of four young children, all of whom have been Kindermusik students.  She believes that music is a gift for every child, and her desire as a Kindermusik educator is to inspire families to create homes where music is made and enjoyed.

Jennifer Nation

Miss Jennifer grew up traveling all over the world with her dad as an Air Force Pilot. Her traveling gave her a deep love for other cultures and ways of life. She took piano lessons and voice lessons from age 5. She taught children’s choir in her church and also has taught piano lessons over the years.

Miss Jennifer currently helps lead worship at her church. She recently left her job as a nanny to pursue a career in Kindermusik. She is looking forward to combining her love for kids and her passion for music.

Newly married, Miss Jennifer moved to the Dallas area a little over a year ago.  She is so excited to be here to share her love of music with others! She invites you to come join her at Kindermusik for a wonderful time of making new friends, learning new skills, and delighting in the joy of music.