I am a mother of two, Alex and Jessica. When Alex was very young I went with him to many Toddler groups which gave me the chance to discuss child issues and experiences with other mothers, and Alex played with a variety of toys and interacted with the other children. Whilst attending the much valued Toddler groups I got involved in the songtime part and went on to look for a musical group for under 5’s. I found one and went along to see what it was all about. It was quite different, I loved the encouraged interaction between parent and child, I’ll always remember Alex’s and Jessica’s faces lighting up whilst we danced, laughed and sang together.
Whilst the children were small I worked part-time in an admin/secretarial role and began to use these skills to help run Toddler groups. But became more involved and increasingly enjoyed the hands on ‘messy-time’ activities, music and dancing or reading stories with the children. Then suddenly, both my children were at school and life moved on!
We moved for my husbands work in 2004 from Oxfordshire to Lee-on-the-Solent. The children settled well in school and pre-school and I took a role as co-ordinator for HCFF, Hampshire Children and Families Forum, which involved me in the admin role I knew so well but with an element of child/parent interaction. Finally my husbands company became profit making and I began to research whether I could run my own under 5’s group. A business that would fulfil my dreams, yet fit with my family life.
I looked at what Lee-on-the-Solent had to offer its families and noted a gap in the musical movement element for under 5’s. I became really excited and discussed the possibilities with my husband - Could I start my own group? Did I have the confidence to do it? How would I start? Where would I hold my sessions? What would I offer? How would I finance it?
Business Link conveniently advertised a course for women wanting to start up in business and a like-minded friend of mine suggested we attend together. I went to the course in March 2006 with my ideas, learnt the values of sales and marketing, how to put a business plan together and prepare accounts, understand the legal aspects of liability insurances, health and safety, etc; and came away prepared to make my dream happen.
I put my business plan together and off I went. When all my new equipment began to arrive I was really excited and when parents/carers were ringing me for details of my group in response to my advertising my dream was very quickly becoming reality.
My TWO initial Spring-a-Ling sessions were scheduled to start in Lee-on-the-Solent on 12th September 2006, the date was growing near. It was time to finalise the first terms session programme - the music, how the props would be used in relation to the music, etc – everything just seemed to flow.
The business course really benefited me, however the being a parent with an under 5 and attending much needed groups, really gave me the insight as to what some parents and children might gain from my group:-
The pay at the door policy (no financial pressure to attend) Attending on a relaxed basis, under 5’s being so unpredictable with how they will be on the day!
The emphasis on fun together, whilst the child is actually learning
1-1 interaction and dedicated time together
The introduction to a variety of instruments and music – chart and classical, theme tunes, much loved nursery rhymes and action songs to contribute to language development.
Fresh, new musical & sports equipment to challenge the child’s senses, motor skills, balance, co-ordination and social skills.
Finally I needed to run a practice session. I went out of the area to my sisters’ local Toddler Group. The butterflies in my stomach were immense! I can’t thank Sunningwell Toddler Group, Oxfordshire enough for inviting me to demonstrate and for their much valued feedback. I then proceeded to run free demonstration sessions within Lee-on-the-Solent and Stubbington pre-school settings and toddler groups to create further interest and become more confident myself in leading the classes.
Now here I am currently running SIX weekly public sessions for under 5’s, fulfilling numerous bookings from Day nurseries, pre-schools, Infant Schools to run sessions within their settings, together with many Birthday Party bookings for 1 to 7 year olds. The enthusiasm and enjoyment continues to grow day by day, as does the parents/carers positive and much valued feedback. The children still want to come back for more and more!