Ready Steady News

Welcome Agi Tron – our newest Teacher Trainer

Congratulations Agi Tron – our very first TT (Teacher Trainer) for Hungary!  Agi got started with RSM in the summer of 2008 after a friend told her that Helen Doron was opening the Ready Steady Move! program and needed teachers.  As both a physical education and English language teacher, Agi has the perfect combination for RSM.

In addition to the classroom, the Ready Steady Move! songs can also be heard in Agi’s house and in her car.  Her two boys were only 3 and 5 when she first started with the program and RSM was their initial introduction to English.  Agi told me of how, after only a few weeks of listening to the songs, her younger son was already able to pick out words from popular English songs playing on the radio!

Agi loves teaching RSM – especially when she gets positive feedback from the children.  “I love when they make me feel that they like me; after or before the class they show me their favourite toys, or they want me (not their mummy!) to help them change their clothes or when they run to me and simply hug me.  I so much enjoy seeing their eyes open wide, as they do their best to copy my movements.  Sometimes it is quite difficult for them and they are so lovely and cute as they try their hardest.”

It is obvious why Agi has decided to be a Ready Steady Move! Teacher Trainer – she loves what she does and the children love her back.  Good luck Agi!

RSM – Does it Stick?

After teaching RSM for four years I wondered if RSM really worked in the long run. I know it works over a period of three years because of my experience in the Tiberias school system and where the children remembered songs, stories and vocabulary from year to year. But what would happen if the kids had a gap of a year and then went back to the program, let’s say between kindergarten and second grade? Would they still remember? Would they have the same positive attitude as they used to?

This year I have had the chance to find out. I am now teaching four kids whom I hadn’t seen for over a year. They are now in second grade and just about remember the name of their kindergarten teacher, never mind RSM. Kids have a habit of “formatting” their brains between grades as if they have to clean out their memories before starting another year. So would they remember the program? Or me?

To my relief, they remembered my name. They remembered which kindergarten they went to but hadn’t gone back to visit, and judging by their reactions, never will. They also remembered the most of the songs. Not all the words, let’s not get carried away, but when I started singing “Head Shoulders Knees and Toes” for instance, they finished it, without the music, including all the versions! In fact they knew some of the songs so well I found it hard to teach the new kids as they kept jumping in ahead of me. They also knew what flash cards were coming up in the yoga stories as if they were clairvoyant! In the end I had to ask them nicely to let the new kids have a chance.

I now consider them my “helpers”; they have learned to restrain themselves when trying movements and learning vocabulary which is very hard for kids who generally like to be first to show off their knowledge. They greet the songs like old friends which helps, as the others see them as role models and tend to follow their lead. I really didn’t expect them to remember as much as they do or show interest in re-learning the songs and activities they had learned as smaller children, but they do.

I played “Sky is Blue” last week, just in the background while they were working in the activity book. One of the girls was sitting on the ground, carefully colouring her drawing, simply singing along without even looking up at me. That was a shame, as she missed the stupid smile on my face.

Julian Harel
Ready Steady Move! Program Developer & Teacher Trainer

Ready Steady Freeze! Tips for keeping control

Earlier this year, Julian was giving a TTC in Hungary and I volunteered to substitute for a class of 28 first and second graders. OMG! They practically ate me alive. If I had only known Julian’s tips I would definitely have been better off. And so I bring you: Julian’s tips and tricks for keeping control without being mean.

1. Be nice. The kids are there to have a good time and we can’t make it seem like school (even if it is).

2. Use chairs if you have enough room. This speeds up the transitions and keeps order in the courtroom. Don’t let them fight over seats;  separate problematic children if you have to.

3. Set clear rules: Make sure they know that all drinking (water), eating, and visits to the toilet must be completed before the lesson. After a few weeks they will learn that they cannot come and go as they please.

4.  Always try to have another adult in the room (teacher, aide, parent) to take care of any problems – discipline or other. If a child is having difficulty behaving, tell them to go and sit next to ________.

5. If things get out of control, stop – sit them all down – then use breathing or focusing exercises to calm the children.

6. Don’t lecture them – Understand that sometimes it’s like taking the top off a fizzy drink after it has been shaken about – of course the kids are a bit rowdy – they have been sitting at a desk all day long.

7. Always try to end calmly with a breathing exercise.

We are happy to hear from you as well. Send us your comments and tips.  Julian is eagerly awaiting your questions.

We’re on Television!!

We’re on Television!!!

Last spring, Ready Steady Move! received a green light to graduate from kindergarten into a children’s television show. In conjunction with HOP! the popular Israeli television channel for preschoolers, Ready Steady Move! now has a life of its own.  Twenty-six episodes have been recorded and will reach over 1 million households. This has happened so fast that by the time you read this newsletter, the first few lessons will have already aired. We are sure there will be many reruns so stay tuned and look out for our program called ….. Ready Steady HOP!

The show features our own Ella Doron as the teacher, two adorable puppets, Max and Millie and the Ready Steady HOP! kids. Together with Ella, they learn new words in English, and dance and stretch to the music we all know and love.

This is an fantastic tool for any of you (in Israel) who are promoting the program in your towns, schools and community centers. Let your students know when we are on and watch your classes grow in size.  You may find the TV schedule at: www.hop.co.il

Here is a (very) short preview: Ready Steady Hop! 

Stay tuned for more…

Even Adults can learn with Ready Steady Move!

As teachers we have seen how effective the Ready Steady Move! method is and how fast the children learn words and concepts – but does this work for everyone and in any language?

At the latest Teacher Training Course in Jaffo we had an opportunity to witness Ready Steady Move! in action for adults.  Attending the  training were teachers from Israel and abroad – with four different mother tongues represented;  English, German, Hebrew and Arabic.   Just for fun, Julian asked everyone to teach the corners game in their native language.   The results?  Sara from Germany learned “not “ (hop) in Arabic and everyone learned “springen“ (jump) in German.  Even Julian has been affected: when he  came back from a TTC in Budapest, I believe I heard him chanting in Hungarian!  Gyerekek nek! (for the kids).  Wow!  Live proof of the effectiveness of the Ready Steady Move! methodology.

Recently Maggie Xu (left), our woman in Beijing, recorded the Ready Steady Move! Yoga stories in Chinese for our new DVD.  Who will be first to do the playground story in Mandarin? We are offering a      for the winner! 

Ready Steady Jump!

Sometimes, to the naked eye, RSM lessons seem to jump from one thing to the next without any continuity. Despite the impression, this is exactly what is intended. Children have a short attention spans and need constant stimulation to keep them engaged. Ready Steady Move! mixes high energy activities (dances, games) with periods of quiet ( breathing, yoga, workbook activities) to avoid over-stimulation and enable the children to practice focusing.

As the children glide from one activity to the next they are continually learning. Different types of children learn in different ways – some learn better when they are active – others need to be quiet. With Ready Steady Move! we maximize the effectiveness of the learning by using many different methods.

Celebrating the birth of our latest addition – the Ready Steady Move! Yoga DVD

Congratulations! At Ready Steady Move! we are celebrating the birth of our latest addition – the Ready Steady Move! Yoga DVD. As proud parents, we are showing it off everywhere! From the graphic design, to the animation, to Sharon Kanor’s flowing movement, it is simply beautiful and complements the RSM program perfectly. All of the wonderful yoga stories that were created especially for Ready Steady Move! are presented in both mother tongue and in English.

For our Hungarian students, we made a special recording in Hungarian so that the children can hear the stories first in Hungarian and then in English. Thanks to Klara Kiss, our Hungarian MF for the translations and to Katrin Varga for the recordings. Our Israeli students can listen both in Hebrew and in English. The Hebrew was read by Daniela Shibi from our customer service department.

The DVD first presents the poses in the “dictionary” and teaches how to hold each one. Our special yoga stories are told with the aid of the poses. The children can do them alone or together with the rest of the family for “extended” exercising.

Incidentally, the birth of our yoga DVD coincided almost exactly with the birth of Sharon’s own baby girl Noya, – who, if you look closely, you can see just starting to show as she recorded the poses in the second month of her pregnancy. Mazal tov Sharon!

Now-a-days many movies come with a warning – don’t try this at home. With this DVD we say the opposite! Just do it! For additional fun, we recommend you also listen in a language you don’t know yet – who knows – you may just pick it up!

Goodbye Song

Ready Steady Move! 1 lessons now end with the Goodbye Song. We felt something was missing to tie the lesson together and leave the children in a really positive, happy manner. So what could be better than a good-ole twist!  If you do not have the recording, please be in touch with Julian who will send it to you. Here are the lyrics:

Goodbye Song 

Let’s swing low

And jump up high.

Let’s wave our hands

And kiss goodbye.

Let’s dance the twist

Then off we fly.

Let’s wave our hands

And kiss goodbye.

So why not learn Chinese?

So why not learn Chinese? I mean a billion people can’t be wrong. And while you’re at how’s your Spanish, Hungarian, Russian, Arabic, Hebrew, French, German, Italian and Japanese? Personally I would love to be able to speak more languages but I started too late and was forced to sit and soak up endless lessons of boring French and pointless German. Oh to be a polyglot, it makes you seem so intelligent doesn’t it? So why not start early, when your brain can still assimilate any language as well as your mother tongue?

This is where Ready Steady Move! comes in. This program uses movement to enhance language acquisition in kids from four to eight years old. Here at Helen Doron we say that “an active body is a learning body.” We get those kids out of their chairs and away from the endless grammar lessons and into a fun environment full of music, dance, yoga, Pilates and games. The kids don’t realize they’re learning a new language, they’re just having fun, but at the end on program of Ready Steady Move! they can have a vocabulary of 300 words and be healthier in the process.

Personally I’m jealous. When I think back to all that time wasted supposedly learning foreign languages when I could have been outdoors playing and here we have a program that does both, well it’s a crying shame. But I’m not giving up. The Ready Steady Move! programs will soon be available in 10 languages suitable for children (adults can take part too, we promise not to tell) and if can learn 300 words of Chinese I’ll really be able to make an impression the next time I order a take away.

Yoga Stories

We’ve come a long way from that day three years ago when the first Ready  Steady Move! program was born. Originally conceived as a movement program to improve language skills, Ready Steady Move!  has come a long way since then.
The first version was based on dance and movement theatre but as time went on we saw the benefits of adding yoga to the syllabus. This happened when the kids reacted so well to the small yoga sections introduced by chance to the program; they really got a kick out of the asanas! We didn’t call it yoga and of course we didn’t call the postures asanas but the love for yoga was obvious. Since then the yoga has developed into an integral part of the program, performed using specially written yoga stories that will soon be available on DVD called Yoga Stories for Children. Both the kids and their parents will be able to practice yoga at home, with any luck it will become an integral part of their lives.
And then came the Pilates! As usual the best things happen by accident. Helen Doron and Ella Doron started to learn Pilates with Ganit, got hooked, dragged me along and before you could say Hokey Cokey, Pilates for Children was introduced into the program as well. Children really benefit from the Pilates method especially as they spend so much time stuck behind desks, computers and TVs. This sedentary life style is ruining their posture as well as reducing their overall physical fitness, balance and body strength. Pilates can counter this. Naturally the three minutes of Pilates in each lesson aren’t enough so…..we’re making a Pilates DVD. The kids and grown-ups participating in Ready Steady Move! will be encouraged to do Pilates at home as well as in the lessons. If you have to watch the “box” then you might as well get fit at the same time.
Of course Ready Steady Move! One begat Ready Steady Move!  Two, I mean how could we produce just one successful program? So we have a new program, 32 new songs and chants set to music from around the world, but no choreography. Along came Tal and Ganit, combining Jazz dance techniques with traditional Indian dance movements, they produced a series of entertaining and challenging dance numbers keeping the kids and teachers on their toes, literally. The second program is more difficult than the first and is suitable for older children (and their parents) of up to eight years old (or eighty).