Learning made fun

Looking ahead to the new decade

AS a self employed working Mum, I find the need for organisation in my life to be of paramount importance. This is especially crucial for me as I own Musical Minis and have to support and guide all my franchisees as well as running both the business and my family. I'm similar to many working Mums in wishing to spend quality time with my family over the Christmas break. This year being the end of the decade, it seems even more significant to sort everything out for work prior to Christmas to be able to spend guilt free time away from work.

Ever changing family dynamics

MY family life seems to constantly be changing. As soon as I've got used to one situation it's time for a change. There's lots of research on the empty nest syndrome but I seem to be in a juggling eggs syndrome - the nest is either full, partly full or empty. This could calmly sort itself out or it has the potential for the eggs to smash or even the nest to come crashing down!

Having 3 children the house has always been full with them and their friends. When one child was away on a school trip or holiday the house did seem quieter but there were still 2 at home. I know friends with 2 children find it very strange when one is away but I think for me still having 2 at home was always noisy enough.

What really is the purpose of parents evenings?

I've been pondering over the purpose of parents evenings for a long time. I've got 3 children of whom 2 have left school and one is in 6th Form, which means combined they have been at school for 37 years. On average there has been one parents evening each per year, so in total I've sat through  a minimum of 37 consultations. In reality I have sat through more as in exam years there are 2 parents evenings and I do remember having parents evenings for the children when they were in nursery. Unfortunately, they have all blurred into one and reflecting on them now I really don't think they have served any real purpose.

Maybe I'm just fortunate as my children have had no real issues. Hopefully, if there were issues I would be aware of them and not have to wait until a yearly parents evening to find out. Matthew and Emily, my oldest and youngest, did talk about school at home - I know their marks, homework etc. With Alex it was different I didn't really have a clue what was going on at school apart from the fact he did some homework occasionally and seemed happy. I thought if there was a problem the school would contact me.

Playing it safe in Swindon

LAST Friday we had a day trip to Swindon. Chrissie is our Swindon franchisee and as she has now been running Musical Minis classes for a couple of terms we decided it would be great to see her in action. Rob, my husband, came with me and after a very early start dropping Emily at school and collecting Charlotte (Alex's girlfriend who was joining us to see Alex late) we were on our way.

After getting a bit lost as our sat nav couldn't deal with the new road layout, we were there. Chrissie runs 3 sessions on Fridays and we saw the 2 morning ones. I really enjoy visiting our franchisees as it's lovely to see how they're getting on and how enthusiastic they are. I know when they hear we're visiting some do get nervous but I reassure them we're not trying to catch them out just to see if we can offer them any advice to make their work easier and pick up any tips to pass onto the other franchisees. I'm very keen not to just sell a franchise and then say "get on with it" as the success of each franchisee is important to me.

The 2 sessions we saw were fabulous. Chrissie runs them with the help of her Mum and her 2 year old daughter. The Mums (and a Dad) were keen to tell us how they love coming to the sessions especially as Chrissie makes them feel so welcome and offers individual support for every child making the class very personal.

Dancing to a different beat

This was written for ichild.co.uk and I thought it may interest you.

BABIES are reported to first hear music before they are even born. So it’s no surprise they love to dance, sing and play musical instruments before they are out of nappies. Music groups for babies have many proven benefits – not least because they are lots of fun. Forget any idea of children’s interest in musical instruments being limited to young prodigies. Anyone can enjoy the musical sessions offered in town halls, libraries and community centres.

There are different sessions from various franchises across the country, all introducing babies and toddlers to the joys of making music. Whether your local venue hosts one-off events or your area has a local franchise of a national music group – it’s worth finding out more.

Dr Carol Cooper says: “Babies and toddlers have an innate sense of rhythm, so music holds special appeal. They benefit from music sessions in many ways.

My top ten tips for mums who have their own business: What are yours?

WHEN I established my business, Musical Minis, over 20 years ago I was keen to fit my business around my family. As a Mum of 3 being a Mum is still really important to me. In fact, I set Musical Minis up for my son, Matthew, when I couldn't find a suitable group to take him to.

Before having Matthew I had studied psychology at University and then became a Play Specialist at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital. When Matthew was one year old, I was beginning to miss being surrounded by a ward full of children and being at home with just one. This mixed in with my inability to find a suitable music group to attend (and knowing some of my friends were also interested in finding a music group) led to the launch of Musical Minis.

With time, I decided to franchise the business and now have a number of franchisees throughout the UK. Expansion with Musical Minis was purposely kept small, on a level I could manage, as I still wanted to be a full time Mum.