Learning made fun

Musical Minis Top 10 Names For 2011

Following on with our tradition of analysing names for the children attending Musical Minis classes, the list below is for the children who attended during 2011. It isn't necessarily children who were born in 2011. It doesn't include children who attend Children's Centre sessions or nursery sessions. The numbers in brackets following the name are the position for the name last year in 2010.

Top 10 Boys Names:-
=1. James (1)
=1. Oliver (3)
=3 Daniel (6)
=3 Harry(6)
=3 William (8)
6 Jack (2)
7 Thomas (4)
=8 Joshua (4)
=8 George (10)
=8 Benjamin

The only name to have dropped out of the top 10 boys names is Henry and this has been replaced with Benjamin. James remains as the most popular name with Oliver, Daniel, Harry, William and George becoming more popular whilst Jack, Thomas and Joshua have became less popular.

Top 10 Girls Names:-
1 Emily (1)
2 Olivia (2)
3 Sophie (2)
4 Ava
=5 Lucy (2)
=5 Jessica (7)
7 Holly
8 Chloe
=9 Ruby (5)
=9 Charlotte (9)

There have been more changes in the girls names. Emily remains as the most popular girls name with Olivia remaining in 2nd place. New entrants are Ava, Holly and Chloe whilst Amelia, Grace, Hannah, Isla, Katie and Phoebe have dropped out. Last year there were a number of names tying for places so the top 10 had more than 10 names. Jessica is the only name in the top 10 to have become more popular whilst Sophie, Lucy and Ruby have became less popular.

From the popular names to the unusual names, from Aaran to Zora (in our A - Z for 2011), there is a huge variety of names. It was interesting to see how names differ across the UK. In Scotland the most popular names were Finlay for a boy and Ava for a girl. In Wales the most popular names were Charlie for a boy and Chloe for a girl. In the North, James was most popular for a boy and Emily for a girl. In the South, Oliver was the most popular boys name and Emily the most popular girls name.

Names are obviously a personal choice by the parents. What one person loves another might not. If you would like to know how popular your child's name is or fancy finding a unique name for your baby, just let me know.

It's my 18 year old daughter, Emily, who has analysed the list of names and she is eagerly awaiting the end of the year so she can find out if her name is the top girls name for the 3rd year in a row!

Musical Minis is up for three awards!

The What’s On 4 Little Ones Awards recognise the best activities for children from throughout the UK as nominated and voted for by parents, so Musical Minis is delighted, for the third year in a row, to have received a triple nomination in the 2012 awards

I'M so delighted to have been included in this awards scheme as I'm so proud of all the team at Musical Minis.

I hope you can consider voting and taking us forward to a further round.

The What’s On 4 Little Ones Awards recognise the best activities for children from throughout the UK as nominated and voted for by parents, so Musical Minis is delighted to have received not one, but three nominations in this year's awards.

Musical Minis has been proudly nominated for the following categories:

• Best National Baby & Toddler Development Activity (newborn to 2 years)
• Best National Pre-schooler Development Activity (2 to 5 years)
• Jo Weaving our South Wales franchisee has been nominated for Most Outstanding Activity Leader for the Under 5s (West and Wales)

From now until the 6th May 2011, you can log onto http://www.whatson4littleones.co.uk/awards-voting-2012.asp to vote for Musical Minis.You can only vote once but in as many categories as you would like. If you submit your vote you will also be entered into a competition to win two tickets to the awards and a luxury spa treatment on the day. Thank you so much if you do! I've got my fingers crossed for some good support and will watch this space.

To vote click here.

“A Great Experience For Someone Else’s Daughter”

Guest post by Emily Sherr, my 18 year old daughter, who is at Durham University studying Education with History,

This Summer I have been provided with the opportunity to partake in a once in a life time experience of teaching for 6 weeks in a Nepalese charity school in Kathmandu called HVP-Central. I have never done anything like this before but the opportunity seemed ideal as I have a great interest in education and want to work with children in the future. I started Durham University this October, and I was adamant that I was going to make the most of it and not let what ifs or fears hold me back. Therefore I knew that when this opportunity arose, I shouldn't let it pass.

The title of this blog post, “a great experience for someone else’s daughter”, is a phrase I’ve heard an awful lot recently and the catchphrase my mum has coined. As you can guess, my mum is slightly, let's say, apprehensive, about me going. She liked the idea in theory, as did I; a chance to see a different country and culture, an amazing way to spend my summer, meeting new friends and learning new things, an incredible boost for my CV and doing something I really enjoy. My parents were therefore fully supportive of my application and the concept. When it became more of a reality, I got an interview and then got accepted, their opinions changed slightly. They still recognised the benefits of the trip but worry certainly set in. The positives soon became negatives; I was going somewhere I’d never been before with a different culture and way of life, teaching 40 children in a traditional classroom, going to a charity school where the amenities aren’t up to the standard of our western expectations - the theory became more appealing than the reality. To be honest, it did to me as well, this is something completely different and way out of my comfort zone. Yet, I know this is something I need to do and I also know it will be absolutely incredible. I wasn’t going to let my parents’ fears stop me.

As Franchisor Am I Right To Turn Away Prospective Franchisees I Don't Think Will Be Successful?

I feel as franchisor of Musical Minis I have a duty to be honest with prospective franchisees and make sure they are realistic about the business they are hoping to buy into.

Prospective Musical Minis franchisees need to be aware that it is not only the classes they need to learn how to run but they also need to run a business. Some people just can't cope with being self employed and are much better as employees. Others can be mentored and although running a business is difficult for them, with guidance they will be fine after a while.

After 15 years of franchising I do think I can ascertain fairly early on when meeting a prospective franchisee if I feel they can run a Musical Minis franchise successfully. I also take note of comments existing franchisees say when a prospective franchisee visits them - they are keen to expand the network but only with suitable people.

I was sad to learn today that a prospective franchise I had declined, who was then accepted by another pre school music franchise, now has her franchise up for sale. It is hard to know who to blame, the franchisor or the franchisee. I knew the franchisee would seek another franchise to join and I knew another franchisor would accept her money!

Before I accept a new franchisee I insist they visit an existing class to make sure Musical Minis is the right franchise for them. Alarm bells always ring if:

• the prospective franchisee isn't interested in the programme,
• thinks it's very simple and easy to run so isn't at all concerned,
• think they've understood everything so don't need to stay for the complete class.

After the application form has been completed I can get a better feel for the franchisees' suitability. References often will give a glowing report, they have been chosen by the applicant so will act on their behalf. It is important to read between the lines and raise any doubts I have with the referees and hear their replies.

I have telephone conversations with applicants and during these can raise any concerns I have. Often the prospective franchisee will agree with me and we can discuss how I can mentor them and help them with the parts of the business that could be problematic for them. If we work together and they're prepared to accept help and guidance the success of their franchise will increase. Sometimes it's very clear that the applicant feels everything is fine but really doesn't understand the business side at all.  I have had one applicant who signed a draft contract and returned it with a cheque. It would have been really easy to pay in the cheque but I knew the applicant had no business sense and had no understanding of what she had done. It would have felt unethical to take the money when I didn't think the business could succeed as the prospective franchisee was too naive. I thought other franchisors would sign her up - unfortunately this was the case.

I am really keen to ascertain that an applicant really does understand what they are committing to in respect of the business before the Contract is drawn up. I feel it's unfair to take someones money if the business side of the franchise is something they are not suited to.

If you feel a Musical Minis franchise may be suitable for you please click here and enter your details to download an information pack. I'm happy to talk the franchise over with enquirers and rest assured I will tell you honestly where I feel your strengths and weaknesses lie. If I don't feel the franchise is right for you I will let you know. If both I and you feel it is suitable there are just 5 easy steps to become a Musical Minis franchisee.

How To Plan A Trip To Disney World

Guest post by Debbie Caygill, our Newcastle Musical Minis franchisee.

Easter 2011 my husband, our 2 children (4 years and 2 years), my parents and I set off for a holiday of a lifetime to Disney World Florida. I had my concerns over the ages of our children but we looked on various websites  and decided to just go for it. Before I became the Newcastle Musical Minis franchisee, I had worked as a business travel agent and have always loved booking and organising our holidays. The last time I actually went into a travel agents and booked a “package” holiday was over 10 years ago! Your holiday really does start from the moment you decide to go. The planning stage is so important, here are a few tips to planning your holiday to Disney World Florida.

Planning your holiday:

1. Visit http://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/tools . This website tells you everything you need to know about when to go, what days to go and waiting times for rides. It is $11.95 for a years subscription, but it is money well spent

2. Decide which parks you want to visit and buy your tickets before you go. You can buy your tickets at http://disneyworld.disney.go.com and find out all the information about the various different parks. Bare in mind age and height requirements for certain rides, you don't want to turn up at a ride that your child is excited to go on, only to discover he/she can't get on.

3. Decide where you want to stay. There are a number of hotels on site which have public transport provided to take you from your hotel to the parks. If you choose to stay in a villa off site, remember you will need to pay for parking everyday that you visit and parking is $14 per day for a car. The parking lots are huge & baring in mind we went over the Easter holidays (the 2nd most busy time of year) we didn't have any problems parking, never queued to enter or leave the park and only had to queue once to get on the connecting trams to the park from the car park.

We flew from Glasgow International Airport with Virgin Atlantic, direct to Orlando International. We stayed in a villa in the Davenport area, around 12-15 minutes drive from Disney World, and hired a car from  Holiday Autos. The roads are very good and we never had any problems with traffic jams or becoming lost. We did take our handy Sat Nav with us although you can hire them from most car rental companies too.


The last thing you want to be doing on your holiday is standing in queues for rides & attractions. Here are some things you can do to reduce your waiting times:

1. There are various apps you can get now for your phone which shows you the waiting times at various attractions & rides. If you did purchase a subscription for http://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/tools this will also tell you which days are early opening days. If you are staying in a resort hotel then you will have access to the park 1 hour before everyone else and 1 hour after everyone else on certain days. If you are not staying in a resort hotel these days are best avoided at certain parks as the early arrivers will have already had an hour to get their FastPass tickets.

2. Certain rides have “FastPass” available. You simply pop your park ticket into the machine and they will give you a ticket to return at a set time. When you return to your ride just look for the FastPass sign and go straight onto your ride.

3. If you have seen all the parades or don't wish to see them, then use this time to go on the attractions, the queues will not be so big.

4. If the weather is looking bad, don't be put off, others may be so lines will be less busy.

5. A child switch or switch rider pass avoids the need to queue twice. Dad can wait in line while mum watches the kids. When he has finished on the ride Mum can use her switch rider pass & go straight to the front of the line.

Disney World is made up of 4 theme parks and 2 water parks:

• Magic Kingdom
• Disney’s Animal Kingdom
• Disney’s Hollywood Studios
• Epcot
• Typhoon Lagoon
• Blizzard Beach

Hollywood Studios and Typhoon Lagoon were our favourite parks. I was going to list all our favourite attractions but I don't want to spoil it for you. All I would say is don't miss Toy Story Mania at Hollywood Studios and my children loved drawing Mickey Mouse at The Magic of Disney Animation, also Hollywood Studios. After the session be quick and ask for the animators drawing for a lasting memory to take home with you. We have ours framed in the hall. Go to as many of the shows as you can within the parks, they were all great, especially The Festival of the Lion King at Animal Kingdom.

We loved our holiday so much we are planning to go back in 2013!

Special Musical Minis Easter Sessions In Dorset

Are you wondering what to do in the Easter Holidays?

Join Musical Minis Dorset for a Special Easter Session.

Monday 2nd April - 1.15pm  – Old School House, Highcliffe.

Wednesday 4th April - 10:00am – Zooma Bargates, Christchurch

Thursday 12th April - 2.15pm – Portfield Hall, Christchurch 

Includes an Easter Egg for each child
A Musical Minis Special Easter Session
Action Songs
Parachute Musical Stops
Instruments
Story and Rhyme

Email Gill or call her on 01202 462971 to book a place in advance as numbers are limited.

St. David's Day 2012 Celebrated In South Wales

South Wales Musical Minis celebrated St Davids Day in style with a week of celebrations in all of their classes.

Lots of Musical Minis came dressed for the occasion as did some of the adults. (Everyone was in particulary high spirits as the Welsh Rugby Team had won a piece of silverware the weekend before!)

The welcome song was sang in Welsh at the start of each class and Dewi Draig (Dewi Dragon) made his annual appearance at story time. At the end of each class Welsh Cakes were handed out to all the Musical Minis who wanted one.

Everyone had lots of fun as can be seen in the photos.

Mother's Day Flowercards

When I was offered a Mother's Day Flowercard to review I jumped at the opportunity as a card containing fresh flowers sounded interesting and something I could see myself sending.

The Flowercard arrived on the correct day and was hand delivered. It was packaged well in a red box - it is worth noting that the box is too large to fit in the letter box so someone needs to be in to take delivery. When I opened the box I was pleased to see the flowers were still fresh and apart from a few leaves in the box it had survived its journey.

I received a Mother's Day card with white freesia inside. Unfortunately, the flowers lacked colour and reminded me of a bouquet for a memorial or funeral. I do think this is unfortunate as other Flowercards on the website are full of colour and look much more cheerful. They do smell lovely though.

The card is A5 size and is made of thin cardboard. It is a bit flimsy and hard to position so the flowers are displayed properly. The Flowercard comes with a pipette to water it with - I really liked this.

The Flowercards cost £19.99 with £2.99 postage on top. I wouldn't consider sending anyone this Flowercard although I would one with different more colourful flowers.

Sydney - New Year's Eve 2011

Our first view of the Opera House was as we approached Sydney from Ayers Rock on the aeroplane. We are not sure why we found it so exciting, perhaps because it is such an iconic building. After settling in at our hotel, brilliantly situated in the Rocks area of Sydney we headed straight for a close up view of the Opera House. What we hadn't realised was that the tiles on the roof are patterned, we thought they were just white. Seeing the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge together was really spectacular.

The following day we crossed the bridge on a minibus on our way to the Blue Mountains. We had breakfast at a pretty town called Richmond, situated on the river, then drove up into the mountains. The tour was a bit of a disappointment as it comprised of just looking out from various view points. The Blue Mountains were worth seeing, particularly the Grand Canyon. The mountains get their name from a blue haze created from the significant number of eucalyptus trees that grow on the mountainside. Whilst in Sydney we went to eat at both Darling Harbour and Circular Quay. We far preferred Circular Quay which we felt was more up market.

We planned our whole Australia trip on being in Sydney for New Years Eve. We started the day off with a walk across the Harbour Bridge and had breakfast at a lovely little cafe on the other side. We had decided not to do the 230 dollar Sydney Bridge Climb but opted for the free flat walk across. We did pay to go up the pylon tower on the bridge, which gave great views. During the day we visited Manly on the ferry and went for a beautiful walk that took us partly around the coast and then through a nature reserve. Getting back there was a buzz around Sydney that we have never experienced anywhere else on New Years Eve. We couldn't help but get very excited along with everyone else. We had pre-booked tickets at Mrs McQuaries Point in the Royal Botanical Gardens, a really good spot to watch the fireworks. Tables were set out and we enjoyed a meal and a disco. We had a prime spot with the Opera House in the foreground and the Harbour Bridge behind. The 9 o'clock fireworks were a taster of what was to come at midnight. The fireworks seeing in the New Year went on for 12 minutes and were truly spectacular. It was hard to believe we were watching the Sydney fireworks live rather than on tv as we usually do, as they launch the New Year's celebrations across the world.

The next day we walked a little around the city. The highlight was the Queen Victoria Building, an indoor shopping arcade, where although the shops were shut the building was open and wonderfully quiet. It is such a beautiful building and it is incredible to think they considered knocking it down in the 70's. We then went to Bondi Beach which did not live up to our expectations. It was horribly busy and dreadfully commercialised. We had been suggested the coastal walk from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach. This took about two hours and went past a number of less spoilt beaches with surfers. Both Bondi and Coogee were packed with limited space to put even a small towel down. We were quite happy to get back to Sydney.

The following day we did a tour of the Hunter Valley vineyards. We visited both small and large wineries. The wine tasting started at 10.30 in the morning and finished 31 glasses later at 3.30pm! We decided that we were not overly keen on the wines from this area and preferred the cheese and chocolate tasting we had en route.

Whilst in Sydney we visited the Opera Bar and the Blu Bar, situated on the 36th floor of the Shangri La hotel. Both of these are worth doing given the buzz of the Opera Bar and the view from the Blu Bar.

Sydney was special because of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge but when asked what to do, most people suggest places outside the city. It is as though people want to escape from Sydney. However, we wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else for New Year's Eve.

Musical Minis Easter Parties In West Yorkshire

Are you wondering what to do in the Easter Holidays?

Join us at a Musical Minis Easter Party for just £6 per child (adults free & discount for siblings)

Monday 2nd April a.m, – Alwoodley
Monday 2nd April p.m. – Bardsey
Tuesday 3rd April – Farsley
Friday 6th April – Crossgates

Includes a visit from the Easter Bunny
An Easter Egg for each child
A Musical Minis Easter Party Session
Action Songs
Parachute Musical Stops
Instruments
Story and Rhyme

60 Minutes of Action Packed Fun
Email Claire or call her on 0113 2267709 or 07786 011995