Music is synonymous with the Celtic tradition. Storytelling and song have been the traditional ways that tales and history were passed down through generations. The music and stories from the Celt nations – Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Isle of Man, Brittany and Cornwall – have so many benefits for children.

Jim Weiss Celtic Treasures is a collection of original and traditional tales on CD. Weiss is an award-winning American storyteller whose voice has been described as “liquid gold’’ and who reels families into the magic of his retellings of ancient tales. When Weiss performs for children he strives to give them a link between classical literature and their own personal life experiences. On this collection ancient stories of bards and warriors are accompanied enhanced with music from acclaimed US pianist Paul Machlis who has an Irish and Scottish background.

For a soothing bedtime experience Celtic Dreamland from Putumayo Kids focuses on the serene and whimsical lullaby music from Ireland, Scotland and those countries like Canada and the USA whose history is infused with the heritage of settlers from Celtic homelands.

Celtic Lullabies: Dreaming for Little Souls has the softest of instrumentation and melodies to lull your little ones to a peaceful sleep. The collection has a prayerful feeling that celebrates life.  Some tracks include “May the Angels’’ and “The Infant King’’ give you the flavour of the album, which is like a cosy blanket of soft words and melodies.

Another excellent collection of traditional lullabies is Celtic Dreams. The lyrics are full of dreamy woodland animals, castles and mermaids. Some songs include Irish Felim’s Wee Boat, Evening Prayer from Wales and The Mermaid’s Lullaby from Scotland. A gentle collection for a seriously serene slumber.

When you think rock and roll you think Happy Days, Elvis Presley, electric guitar and lots and lots of fun.

Rock and roll music is an excellent way to integrate fun, movement and learning for children.

Bean Bag Rock n’ Roll has songs from the 1950s and 1960s like “Happy Days”, “Shake, Rattle & Roll’’ and “Blue Suede Shoes’’ geared towards manipulation activities using bean bags. The CD comes with an activities book, which helps kids learn concepts such as body identification, directions, improve coordination and team work. The CD is aimed at 3-9 years olds. Bean bags are a widely used tool for activities to aid balance and coordination skills.

Patsy Biscoe is a legend in music and entertainment for Australian children and Gen-X parents will remember her from kids’ shows of the day Fat Cat and Friends and Here’s Humphrey. Now they can introduce their children to Patsy’s music. On Patsy Biscoe Rock ‘n’ Roll she sings 16 songs on this collection including “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini’’, “See You Later Alligator’’ and “Witch Doctor’’ for kids to bop along to.

You can’t go wrong with a collection from Putumayo Kids who gather well known international artists and up and coming musicians to put together titles with distinctive global flavours. One of Putumayo Kids’ latest collections is Rock & Roll Playground – modern songs influenced by rock and roll roots. This compilation also includes a read-aloud booklet with notes about the history of rock & roll and the story of each song.

The Learning Station’s Rock ‘n Roll Songs that Teach is intended to get children jamming with action, participation and fun. The movement songs with a rock and roll vibe will motivate kids to dance, play and learn new skills – circle games and nursery rhymes. The Learning Station is a US trio of musician/entertainers with an early education background. The trio have recorded over 300 songs and 28 albums so their track record with creating engaging and educational music experiences is hard to beat.

Combine fitness and rollicking tunes with Rock ‘n Roll Fitness Fun. The “oldies but goodies’’ tunes include “The Twist’’, “Rock Around the Clock’’ and “Surfin’ USA’’. The CD includes a lyrics and instructions book. Georgiana Stewart is the person behind this title and is a highly regarded education specialist who has authored more that 55 CDs. She is renowned for her music, movement and aerobic CDs, which are a hit with teachers around the world.

Hey Baby Let’s Rock and Roll from the incredibly popular Love to Sing range is a DVD and CD package. The songs are sung by children for children and this particular collection of original songs is rock and roll inspired. The brainchild of world-renowned Kiwi early childhood music expert Linda Adamson, Love to Sing is all about participation and enthusiasm being key to your child’s learning.

It may only be rock and roll but you’ll love all the resources we have at Educational Esteem that will have you doing the twist…or maybe rocking around the clock?!

Italian is a popular and fun language for children to learn – it’s bellissimo!

Educational Esteem has the Little Pim Italian for Little Kids three-DVD pack that is “entertainment immersion’’ with a mixture of animation and real-life kids, which teaches words and phrases for everyday activities. each 35-minute DVD contains seven five-minute episodes and introduces over 60 words and phrases. The three discs cover “eating and drinking”, “wake up smiling” and “playtime”. This resource is billed as “fun with languages’’ and it certainly is! Aimed at ages 0 to 5.

An Italian Adventure takes children on a cultural and linguistic trip around Italy. Pinocchio is your guide as the famous little puppet boy who will show you many of the beautiful and famous Italian sights through film and photos on DVD. The Narration is simple and in English. If you have never been to Italy, this journey will provide you with a taster (mmm…the food is one of the best parts of Italian Culture), of what you can expect when you finally visit this wonderful country. An Italian Adventure also includes a teacher resource book and bonus CD with some catchy and easy-to-sing-along-with songs in Italian. This is ideal for kindergarten age.

Teach Me Everyday Italian Vol 1 and Teach Me Italian Vol 2 are books and CD resources, which brings language alive through brilliant illustrations as you listen, learn and sing along with songs for children. The books have full colour illustrations and hardcover binding (great for wear and tear from eager-to-learn kids). Language is learned through characters Peter and Marie. Volume 1 focuses on the basic words and phrases and volume 2 is about the different activities Peter and Marie do like going to the zoo, the farm and celebrating holidays like Christmas.

Buongiorno Signora – Volume 1 has 13 original songs with a fun approach to learning Italian. Some of the themes covered are greetings, weather, manners and seasons. Teachers will love this resource – An A3 Song Book comes complete with colourful poster-size lyric charts and A4 activity book is filled with worksheets and colouring in activities to complement each song.

Christmas is a huge celebration in Italy and a vital part of learning the language is understanding this integral part of the culture. Buon Natale: Learning Songs & Traditions in Italian celebrates the traditions of Christmas in Italy through the magic of song and story. The illustrated hardcover book shares the rich heritage, culture and beliefs of Italy during Christmas. The family or class will have so much fun singing and learning about an Italian Christmas.

So visit us pronto, pronto to get your kids started with Italian.

Do you often find yourself pointing out cars, trucks and other things with wheels while you are out and about with your kids? That’s because wheels are fun and there are so many activities and songs to enjoy that celebrate the things that get us around.

Play School Wheels DVD is full of all things with wheels – bicycles, wheelchairs, waterwheels – presented by favourite presenters Karen, Andrew and Georgie. The Play School toys also get rides in all sorts of handcrafted forms of transport.

Car Tunes is a perfect addition to your vehicle’s music selection. Music makes car rides with children so much more fun (and often bearable!) and this 3-CD pack has the titles Travelling Songs for in the Car, Play School in the Car and Bananas in Pyjamas – Bumping and a Jumping. Play School in the Car in particular has old school presenters  Noni Hazelhurst  and John Hamblin (parents will remember them well) singing fun songs like “Buckle Up”, “They’re Digging a Hole in the Road”, “Driving through the Night”  and a fantastically fun “I Spy”.

The Wheels on the Bus is a fun collection of great travelling songs for kids. There’s 36 sing-a-long songs with the ever-popular “The Wheels on the Bus” to keep young travellers happy and entertained. Some of the other songs are, ‘”Oh, I Do Like to be Beside the Seaside”, “Ten Green Bottles”, and “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”.

The wonderful Susie Tallman has Let’s Go: Travel, Car and Camp Songs to keep your family having fun on road trips. Tallman’s fresh, upbeat styles, real instruments, lots of voices, and an interesting takes on the old favourites like “Polly Wolly Doodle”, “On Top of Spaghetti” and “A Sailor Went to Sea” ensures that this CD will become a firm favourite.

Colin Rides On is the transport-inspired collection that has songs about feet, scooters and bikes to helicopters, planes and rockets. The CD is produced and presented by Kiwi company Tessarose – respected entertainers Tessa Grigg and Brian Ringrose. Colin the Kiwi is the character on this CD and Colin likes to go places. On Colin Rides On he discovers all sorts of ways to get around. The music from Tessarose is developed with children’s developmental needs in mind so they are great for home and as educational resources.

Bop it in the Rocket is from Julie Wylie, a world-renowned paediatric music specialist from New Zealand. This CD is all about going on a journey and all the exciting parts of that experience. Wylie creates a musical journey – from going to outer space on a rocket to riding a “blues” train or even a tractor. This CD will prompt all sorts of questions and activities about places to go and adventures to be had.

Shapes, sizes and colours – these are the nuts and bolts of educational concepts for children and you will find every reason to make it fun with the resources available from Educational Esteem. Understanding these concepts is vital for a child’s perception of their world and there are opportunities to focus on them everywhere.

Bingo is a great game to play with kids and Colours and Shapes Bingo is aimed at many skill levels. The game teaches 10 colours and six shapes and is appropriate for small or large groups – an ideal game for home or resource for the classroom.

Fun with Shapes and Colours game requires players to complete drawings on their colourful play boards, placing the missing geometric shapes corresponding to the thrown dice. This game is great to help children aged 4+ to recognise shapes and to distinguish colours.

Fun with Sizes game is a puzzle that interlocks to show progressions in sizes, for instance a cat, to a lion to an elephant to show small, medium and large. Concepts of size are very important for children to grasp – teaching size is the foundation of learning opposites. This puzzle is a great family game to play for ages 4+.

A sure fire hit for the kids is the Play School Shapes DVD where favourite presenters and characters explore the shapes we find all around us in our homes, gardens, body shapes and animals. This is all done in the format parents and children know and love – songs, stories and craft activities.

So Smart Shapes is a DVD from ABC Video that is specially made for babies aged 6-36 months.  The 30-minute program features Cecil the Circle, Suzie the Square and Traci the Triangle who take babies on a colourful and fun trip where the shapes transform into animals and other familiar objects. The DVD has a classical music soundtrack and little ones can clap and dance along.

Pass the Bag game is a great one for the family, in particular ages 3-7. Armed with a bag each and a playing board that tells them what shapes they need, players use their sense of touch to distinguish pieces of different shape and size. This game from Child’s Play has long been a favourite with families and teachers (it’s been around since the early 1970s) and is also great for children with special needs.

There’s nothing to say that jazz is only for adults.   This musical style lends itself well to children – from the fun, upbeat tunes of Jazz legends like Ella Fitzgerald and all the sounds of a big band to the soothing chords of a jazz guitar.

Sleepytime Jazz Guitar from ABC Kids is a refreshing take on the traditional lullaby CD. This compilation features classics like ‘When I Fall In Love’, contemporary favourites ‘When You Wish Upon A Star’ and ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ and traditional nursery rhymes – the calming sounds of the jazz guitar are sure to give a restful sleep.

Miss Ella’s Playhouse features the favourites from the magnificent Ella Fitzgerald – one of the best know jazz artists ever. Parents, as well as kids, will love this CD with snappy tunes like ‘A-Tisket, A-Tasket’, ‘The Muffin Man’ and Fitzgerald’s unique rendition of nursery rhyme staple ‘Old McDondald’. You’ll be having lots of family fun with this CD as well as introducing your children to music royalty. This is aimed at ages one to four.

Jazz Playground from Putumayo Kids is a collection of international jazz songs for children. From bebop and swing to Latin and African jazz, this multicultural CD celebrates the vibrant diversity and global influence of jazz. The countries featured on this album include the USA, Australia, Japan, Brazil and Cuba.

Cool Jazz for Kids by Sean O’Boyle reworks classic childhood songs and gives them a jazzy twist – Jack and Jill didn’t just go up the hill – they danced up it (‘Jack and Jill Danced Up That Hill’) and Three Blind Mice becomes “Three Blind Monsters’. Or, did you know Mary had a really cool lamb? The songs by O’Boyle, a jazz-clarinet playing orchestra conductor, are super-charged with fun. O’Boyle is one of the most prolific musicians in Australia and had produced an extensive range of music for children and babies, as well as adults.

Kinderjazz is the big swing band for little kids. The album Swing Right Through This Town was recorded in 1999 and still remains the band’s best seller and a favourite with families. Kinderjazz is dedicated to family entertainment and introducing children from the start to music and the sounds of different instruments. Kinderjazz believes the fresh, snappy improvisations of jazz nurtures a child’s imagination and creativity.

Jazz Lullaby is a sweet, soothing CD to incorporate in your child’s bedtime routine. Some of the world’s most iconic jazz singers will take your little ones into a dreamy slumber – Mel Torme, Ella Fitzgerald, Abbey Lincoln. (Parents may find they fall asleep too if they are having a cuddle with their kids while this is CD is on rotation.)

There are a lot of resources for you to help your kids have fun with numbers and it sets the building blocks for early childhood mathematics. There are so many opportunities all around to have fun with numbers and we have lots on offer at Educational Esteem to help.

Who doesn’t love Bingo? Numbers Bingo is aimed at ages 4 plus and is great to help children learn to count to 20. Bingo is also well-suited to small groups and ideal for learners with disabilities or ESL students. This game, contained in a sturdy storage box, has 36 different playing cards, over 200 chips and a caller’s mat and cards.

Don Spencer’s educational pack features three of Don’s best selling CD’s, Musical Times Tables, Having Fun With Numbers and Musical Alphabet. Don Spencer is one of Australia’s most beloved children’s entertainers and in his tried and true style, brings an Aussie flair to numbers that kids will really enjoy like “5 Kookaburras”, “Tic Toc Rock” and “Rocket Ship Countdown”.

Moving to Math by Dr Pam Schiller combines lively music and activities. This CD can help kids gain important basic knowledge and a solid foundation for math readiness, which will promote confidence and reduce anxiety. Dr Pam is well known around the world for her resources to help preschool children develop their full potential.

Throw a dice and see what number comes up! The game Giant Dice is for ages 5 to 10 and includes 60 counters, 4 collecting boards 2 dice. Perfect for a rainy day game indoors.

Rhyming and Numbers Rumba Fun 2 CD Set from ABC Kids lets your little ones dance up a storm while getting some literacy and numeracy lessons too! The activities are combined with an infectious Latin beat and catchy and funny lyrics. These all works together to reinforce learning for early primary school-age kids. ‘Numbers Rumba’ particularly fun for teaching maths concepts – it’s a sensational mixture of music, numbers, counting and cool Latin rhythms. The songs are so catchy that the album’s bound to be a hit with the kids, and they’ll learn some of the basics of maths and numbers without even trying!

My Friend Mark is a huge hit with kids and parents alike and his Counting Time CD has a special song for every number from one to 10. The “Number Friends’’ help Mark discover the wonderful world of counting! Creator Mark Travers is a respected singer, songwriter and musician whose character My Friend Mark and associated television shows and CDs are a favourite on the Aussie kids’ entertainment scene.

Nothing beats a good family sing-along and these days the choice of music is so varied that there’s plenty to keep kids (and mum and dad!) entertained and having fun. And as parents know only too well, a good selection of music is essential for long car journeys.

Classic Campfire Singalong Collection is a great choice for holidays and car journeys. This ABC Kids collection has 40 of the classics like “ten green bottles”, “kumbaya” , “ten fat sausages”, “Waltzing Matilda” and “row, row, row your boat”.
All-rounder Georgie Parker – actress, Gold Logie-winner, Play School stalwart and now children’s singer – has a lovely collection called Here Comes the Sun, which includes songs that have a special meaning to Georgie like the title track, “Singing in the rain”, “La Bamba” and “You’ve got a friend in me” (Featuring Jay Laga’aia). This is her first solo album and it has proven a hit with families for its relaxed, upbeat feel.
Another Play School favourite Jay Laga’aia is also one of Australia’s most popular children’s entertainers and his second CD I can Play Anything encourages children to sing and dance along with him. All the tracks are written by Jay and are influenced by his Polynesian culture and his love of funk (James Brown, Earth, Wind and Fire) and folk and soul (James Taylor, Bob Marley). This collection is a great one for parties, the car and just having on at home and doing a family dance party.
Movie Magic is a fun collection from ABC Kids full of best-loved tunes from the silver screen. Your kids will love tracks like “Hakuna Matata” (The Lion King), “Be our guest” (Beauty and the Beast), “So long, farewell” (The Sound of Music), “I like to move it” (Madagascar) and “Life is a highway” (Cars). And it’s a pleasant, sing-out-loud selection for adults in the car (it’s one of those CDs that won’t make you too crazy from high rotation!).
A great Australian band for children and families is Lah-Lah and their CD Shake It Like This has fresh, fun tunes to bop along with. Lah-Lah’s five members are drawn from adult bands like popular gypsy group Monsieur Camembert and the bands of James Morrison and Guy Sebastian. The band performs live and has filmed their songs for the Nick Jr television channel. Stand-out tracks are “brush your teeth”, “Lola loves to dance” and “shake it like this”.
Dr Knickerbocker by Mike Jackson is a classic collection for families. Mike performs with The Flying Wombat Band to present this CD of rambunctious, comic songs that have delighted children all over Australia for over 25 years. Dr Knickerbocker is his most requested song and also included on this CD are “I’ll tell me Ma when I get home”, “when Santa got stuck up the chimney” and “me and my teddy bear”.

Paul Adshead is an author and illustrator who weaves magical tales (with an environmental conservation message) about wildlife and adventure in his intricately illustrated books.

Puzzle Island is one of Adshead’s most popular titles (it has sold over one million copies) and is about Ambrose Fogarty, who is doing research on the island. He stumbles upon two animals, a male and a female, of a species that is thought to have been extinct for hundreds of years. Fogarty wants to return the animals to their original habitat. However, he travels on and off the island in a hot air balloon and can only take one of the animals with him. He writes the reader a letter asking for help to relocate the female animal. He is concerned that someone may exploit the animal and has therefore hidden it somewhere on Puzzle Island, leaving clues. In the book are eleven paintings of different locations around the island and in them are hidden the word and picture clues which will lead you to the identity and location of the animal.
Puzzle Island is an engaging way for youngsters to learn the alphabet and he text is rich with information and descriptive imagery that will power along your child’s vocabulary.
Around the World with Phineas Frog is a book and geographical puzzle in one. Travelling frogs Phineas Phineas and his daughter visit different countries of the world and the reader is challenged to identify each place by clues like landmarks, cities and costumes. (Phineas’ daughter likes spending his money on souvenirs at each place they visit.) This story is told in rhyme that makes it accessible and entertaining for all abilities. Suitable for ages eight to 16.
A Peacock on the Roof is the true story of a peacock family that lived in Adshead’s garden. Prince is the peacock of the title. A strange cat frightens Prince’s peachicks up a tree but Prince is too busy trying to get attention to help guard his family. There are extra fun activities to have with this book by exploring the illustrations to find cats and words cleverly hidden in the artwork. There are many educational benefits to this title for ages three to 10 including vocabulary development, visual imagery, discussion on care of animals and birds and extended thinking skills. The story is divided into six chapters and each chapter introduces a new character (a great way to introduce children to the use of chapters).
Similarly, The Chicken Who Could Swim is another tale of birds that live in Adshead’s garden. (He is known as “the man who loved birds’’.) When a ducking is hatched by a chicken, it thinks she is its mother. What will happen when it joins its brothers and sisters in the pond? There are also puzzles of hidden mice and words on every page.
One Odd Old Owl is a charming story about the owl whose snoring keeps a slow, sleepy snail awake. The snail attempts to rally all the birds who come by her tree to help her wake the owl so she can sleep. They clitter-clatter, shout, shriek, screech, squawk, whirr, sing, quack, knock, hammer, chirp, chirrup and cheep… “But One Odd Old Owl continues to sleep”.  Can Princely Peacock wake up that owl?  This book is lots of fun and has puzzles to be solved, including one where the snail (who still can’t sleep!) hides the names of 56 birds and her name too. If you find all the names, you can use them to discover the snail’s secret message.
The Red Herring Mystery introduces children to problem solving in a creative and colourful way (the illustrations are stunning). Adshead gives the reader the role of assistant detective who must gather clues from the text and illustrations to help solve the mystery of a disappearing fish-shaped ruby. Suitable for ages five to adults.
Adshead is world-renowned and loved for his complex and intricately illustrated books and puzzles contained within them.
Any of these titles would make a great gift or Christmas stocking-stuffer.

Christmas in Australia is unique – the flipside of traditional celebrations and traditions in the Northern Hemisphere. Sure, there’s the Christmas carols we know and love as well as turkey, Christmas pudding and all the trimmings but the weather and relaxed atmosphere of an Aussie family Christmas needs some music all of its own.

An Australian Christmas from ABC Kids is full of songs that celebrate the scorching Aussie weather during the festive season. The Christmas songs on this CD all have an Australian flavour to them and features songs such as “Six White Boomers”, “Aussie Jingle Bells”, “Christmas Where The Gum Trees Grow” and “Santa’s Coming On A Surfboard”.
Christmas Fun time by Linda Adamson is part of the incredibly popular Love to Sing range from this Kiwi educator and music lecturer. This pack includes 32-page, highly illustrated book, featuring all the words and actions for each song, a music CD and bonus DVD with selections from the popular New Zealand TV series. Songs included are a mix of traditional and modern with a southern hemisphere flavour (some of the titles are “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”, “Christmas in the Southern Hemisphere”, “A Chubby Little Snowman” and “Pop, Bang, Crack”). Adamson’s Love to Sing range has become a worldwide hit over 20 years with teachers, parents and kids and her songs are played daily on NZ children’s television.
Kids’ Christmas Music by Hilary Henshaw is full of simple but catchy tunes to help the whole family get into the festive holiday spirit. There’s also fun Christmas games (Christmas Box, Thank You, The Giving Game) and dances (Christmas Bush Dance, Chanukah) on the CD that are ideal for school activities or holiday concerts and performances.  Henshaw is an Australian singer, performer and speaker of international renown whose seven-CD collection for children – Growing with Music (of which Kids’ Christmas Music is one) – is one of Australia’s most widely used music resources.
For a funky festive season try Christmas with Jamo, which has plenty of upbeat tunes to get everyone movin’ and groovin’.  “Reindeer On My Roof” and “No Snow” are fun Christmas story-telling songs. Others like “Christmas Time” and “Reindeer’s A ‘rockin’” are guaranteed party starters! Jamo is Paul Jamieson – a Melbourne-based entertainer whose songs are infused with lots or rhythm, reggae, rap and calypso (a nod to his Caribbean heritage).
Peter Combe’s Christmas Album is, in Combe’s own words, “…the realisation of a dream of mine to compose and record a set of new Christmas songs for children and their families…”. The CD features six choirs and will make a wonderful addition to your collection of Christmas music to enjoy with the family. Peter Combe is a beloved children’s performer and musician and this is a must-have CD.
Christmas for Aussie Kids combines the best of traditional and Aussie-flavoured songs. This collection has all your favourites like “Away in a Manger”, “The First Noel” and “Jingle Bell Rock” as well as more modern tunes “Six White Boomers” and “North Wind”.

Merry Christmas from the team at Educational Esteem!