WELCOME TO TUNEBUGZ!

_____ First thing's first - Please whitelist [email protected].  Add tunebugz and Amber Nichols (Director & Registrar) as a 'safe sender'.  We need to be able to reach you throughout your enrollment! 

 

_____Next thing -  Get the Music Together app and put it on your phones, tablets, and kid friendly devices so you can stream your music from the Music Together app wherever you are!  You cannot get the collections of songs we will be studying on Spotify or other streaming services, you have to get the Music Together app first (then you can download the songs and use them on other apps if you want.) There are 8 songs pre-loaded in the free app but you will also need to unlock the current song collection with the code we provide through email and in the Parent Portal. Please load the app,  get the access code and start listening to your songs at home! Make sure you share your Music Together app login/pw with family members who will be supporting your child's music education journey. Everyone in your family can support your musical child by playing the songs for your child in the car, waiting in grocery line, while at the park, at the doc office, on road trips or plane trips... ! Everyone can use YOUR same login/pw for the Music Together app and everyone who spends time with your child can be singing your child's fav songs to increase their musical growth! The more supported your child is - the more they will grow musically.   All the popular streaming apps have some free Music Together intro songs and lullabys but there are actually 9 different song collections with around 28 unique songs in each collection.  So,  it's important to get the MARACAS 2026 version song collection by using the access code we give you.  

 

______Next, head over and check out each of the tabs on our parent communication hub we call the Parent Portal. The tuneBugz! account Parent Portal is the admin account you set up when you first registered online. You can get to it from our website 24/7.  www.tunebugz.com/portal.aspx. The Parent Portal is where you'll update contact info, mark absences, update payment/credit card info, add class participants (like a nanny, additional parent or a grandparent), make payments, check your schedule to see if we are meeting on holidays etc, schedule your make-ups, verify the location of your class and opt into receiving texts (super important!). Everything admin-wise is in the Parent Portal and it's so so so important especially if you are not on social media or if you tend to get behind with checking/reading emails.   

 

_____Start listening to your songs:  Your MUSIC ACCESS CODE will be loaded up in the Parent Portal about a week or so before your class begins.  Your beautifully illustrated full color songbook will be handed out on the first day of class and the songbook also has your music access code printed on the inside front cover. PLEASE PLEASE listen to the songs ahead of time to get ready to SING with your child from the FIRST DAY! All of our teachers do expect parents and ESPECIALLY nannies and caregivers to come to class ready to make music, sing, dance and play instruments along with the children. It's important to communicate to caregivers that we have HIGH PARTICIPATION expectation!  Please make sure anyone coming to class understands this IMPORTANT and CRITICAL information. There are no bystanders in our classes! Your child becomes intrinsically motivated for music making and develops a disposition for music making from watching whomever you are sending to class.  

_____Family Music Zone (online/desktop/browser based access): If your phone is on the fritz or you just need an alternative way to access your music collections, you can get to all your music on the Family Music Zone online at www.musictogether.com/familymusiczone. (use your same login/pw as the Music Together app - not the tuneBugz!/Parent Portal login/pw)

 

_____GET SOCIAL WTH US! Please follow us on IG: @tunebugz for music education support, amazing and hilarious musical memes, and lots of information to deepen your understanding of how music learning unfolds in the very young (babies, toddlers and big kids) and support your parenting journey with joy, fun and silliness.  We have great suggestions on fun musical things to do in Austin curated by our amazing social media wizard Ms. Syndey! 

 

_____READ the Purple Book provided in your materials packet (or access the PDF of the Purple Book from the app resources). We provide his 'textbook for new parents' when you first join but extra copies are always available. If you lost yours - just always ask for another one or simply access the PDF on the Music Together app. The book is called ‘Music and Your Child, a Guide for Parents and Caregivers’ and it helps you to understand the why/what/how of social music making and the methodology/philosophy that guides all that we do here at tuneBugz!   

 

_____COME TO CLASS - Coming to class and being consistent with attendance is important and it's your responsibility. Your classes are use or lose. Makeups are unlimited as long as you are actively enrolled. No makeups are available if you are not currently enrolled. You cannot attend makeups if you are on a break/frozen or enrollment is paused. 

 

____ABSENCES/MAKEUPS - If you know you are going to miss a class in advance, go ahead and head over to your schedule in the Parent Portal and mark yourself absent this opens up your spot so another family can do a makeup in your absence. Nice right? Courtesy and compassion are alive and well at tuneBugz! Feel free to pre-mark any vacay/doc appt absences you know about in advance and go ahead and schedule any makeups you might need.  If you schedule makeups and you are not going to be able to make it - please go back into the Parent Portal and cancel your makeup.  

 

_____MATERIALS/INSTRUMENTS:  We provide all the materials/instruments to use in class but, your child's voice and body are the most important instruments they will learn to use. Our primary focus is singing/sounding/chanting and moving our bodies to the beat through creative movement and our world famous light choreography!  All external instruments are secondary to singing and moving our bodies to the beat as this is the most effective teaching / learning strategy for children to learn music as a 2nd language at this young age/stage.  Immersion and experiential learning with their own voice/body is primary however, we do also use accessible instruments that are developmentally appropriate to illustrate melody contours and to make rhythm visible. 

 

_____NO TOYS/ NO FOOD!!!: Please DO NOT bring food into class, food is NOT allowed. Please do not bring toys, stuffies or other personal items into the class as other children will want them - and they don't have impulse control in check yet. We ask this to avoid confusion and struggles when other children want to play with those toys too. We are here to make music! Come into the room as empty handed as possible ready to sing, dance and get silly with us! 

 

_____APPRENTICES/TEACHER'S ASSISTANTS: We are constantly searching for apprentice teachers to train in the tuneBugz! tradition of teaching Music Together so, classes will often have a main teacher and an apprentice/helper in the class that may also sub the class if/when a teacher is ill or needs to be out. The main teacher and apprentice may take turns presenting. All apprentice teachers are trained in music and early childhood education but they may need practice in a loving environment (for nerves!) to present songs for the first time and get to know our families so we invite our newly trained teachers to do practicums to get acclimated to teaching on their own. Thank you for welcoming them with love, support and compassion and helping them out by knowing your music and singing and participating to the fullest! 

 

_____SHARE THE LOVE! We have a "Give $25 to get $25" referral program.   You will find your personal $25 off referral code in the Parent Portal on the main ACCOUNT tab at the bottom.  Every time your code or link is used by a new family who registers you will get a $25 tuition credit auto-magically placed on your account. CHA-CHING! There's no limit on how credit you can rack up! Please use friend referrals by sharing the joy of tuneBugz! with everyone you meet and never pay full price again!  We also really appreciate you using your codes in your public reviews and social posts too. Please help us by posting about class on social media, on Nextdoor and please invite your friends from playgroups to join you at tuneBugz! and offer them your discount! We love when you post reviews with your referral code IN THE REVIEW on Facebook, Google and Yelp!

 

_____ASK QUESTIONS  Our teachers and staff are always working to make sure you have a great time here! It's literally the whole point! :) The key to a joyful experience is to advocate for yourself and let us know your expectations and needs along the way. Don't wait! We want you to be highly communicative and the best way to reach out to us with questions is to text me : Amber Nichols at 512-632-6695 Or email me: [email protected].  You are always encouraged to talk with your teacher as well. Please don't let anything you are unhappy or worried about linger, please give us a chance to address things, increase your  understanding and support you! Your happiness here is our top priority! 

 

_____MAKE MUSIC AT HOME! Please, as a proud Austin, Texas family, make it a point to do something musical for 20 to 30 mins every . single . day! Have a kitchen dance party, sing or blast your songs from the app while in the bathtub, sing in line at the grocery store, sing on every road trip even if it's just across town. BURST INTO SONG anytime it crosses your mind. Your home life being musical matters so much to your child! Now that you are tuneBugz!, your life should be full of singing that's why we're teaching you all these awesome songs! Another great thing to do is go out and support live music, go out and see performing artists all over Austin and surrounding Hill Country. There are so many wonderful and amazing musicians here! Please get your child out in the commmunity and experience music, participate in music and value the music being made right here in Austin, Tx!