World Music Day: My Journey with Music and Its Place at Papagoya

As a child, music was always in the air. My ajji’s lullabies made me feel safe. I still remember the exact tune my papa would whistle during long car rides, the way it felt like everything would be okay as long as that sound carried through the air. Music isn’t just a background score; it is memory, emotion, and atmosphere.

As I grew older, music quietly became my companion. I would hum before my school and college exams, and sometimes I’d just dance around my room and it helped me feel like myself again. Music didn’t need to be perfect, it just needed to be there. Present. Familiar. Reassuring.

Now, as an Early Childhood Educator at Papagoya, I find myself returning to music in a new way, not just as something personal, but as something I get to share. Music is one of the most beautiful, powerful languages we offer children — a way to help them navigate their day, express what words can’t yet capture, and connect with each other and the world around them.

Why Music Feels So Right in the Early Years

Research aside, and there is plenty, but what stays with me most is what I see each day: music helps children grow. It supports their language, gives shape to big feelings, and helps them feel seen, heard, and safe. Especially in the early years, when words are still finding their way, music often becomes their voice.

A tambourine, maraca or drum isn’t just an instrument, it’s a tool for coordination, for learning to wait your turn, for shared joy. Singing together? That’s belonging. That’s community.

How We Hold Space for Music at Papagoya

At Papagoya, inspired by the values of the Norwegian pedagogy, music isn’t a special-occasion activity. It’s woven into our everyday rhythm. It meets children where they are, whether that’s in stillness, movement, joy, or transition.

1. We play music at drop-off every morning. On teary or hesitant mornings, it brings warmth. Sometimes, it’s a soft tune that helps a child feel safe enough to let go of a parent’s hand, and other times, it’s a cheerful, familiar song that brings a smile and the courage to walk through the gates.

   
   

2. After high-energy play or emotional moments, we turn to soft instrumental music or nature sounds. Music becomes a way to help children settle in, breathe, and centre themselves.
   

3. Our Friday music and movement sessions are some of the most joyful parts of our week. Children move with abandon, twirling, stomping, swaying, giggling to familiar songs.
   

4. From as early as age one, songs help children begin to understand space, shape, and quantity, almost effortlessly. Through playful rhythms and repetition, counting becomes second nature. Songs like The Ants Go Marching get them counting forward, Climb Aboard the Spaceship introduces backward counting, and rhymes like Akkad Bakkad Bambe Bo and Jana Jana spark early ideas around currency and value, all through music that moves with them.
   

5. At Papagoya, we explore themes over three months, and music plays a thoughtful role in deepening that journey. This month, we're exploring ‘My Amazing Body’, and songs like Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes, Dem Bones, Every Little Cell in My Body, and Do You Know the Muscle Man? have been helping children identify and understand different parts of their bodies in playful, memorable ways. We’ve also been singing True Colors by Cyndi Lauper, a beautiful reminder for children to embrace who they are, just as they are.
   

6. As children grow, so does their curiosity, not just about the tune, but about the meaning behind the music. I remember singing songs as they were, never really wondering what they meant. But the children ask. They pause at every word, wondering who wrote it, what they were feeling, what the song is trying to say. It’s beautiful to watch them empathise with the singer, share in their joy, and find meaning in the music.

We sing together with the children everyday, sometimes old favourites, sometimes new ones, sometimes in foreign languages. A very special moment recently was when we sang “Jana Jana Jana Jebu Tumba Hana” with the children. I hadn’t heard that Kannada poem since the first standard. I was instantly transported to my own classroom, sitting cross-legged on the floor, reciting it aloud with my classmates. And now, years later, I was singing it to my children at Papagoya. It felt like time folding in on itself. That’s the power of music,  it travels gently through generations. 

This World Music Day, I find myself reflecting not just on the songs I love to listen to or sing, but on the quieter moments, the ones I get to witness every day. A child gently shaking a tambourine with complete focus, the hush that follows a soft lullaby, a small group dancing freely to their own rhythm, and familiar tunes that make a child feel safe enough to feel all that they may be feeling.

At Papagoya, music is a feeling. It’s how we land, how we move, how we connect. And for me, it’s a reminder of where I come from, experiences I would like to bring to the children, and the kind of teacher I want to be.

About the Author:

Anjana is a passionate educator who finds genuine joy in being around young children and noticing how music naturally becomes a part of their day, whether it’s a familiar tune, a simple beat, or a spontaneous song. With an MSc in Human Development and Family Studies, she brings her warmth and curiosity to her role as a Playmaker at Papagoya, spending her days with the ever-curious 1–3 year-olds. You’ll often find her humming a lullaby, tapping along to a beat, or turning small everyday moments into shared musical ones. For Anjana, music is one of the simplest and happiest ways to connect with children.