Mommy and me classes, also known as parent and child classes or caregiver and child classes, allow you to spend time with your young children while playing games, singing songs, and learning new things. You can attend parent and child classes that focus on music, exercise, dance, science, and many more themes. These classes have you bonding with your child, watching them have fun, meeting new friends, and helping your child develop important skills. Here are six mommy and me classes around the Mesa, Arizona, area you should consider taking your baby or toddler to.

Music Together Phoenix

Image via Flickr by shixart1985 Licensed Under CC BY 2.0

Music Together is a music-focused parent and child class program where your children get to play age-appropriate instruments, learn the foundations of music, and improve key developmental skills in communication, creativity, critical thinking, movement, and more. What’s more, Music Together Phoenix now offers classes both in-person at local dance studios and music schools and virtually. 

There are classes for every age group, from babies and toddlers to preschoolers and elementary-aged kids. In the Babies classes, you can expect to sing nursery rhymes, learn new songs, discover ways to use music and movement to soothe your baby, and find new musical activities to play with your baby at home. 

The toddler and preschooler classes involve playing age-appropriate instruments, learning basic rhythms, singing songs, and playing games that involve interacting with other students. Older children may start to learn more complex foundations of music, including note recognition, reading music, harmonies, and playing instruments.

Baby Parent Steps

Baby Parent Steps specializes in baby classes that use the PEKiP methodology. PEKiP is the abbreviation of the German phrase “Prager Eltern Kind Programm,” which means Prague Parent Child Program. This program has been around for over 40 years and is designed to provide sensory stimulation that promotes healthy physical, intellectual, and psychological development. 

At Baby Parent Steps, you experience small class sizes, which promotes connection between parent and child as well as instructors and students. During your series of classes, you learn proper child handling techniques that promote healthy movement, progressive activities for each developmental stage, and ways to address your infant’s needs. Plus, classes are grouped based on age, such as babies 1 to 3 months old, 4 to 6 months old, and 7 to 12 months old.

Arizona Sunrays Gymnastics & Dance Center

Arizona Sunrays Gymnastics & Dance Center offers parent and child classes for kids as young as 16 months old up to 3 years old. There are two locations in Phoenix that have their own schedule of classes, including the following two mommy and me classes. 

The Twistin’ Tots class has you and your tot completing fun and simple gymnastics moves. Your child develops their fine and gross motor skills through jumping, rolling, and running, and they even learn to wait their turn, follow directions, and collaborate with others. The Twinkle 2’s class is a dance-focused class where you and your toddler use props, sing songs, and learn simple routines. It’s a great setting for creative movement that improves motor skills, allows for self-expression, and boosts confidence.

Gymboree Play & Music

Gymboree Play & Music is a child education destination that hosts unique, fun parent and child classes. You can take classes with a focus on a certain theme, like music, art, and movement. For example, there are music classes for nearly every age group, art classes for kiddos who are a little bit older, and movement-based classes like Crawlers for babies and Runners for toddlers. They also host family classes where a second parent or caregiver can join and siblings in different age groups can play together. Sign up for a Family Music, Family Art, or Family Play class. 

With the exception of the family classes, all classes are split up by age group. Kids as young as newborns and as old as 5 years old can join an age-appropriate class. Classes for infants and younger toddlers have more parental involvement, and classes for older toddlers and preschool-aged kids may focus more on helping them prepare for school without parents and caregivers by their side.

Hubbard Family Swim School

Hubbard Family Swim School provides fun, interactive swim lessons for babies, toddlers, and children. Their classes cover multiple weeks so that the skills, especially life-saving ones, students learn each week are reinforced and become second nature. In addition, you also get time to bond with your baby, and you both get some good exercise, too.

The Baby Splash class is for babies who are 2 to 5 months old, and it has you holding your infant so they can get used to being in the water. Both you and your baby can start to learn basic lifesaving techniques, too. In the Little Snapper class for babies 6 to 35 months old, you help your child learn how to flip themselves onto their backs and float, an important lifesaving measure to know. 

The Little Gym

The Little Gym is an educational play place that combines exercise, play, and gymnastics under one roof. This place offers parent and child classes for kids aged 4 months old to 3 years old, and every class is split based on age group and age-appropriate activities that challenge and improve key developmental skills for each stage. 

The Bugs class is for kids ages 4 to 10 months old, and it involves a variety of movement-based activities that promote physical and social development. The Birds class is for kiddos aged 10 months to 19 months old, and they get to walk and run around the mats, safely climb on structures, use props to play games, communicate, and improve coordination. 

The Beasts class is for kids 19 months old to 2.5 years old, and it’s in this class where kids can run, climb, and explore a bit more on their own without their parents. But, there are still plenty of opportunities for games and activities where parents are involved. The Beasts/Super Beasts class is a mixed ages class that offers even more independence from parents but still has partnered activities that focus on listening to directions and practicing patience.

Mommy and Me classes are great options to spend time with your child during the day. When you need a high-quality daycare, preschool, or before- and afterschool program, choose Crème de la Crème of Mesa. Contact us to learn more about how our whole-child curriculum can help your child thrive.