This post is part of a sponsored campaign with Giants Are Small and MomSelect. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
As a child, one of my most loved musical stories was Peter and the Wolf. Growing up, I remember the Disney special of Peter and the Wolf and watching it in the classroom at school. It was always such a fun story and I loved the music. I always wanted to see it live on the stage too.
Now that I'm a homeschooling mom, a few months back I introduced Mary to Peter and the Wolf for music one day. I found a well made video online and had her sit down to watch it. But as we did it, we listened for certain instruments that stood for certain characters. It was fun to listen to the story and actually understand it just from the music. What I love about Peter and the Wolf is that the music can tell the story. Even without a video, you can sense what is going on just by listening to it. Mary's favorite character in the story was always Peter. She loved his grand and happy music and constantly sings it around the house. As for me, my favorite was always the Wolf. I loved his ominous music and how it made it seem he was always lurking around.
Since teaching Mary about Peter and the Wolf, we were asked to review an app called Peter and the Wolf in Hollywood. It retells the story but in a modern way, still with the classical music. Since it had peaked my interest about some of the most fun music written for kids, I couldn't wait to write about it.
Set in modern-day Los Angeles, the newly orphaned Peter comes over from Russia to live with his grandpa. Peter and the Wolf in Hollywood begins with the wolf’s escape from the local zoo. To capture the wolf, Peter must build a robot, maneuver his way through a thrilling helicopter chase, and manage some hilarious encounters with several adorably quirky animals. Even though this app has a storyline all its own, it's still true to the classical music and it makes it fun for kids.
The app itself is easy to navigate, letting you be able to start and stop when you want. Plus everything was handmade for the set! And as an added bonus, teachers can download the study guide which includes lots of wonderful lessons for kids on Peter and the Wolf.
Overall this app is a great way to show kids how amazing classical music is in a modern way they love.
If I've peaked your interest, you can download the app for iTunes here.
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