I placed my initial review because, I have been fortunate enough to have tried three different MT programs to date in the Ann Arbor area and therefore, felt that people would benefit from reading the pros/cons between them. If I hadn't taken those other classes (with other teachers), then I might have walked away from the Music Together classes you provided with a much more positive feeling. However, it is only because, I have had the benefit of experiencing other MT teachers that I knew how great they could be and what was lacking in the class you provided. You as the teacher might feel that 12 children (plus all the parents) in a room is not over-crowded and uncomfortable. I as the customer disagree. I know several other Moms also felt the same way, as we complained about it together. It may be that the class was within MT guidelines, yet that doesn't change the fact that I and several other Moms felt that the class was overcrowded to the point were it was uncomfortable to be there. The other two locations and the other 7 MT sessions that I have taken with other teachers in Ann Arbor, have limited their class sizes to 6-8 families in approximately, the same classroom space. It may be that the MT guidelines, only recommend using props two times in a class session however, I know from experience that the children are more engaged and have more fun in a class that has more variety and more props used. Every single class I attended, in which you were the teacher, I witnessed children trying to leave the room repeatedly and walking aimlessly around the perimeter of the classroom getting into things and just not engaged in the class and bored. I have not witnessed this lack of child participation in the other classes that I attended with other teachers. Regarding your song list, you are being disingenuous when you list that those are the songs that you played and then also include "world music". You and I both know that the songs you chose were written for adult entertainment and NOT for children. Regardless, or not if we disagree that they are appropriate songs or not...my original complaint still stands in that, I paid almost $200 to take a MT class so that we could listen to MT songs during the class. I have my own radio at home and could easily get together a group of children and play songs off of it for them for FREE. I appreciate your response regarding how much time/energy you put into your classes. I'm sure they do take a lot of work to put together. Again, if it were not for my experiences taking classes with other teachers; I might have walked away from your classes with a more positive impression. I do however, find it troubling that in your comment you state that you have been teaching in Ann Arbor for over 6 yrs. Yet, I am the first Yelp reviewer and only upon my leaving this Yelp review, do 5-star Yelp reviews suddenly pop up on here (just check the dates....all those positive reviews are after my initial review). Over 700 families have taken your classes in Ann Arbor, and yet not a single person came on here and left you good feedback...that in itself should have been a signal to you that something was wrong. I also suspect that they are not genuine reviews because, those other reviewers all ONLY reviewed Robinsong. I'm concerned that you contacted your friends and goaded them into opening a Yelp account so they could leave you 5-star reviews. That is so insincere. I left honest feedback. I hope you take some of it into account because, I am not the only parent that felt this way. read more

We absolutely LOVE this class. I have been taking my 3 young children since the baby was just a few months old, and it is the highlight of the week. My 2 1/2 year old twins love Robin and have a blast singing and dancing along to the songs. I know the music together is taught elsewhere, but Robin is by far the best. Her passion for music and children is shown every class, and she always takes care to make each child feel special. She even offers a FREE demo class at the start if each semester so new families can try the class before signing up. If you have young children, music is such an important gift to give them, and Robin is the best teacher around! read more

Our family has been with Robin for Music Together for two years now. My three year old asks for music class everyday. Both my one year old and three year old are engaged, singing and dancing at every class. It is my favorite night of the week. Robin offers tons of class times. We usually opt for the evening class that is a little larger but has a wonderful group of parents and kids. Her daytime and weekend classes are a little smaller, which is nice if you need a change of pace for a session. My daughters love the shakers, sticks and instruments. They thrive on the consistency of class structure. Her props, activities and songs vary from week to week, but Robin skillfully creates a structure that is predictable so the girls feel comfortable every class. Finally, as a parent, I love the consistency and joy of music that Robin brings to every single class. Even when we have a tough week (or two or three), we can always count on Robin to be upbeat, cheerful and willing to share her energy and talent. We sign up every session and would never dream of missing one! read more

My 2.5-year-old daughter and I have taken several of Robin's Music Together classes, and I just finished registering for another. We actually started with MT in the babies class back in Minnesota, so we have experience with two different programs and 6+ different teachers. Robin is one of the best instructors we have experienced during our time with MT, and my daughter has a major girl-crush on her. :) In regards to one of the other reviews here: No, she is not a personal friend of mine. Yes, I have reviewed more than just this company. No, she has never asked any of the classes I have been a part of to write 5-star reviews on her behalf. I think it's ridiculous to assume that just because a company initially has no reviews means that nobody likes them. In my case, I'm mostly positive and do feel the need to "stick up" for her and her classes. Robin is very good and patient with all of the kids. She's very warm and respectful towards them. She'll even grab a baby during free dance so a parent can play with their older child exclusively. It's a thoughtful and appreciated gesture. The class contains mostly MT music from the prescribed session, and Robin also mixes in world and popular music during free dance and free instrument play. This was done in our MN classes as well, and I love it. I suppose if you find an occasional Prince or Beatles song to be a waste of your money, find another class. That was snarky, but seriously...during a single session of MT you hear these songs plenty with Robin in class and plenty more at home or in the car. Listening to something different for a song or two opens your child up to new sounds, beats, instruments, and experiences. And, vice versa, you can listen to the MT music with the CD, download code, free app, and via the MT station on Pandora. I don't see a problem with mixing it up everywhere. As props, we have had scarves, bells, sticks, shakers, balls, drums, kitchen utensils, and instruments, which is comparable to MN. Most early child education classes I've been involved with stress simplicity and repetition in a child's experiences. We use most of these items at home for music play too, so it's not very exciting for me, but my daughter still gets excited by them every time. This may change as time goes on and she gets older, but we're probably on our 6th or 7th MT class overall and she's still into it. Kids thrive on things of a repetitive nature where they can improve their skills. It's been so fun to watch her grow from chewing on a shaker to tapping rhythm patterns and asking me to do call/answer exercises. She also enjoys the hand gestures and dances just as much, if not more. My primary issue with Robinsongs classes is the class size, which I know has been mentioned in another review and Robin did respond to it already. Tonight was our last class of the current session, and I counted 15 kids and 16 adults. Technically, the classroom we're in is big enough for everyone. In reality, it's just too many people. I've found the daytime classes to be smaller and usually have only one adult per child, while the evening classes are more crowded because multiple parents or grandparents are able to attend (as is the case with our family). Whether there are 15 people or 31 people, the number of shakers or instruments are the same. My daughter happens to be an instrument grazer...you know the type. ;) There's far less freedom of change and movement with such a crowded class. While all adults and children might have two shakers (or whatever) each during the day, we're often limited to one or none in the evening. Also, it's just difficult to manage that many people and stay on task without running into or stepping over each other. I feel like Robin has to do more very loud talking to try and keep everyone with her during the evening class. In our classes in Minnesota, I can't remember ever seeing more than about 8 or 10 students in a class. It may be an economy of scale issue - our program in MN had many locations, teachers, and class options. It is easier for a larger organization to cut class sizes and add another class to make up the financial losses. It would be more difficult for Robin to do the same, which I understand. I believe that she was offering two weekday evening classes before and combined them this session (which we were in), and that's the primary reason we're switching back to a daytime class. It's just too much for us to handle and my girl explores and participates more in a smaller class. This ended up way long, but I felt that Robinsongs and Robin warranted it. I think Robin is friendly, patient, enthusiastic, and tries very hard to make these classes great for everyone. I also realize they might not be ideal for every family. Robin does occasional classes at the library, or just email her and ask to sit in on one if you want to give it a try (I'm not sure she actually does that, it is just a suggestion). I hope you'll enjoy them as much as we do! read more

We love Robin's music together class! We have 2 young children and have been going since our oldest was 6 months old. We look forward to it every week! We love Robin's energy and musical talent. Robin provides props and musical instruments for everyone to play. She also gives great ideas to implement the music during our every day routines (using household items as instruments, changing the lyrics, simple hand gestures that even infants can imitate!). We appreciate her creative interpretations of the music together songs and have fun free-style dancing! Her class is somewhat structured which provides predictability and fosters learning for our little ones. Our kids love the music and admittedly we enjoy most of the songs too! I have and will continue to recommend Robin's class! She even performed at our son's 2 year old birthday party...big hit for all the kids...young and old! read more

My son loves it and really looks forward to going to class. The sessions are an hour long which is perfect. Her teaching style is fun and laid back, ideal for my four year old. I highly recommend this class read more

We have taken Music Together with Robin since our older child was an infant, and now he is nearly 3 and accompanied by his baby sister. Robin is so obviously passionate about music and working with children- she always has great energy and enthusiasm but structures the class as well, so that the kids (and adults) know what to expect. She is always sure to emphasize that the children should be free to do whatever it is they do in response to the music, and our son has loved going to class each week. He loves the variety of music and sings the songs (new and very old!) from class all of the time, adding his own twists and doing what Robin does and doing a rhythm pattern for us to repeat :) He looks forward to each week and tries to guess which special instruments she will have that day (big drums, balls, bells, rhythm sticks, scarves, egg shakers etc.) and has also clearly benefited and enjoyed having the other families and kids in class with him, bonding with many of them. Robin is a fantastic teacher and we would highly recommend her class! read more

Robin is a gifted educator, who brings enthusiasm and an easygoing attitude to each class. I first enrolled in Music Together classes with Robinsongs for Kids when my daughter had just turned 1, and we've continued in Robin's classes for nearly four years. I never thought we'd stay so long, but I have been immensely impressed with my daughter's developing enthusiasm for music and so appreciative of Robin's gift for teaching and inspiring young people and their parents. As a long-time teacher of dance and creative movement for children, I am a somewhat critical reviewer, and I've been absolutely satisfied with all aspects of Robin's work. She does an exceptional job of setting limits and expectations to contain the energy of the group and to ensure everyone gets the most out of her classes. She does a great job breaking down important musical concepts when needed and gives children many many opportunities to express themselves creatively, with free dancing, play-alongs, and all kinds of guided activities. We are constantly up and moving, and each week and class bring something new to my own experience, so that even as an adult going into my 12th season of Music Together with Robinsongs for Kids, I look forward to each week and am never bored. Enroll your baby, toddler, or preschooler today! You will not regret a season or a childhood spent with Robin! read more