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QUEENS WEEKLY, FEBRUARY 23, 2020
Songs for Seeds brings fi rst early
childhood music education to Qns
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
Songs for Seeds, an early
childhood music program
with a mission to bring “a
little rockin’ a lot of learnin’”
to families and their young
ones, just opened up its first
Queens location in Long Island
City.
Songs for Seeds is a music
education franchise by
Apple Seeds, a children’s
amusement center that first
opened in Manhattan’s Upper
West Side and has various
locations nationwide.
Molly Pfeifer, an early
childhood educator who
taught pre-K for seven
years, said she was looking
to get out of the classroom
and start her own business,
but didn’t know where to
start. After meeting Apple
Seeds and Songs for Seeds’
co-founders, Allison and
Craig Schlanger and Alison
Qualter and Bobby Berna,
she found their franchise
appealing.
Apple Seeds co-founder
Allison Schlanger said Pfeifer
was “weighing the options”
of either opening up
in Williamsburg and Long
Island City, but “ultimately
decided to launch in the
neighborhood she knows
best,” which was Williamsburg
in 2018.
“Soon after her opening,
we got interest in Long
Island City from another
potential owner and Molly
jumped on the opportunity
to secure it for herself,”
Schlanger said.
Pfeifer said she wanted
to bring the class to the LIC
neighborhood after seeing
that there’s a greater need
for more educational resources
as more young families
move in.
“The opportunity came
up to open in Long Island
City, and it was too perfect
to pass up,” she said.
The music class is located
in the Renew Queens building
at 47-20 11th St., and celebrated
its grand opening in
January.
Pfeifer described the
program as “essentially, a
mommy-and-me” class that
is meant to engage children
through musical activities
and lay the foundation of
early childhood education.
The children’s ages range
from newborn to 6 years
old.
Classes are usually once
a week and are about 45
minutes long. They’re led by
a three-piece band and have
various activities, including
“Music of the World,” where
they teach students authentic
Photos courtesy of Songs for Seeds
sounds and languages
from different cultures.
Pfeifer emphasized that
students also learn letters,
numbers and shapes.
“They’re learning so
much just through songs,”
she said. “It’s really cool to
see week after week what
they’re getting.”
Classes run on a monthly
model, and starts whenever
a parents signs up so there’s
no 16-week commitment.
The first class is always
free to try, and $115 per
month afterward. They currently
have a discount, offering
the first month for $90.
Apple Seeds co-founder
Bobby Berna said LIC’s recent
boom in “residential
spaces, shops and restaurants”
and its short commute
to Manhattan make it
the perfect place for a Songs
for Seeds.
“Molly has known this
all along,” Berna said. “We
can’t think of anyone better
than Molly, and her incredible
band of teachers, to introduce
songs for seeds to
this area.”
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