May 15, 2017

Meet Cathy Shapiro of Little Movers and Shakers in Sherman Oaks and San Fernando Valley

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Cathy Shapiro.

Cathy, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
In 2008, I had a full-time job developing training for Paper Source, a company based in Chicago, and opening up stores around the country. I LOVED the job, it’s challenges and the extensive travel. My husband and I were in the process of adopting a baby, and in my naiveté, I thought I would keep the job once I was a Mom. But, then Carter was born. And my life, as with any new parent, changed overnight. I couldn’t bear to leave him to travel and didn’t want to miss out on this quickly fleeting time with him.

One of the best things that I did during that time was taking Mommy and Me classes, which helped me to connect to other young families and navigate the ins and outs of being a parent. Funnily enough, I literally could not stand the first music class that we took. The music was awful, the activities seemed contrived and rote and I counted down the minutes until it was over. (If you asked me then if I thought that this would be my life’s passion, I would have never believed it!!).

We switched to a music class that was a better program (although the music was still pretty meh) but, with a wonderful teacher. One day she told me that I would be really good at this job and asked if I wanted to work for her. It was a great job for a mom, (as you are almost always done before school pick up!) plus I was a singer and a musician, and have an affinity for working with children. (I had been a preschool teacher years earlier, and just LOVE kids!). So, I took the training required for that program, just dove in and started the next day (and loved it). I remember the night before the training still feeling like it was a pretty dorky thing to do, but what did I have to lose?

Within the year (at the end of 2010), I decided to break out on my own. My intention was to open up a studio for this same program. (almost like a franchise) even though I still wasn’t in love with the music itself (and corporate-ness of the situation was not very me). While waiting for the paperwork to go through, and to keep my teaching chops up, as well as begin to build my own clientele, I rented a dance studio and offered free classes to friends. I had a donation box out, with the hopes of just covering the cost of the studio rental. (about $20). I used actually great music, and started playing around with other ideas outside of what that program was doing. The feedback was that what I was doing was dynamic, innovative, more fun, and my friends encouraged me to do it my own way. And so, I did!

I couldn’t be more passionate about this great job! My approach to teaching is engaging as possible. We incorporate a lot of imaginative play, game-playing, interactive stories, and always working with really good music that doesn’t dumb it down just because the audience might be young. I have had a blast studying many music-teaching pedagogies (mainly geared towards elementary-aged children and re-thinking the approach to make it developmentally appropriate for early childhood). I continually take workshops from incredible mentors from around the world, so am constantly incorporating new ideas to the program.

Little Movers and Shakers grew in an organic way that I didn’t expect! I think that my passion for what I was doing, how much I cared about my clientele, and the freedom of doing it my own way, was contagious. Families loved it, word spread, we won a couple of awards, and the business was born. We rented a regular space in Sherman Oaks, offered our classes as enrichments at a number of childcare centers and preschools and by the Summer of 2014, I was in a number of schools, and our Mommy and Me program, which could fit a maximum of 120 children was not only full, but had a waiting list of 105 children. I couldn’t keep up with even the emails. It was time to hire teachers and an assistant and let Little Movers and Shakers grow.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We have definitely had some growing pains!! There was trial and error to maintain the personal experience that families have always had and loved with us, while getting bigger. We needed to adjust to new technologies as well, so the sweetness of everything being done sort of “the old-fashioned way”, shifted as we move towards more and more online management. Our more seasoned clients miss the casualness of those early years.

There was also a shift as we brought in new teachers. Now we have a couple of incredible and talented teachers who are kid-magnets, but in the beginning, there was one or two that just didn’t have that same magic or passion. We had to figure out what to look for when we hired! I assumed that hiring staff would lessen my load, but it changed it to now include managing people as well! Don’t get me wrong- I LOVE and so respect our team, but my role has changed significantly as I continually develop training for them for the program. (Luckily for me, I’ve worn this training hat before!).

Because our classes were all so full, we really pulled back on our marketing, trusting in word of mouth to keep our numbers up, as well as trusting in the quality of the product that we are delivering! But, we are just now re-thinking that plan as families grow out of the program, new businesses are being developed who are being much more aggressive in their marking (even if their classes are not nearly as innovative as ours) and demographics of the area change (even slightly!).

One of the biggest challenges in Los Angeles is finding a space with parking! And thinking about families carrying babies with diaper bags and a toddler in tow made this one of my priorities! So, we rent from a church which is an amazing location. It is easy to get to, near lots of young families, has beautiful grounds that kids can run around and picnic on, has a preschool so lots of events for children that we can be a part of, and LOTS of parking! But, there are a few issues renting from the church. The property is large and the grounds extensive, and without a lot of money in their coffers, maintenance has, at times, been an issue. The solution for them has been to rent out the property as an entertainment location. So, now maintenance is improving, but we are often inconvenienced. Our relationship over the years has been a work in progress, but in the end, it is our home, and we love them, and they us, faults and all!

Little Movers and Shakers – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Little Movers and Shakers is an early childhood music program. We have a Parent and Me program as well as enrichment program for preschools and childcare centers generally working with children from infant to 5 years old.

Our deepest pride is our connection and love for the children and families that take our classes.

We are very proud of the creativity of the program! Little Movers and Shakers is highly participatory, and engages in music in a way that connects deeply for children. We are silly and fun, but delve into some real meaty music creating an experience that allows children to connect with it in a way that they wouldn’t otherwise. For example, one of our recent lessons incorporated a style of West African music from Ghana called Kpanlogo. Kpanlogo layers complicated rhythm patterns played on different percussion instruments- something that seems challenging at the least to bring to young children. We chose a handful of the rhythm patterns, taught them to the children through chants and funny sayings that we made up and as a way in for them, and were blown away at how well the kids not only did, but how much they enjoyed it!! Another example is “chicken cup notation”, which is teaching music notation through associating different sized cups with chicken sounds, creating a composition and acting it out. It is good fun and we try new things like this all of the time!

We also do a lot of songs incorporating pretend play, which is an “in” for pretty much every young child, and by doing something like sweeping the floor with a real push broom to a specific rhythm and tempo, or building an imaginary treehouse with hammers, etc., the kids are experiencing that rhythm and meter and beat in their bodies without even realizing it and having a blast while doing it! (And parents love nothing more than to see their child loving what they are doing while learning!)

Another stand out for Little Movers and Shakers is our carefully curated and extremely eclectic and listenable music- from Klezmer to Irish jigs, waltzes to mazurkas, folk songs to unusual time signatures-everyone is exposed to and engaging with very high quality music from all different genres. And again, deeply thoughtful music theory concepts are explored and presented in a developmentally appropriate and fun way.

We strive to have incredible customer service. We know that one of the reasons that we saw success early on, was the connection that we made to our families. We hope that we are continuing to make those bonds!

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
There is almost nowhere that I go in the general SoCal area that I am not recognized as “Miss Cathy” and am met with such love and affection. I am regaled with countless stories about the positive impact that I have made on their children and that they still listen to and love our music!

My son was attending a school that had a number of children who had been in my classes. During their Winter Show, I noticed that every single one of those particular children was a stand out on the stage. Their self-confidence was apparent, their timing, their musicality, but beyond all of that, the joy that showed while making music was so obvious, I think that my heart grew 3x its size! And almost every parent pulled me aside to let me know that that joy and love for music, as well as even overcoming stage fright and shyness was because of me!

Pricing:

A parent and me session runs from $160-$200, depending on the length of the session. They offer early bird specials, referral credits, deep discounts for siblings, and keep your eyes out for flash sales for lower tuition prices.
Childcare centers and preschool prices vary depending on the amount of children and classes, but our general scale is $100 daily set up fee plus a maximum of $75 per class (the amount per class goes down the more classes we teach)
Birthday parties for up to 45 minutes of interactive music current rate $175

Contact Info: