Little Amber is Amber’s innovative music service that aims to enable blind or partially sighted babies and young children to engage with music by providing families and professionals with resources and ideas for music-making.
Little Amber Website & Free Resources
We have created 48 activity cards to help you engage with your child through music. They include sound and video files to guide you along the way.
Resources that can be viewed online or downloaded. These are FREE and open to all families and professionals worldwide.
Visit the Little Amber Website
Example sound files
All join in!
Slowly and quickly
Musical activity cards
In addition to the website we have created 48 printed activity cards to help you engage with your child through music. They include 500 ideas for everyday musical games and activities that every parent of a young, blind or partially sighted child can do. Contact us to buy your own set, only £10.00 plus p&p.
Little Amber Music Awards
Little Amber offers a Music Awards scheme to families in the UK who have a vision impaired child under five, who may also have additional disabilities. Families involved in the scheme receive a set of music activity cards, a set of percussion instruments, and 8 hours of home visits a year from a specially trained Amber music practitioner (organised flexibly between the family and the practitioner).
If we receive more applications than we are able to support we will use waiting lists to manage demand. When we are reviewing applications, we always prioritise children who have a terminal diagnosis / life limiting condition so please make sure you notify us about this at the point of application.
We also prioritise families who demonstrate their willingness to engage fully in the programme, and children from our partner music services areas (currently Southampton & Isle of Wight, Lancashire, Merton, and the Tri-borough Music Hub). We also sometimes prioritise children based on age – this can be very young children or those who are aged four years.
Our Little Amber website and free resources are available to help parents and carers engage their child in music.
If your family currently receives a Little Amber Music Award, this will run until your child’s fifth birthday. Because you already receive support from us you are then eligible to apply for a main Amber Trust Music Award or AmberPlus Award.
The importance of music for babies
Music is particularly important for babies and young children who are visually impaired. Research spearheaded by The Amber Trust has shown that music-making has a positive impact on children’s lives in a way that nothing else does. The benefits include:
- Bonding with parents and carers
- Learning to listen carefully
- Developing language
- Finding out about the world around
- Playing and having fun!
Generously supported by our project sponsors
