Meet Anastasia, also Known as "Lala", from the Children's Band, Sunny Train!
Once Upon A Ballet Certified Teacher Anastasia Jankowski (known by her students as LaLa) knows a thing or two about creativity. She’s a musician and leads a children’s band. She’s also a children’s music, yoga, and movement instructor.
Her children’s band, Sunny Train, is rooted in imagination and creative thinking. Sunny Train concerts are an opportunity to shake eggs, bang on drums, twirl hula hoops, explore yoga poses, or play with the world’s biggest bubbles. LaLa, her husband, and a number of other Connecticut musicians are members of this interactive music group and provide entertainment for kids and grownups alike, performing at schools, festivals, libraries, birthday parties, and more. “I’ve figured out this way to bring the joy of really good music [to children]. The band are all professional musicians, so the level of musicality is really fun.”
Alongside Sunny Train, LaLa is a Music Together teacher and yoga/mindfulness educator. “I spent my childhood in dance classes, and I knew I wanted to be a performer on some level,” LaLa reflects. Discovering her passion for dancing, singing, and musical theatre early on, she embarked on a journey of exploring the arts and putting them together by developing what is now Sunny Train. As a Music Together teacher, LaLa works with students from birth to five years old. She’s taught these Music Together classes in studios and schools, currently working with a majority of pre-K kids and kindergartners. “It's parent child work, so I work with a lot of parents and kids together. That piece is so special, it's really beautiful.”
Having been through the OUB Certified Teacher Training, LaLa reflects that “the training and certification sparked my world so much.” When we asked what she enjoyed most about the training, she told us: “I actually loved everything about it, it was a really great experience. I think it's set up so well and it’s so easy to follow. I really liked Ashley a lot, right from the beginning, her presence was really authentic.”
Lala also pointed out the bits of “parent education” taught in the course. The why behind the steps and activities done in class. Parents don’t really have to know this information, but it can be beneficial when they do. “[Ashley] has pieces of information in there like the brain science of jumping, and the brain science of moving… I love not only the imaginative pieces that she brought in, but the science of movement.”
LaLa’s OUB training didn’t only impact her role as an educator, she’s been able to use this knowledge around the science of movement in her Sunny Train performances as well. “We jump all the time, and I was able to just plug that piece in for the parents and the audience and say: This is what’s amazing about jumping. We know that singing makes you happy, we know the science behind that, now I’m going to tell you the science of moving.”
LaLa writes all of the lyrics and music for Sunny Train, so as a storyteller, she loves the storylines in the OUB Curriculum. “I think using stories as a springboard with kids has so many benefits, because there’s so much value in a story. I love that about the Once Upon a Ballet [materials]. I love stories… so that particular piece is super inspiring and so fun to work with.” In both Sunny Train and her classes, LaLa tries to keep her students inspired by staying playful and giving them opportunities to create and lead within these storylines. “I’m really playful. I try to extend that and give them opportunities to create within this space. The empowerment [for children] to create and lead—I can see that it inspires them, and it inspires me. It's kind of like we're all in it together.”
We ended our conversation with LaLa by asking what her favorite thing about being a teacher and educator was. Her answer? “It’s so much fun. It’s pure joy. It really puts me in the moment with them. And moving with kids, creating with kids, is uplifting and such a great exchange of energy. As much as I teach them, they’re teaching me. I follow their lead.”