My Bodyworks: A Musical Anatomy for Kids
NPR Weekend Edition, August 2005

The human body can often seem like a mystery, so much so that parents may have a difficult time answering their kids' queries about how it works.

To offer help, teacher and educator Jane Schoenberg teamed with her musician husband, Steven, to create a set of songs designed to explain bodily happenings including breathing, passing gas and circulation.

The book My Bodyworks comes with a 12-song CD and brief anatomical overview designed to teach young kids about their bodies, and perhaps entertain parents along the way. "We're giving them information that is anatomically correct and is engaging, but we're also packaging it in music... that's not kids' music per se," Jane tells Scott Simon. The couple also performs songs from the CD.

Anatomy Lessons Set To Music
Our Favorite Things: A Parent's Guide To The Best In Family Entertainment
FamilyFun Magazine, November 2005
By Moira McCormick

My Bodyworks, a new book-and-CD package, makes learning about the human body fun. Steven Schoenberg composed the cheerful, piano-propelled melodies, and his author-educator wife, Jane, penned the witty lyrics, which are complemented in the book by Cynthia Fisher's vibrant, multi-ethnic illustrations. The Schoenbergs are particularly adept at matching the sound of their songs to a given corporeal function: a lub-dub bass rhythm drives the cardiac ode “Keep the Beat,” while the meet-your-lungs number “Inhale, Exhale” takes its tempo from the natural rhythm of breathing. While all of the songs are a cinch to sing along with, the biggest crowd-pleaser will most likely be the matter-of-fact “Everyone Passes Gas,” an airy tutorial that is more tuneful than toot-ful.

Sound Off! Good Road Trip Listening
MetroKids Magazine, Pennsylvania, July 2005
by Kathy O'Connell,host of the Peabody award-winning radio show “Kid's Corner.”

This midsummer time of road trip vacations is when car-captive parents discover the depths of their patience as they listen to the same children's CDs for the zillionth time. How about making some of those recordings the kind that everyone can still tolerate after the zillion-and-first hearing?

Attention Grabber
My Bodyworks: Songs About Your Bones, Muscles, Heart and More! is a terrific book-CD combination that succeeds in being entertaining first and informative second.

You can't educate a child until you get his attention, and the songs on this CD will grab a youngster's attention and keep it long enough to teach some concepts about the human body. Husband-wife team Jane and Steven Schoenberg have created 12 original songs about body parts that will delight the listener while teaching good basic information.

You have to love a CD that includes a song called “Everyone Passes Gas” without getting unpleasantly graphic or icky. Kids are encouraged to “Have Fun with Your Hair” with a sweet “oom-pah” beat, while each of us can relate to “Celebrate Our Bodies.” The inner body is well-represented with “Amazing Senses” and “Brainpower.”

The songs on My Bodyworks reminded me a lot of the very best of Joe Raposo's music for the early “Sesame Street” shows. My Bodyworks is an outstanding way to introduce younger kids to some basic biological concepts, and the book's delightful illustrations by Cynthia Fisher provide fine accompaniment to the memorable lyrics. Pick up My Bodyworks for your pre-schooler and watch her learn.

Sing Your Science Lessons
Music - Chicago Parent Magazine, November 2005
By Fred Koch, award-winning music educator, children's musician and producer, BestChildrensMusic.com

We all know that science can be fun. Some of us even may have been fortunate enough to have teachers who made the curriculum come alive. Now, we as parents can help stoke that fire of excitement for science through songs designed precisely for that purpose. Here is a great CD I recommend. A fondness for science is not a prerequisite.

Like all good "educational" recordings for children, this gem gets the kids hooked with good songwriting and music production and slips in the educational values.

Recently while listening to WBEZ-FM, Chicago's National Public Radio affiliate, I heard a review of the new audio book, My Bodyworks. I missed some of the piece, so when I got home I went to the NPR Web site (www.npr.org) to look for the review. I found it and listened to the whole interview and remembered that a preview copy was sent to me, but was still in the pile of “hope to get to” CDs.

It is a simple songbook with an enclosed CD. On the left page are the lyrics and on the right is a colorful drawing that represents the theme of the song.

And the songs are great. Like many science concepts, the human body is often difficult for children to understand and appreciate.

Jane Schoenberg, an educator, teamed up with her musician husband, Steven, to help children understand some of the systems of the body through the use of songs.

Favorites around our house are “Bones, Bones, Bones,” “Brainpower,” “Have Fun With Your Hair,” “Amazing Senses” and, of course, “Everyone Passes Gas.” The CD has a pop-music feel to it without being overproduced and the vocals are clear and pleasing. Accurate and fun facts fill “My Bodyworks,” and the book includes kid-friendly drawings with simple explanations of the body, including bones, muscles and some important internal organs.

Kids' CD Teaches About Anatomy
BloggingBaby.com
By Jennifer Creer

If you are unsure about how to approach topics with your kids like flatulence (or as my 7 year old would say, “Farting,” despite 7 years of being told it's actually called, “Tooting,”) or if your kids are groaning about growing pains, you might want to check out this CD called My Bodyworks. Co-developed by a teacher and her musician husband, the CD has 12 songs on it, and I've been listening to them as I type this.

I hate to say this, but they're kinda catchy. “Come on and bend down, turn around...” If I had a little baby and wanted to try some floor exercises that incorporated leglifts with baby, I'd be into turning this on and singing it as I moved.

Kids Radio Mania

“My Bodyworks is one of the most clever and entertaining concept albums ever written for children. Using a variety of musical styles and engaging lyrics, the album is not only fun to sing along with but teaches children about their bodies, from bones to hair to even having gas! It is highly recommended for the whole family.”

Kidzmusic
Kidzmusic.com
By John Wood

“Great tunes by the Schoenbergs and super illustrations by Cynthia Fisher make this fun, informative book and CD a must have. I learned more about my body in 34 minutes than I've learned in 56 years, and the knowledge that everyone passes gas makes me look at super-models in a different way!”

NSTA Recommends
Reviewed by NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12 Selection Panel

“For the first time, a book of songs has earned a place on the NSTA/CBC award list. This simple introduction in song to the parts of the body (with a 12-song CD) is outstanding in both its scientific accuracy and its usefulness in the elementary classroom.

Well-written and informative, this book describes the body from the bones to the five senses in a fun and enjoyable manner. The catchy lyrics will become student favorites as they learn. Teachers will appreciate the way these songs support lessons on health and anatomy. This is great way to sing along with science.”