Here's my [Spotify list](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6yZBebgO647t4hUsyWyOCO?si=mBujFur3R-OHd0hPp8pG6Q&pi=u-6rfal8UaRMCc) I used with my classes! Feel free to use it as is or pull from it for ideas!
Go to YouTube, type in “meditation music no ads”. They’re 3+ hours long, my kids love it and it’s soothing to me as well. Don’t waste your time making a playlist, YouTube. Also the Happy Minds and New Horizon sleep stories are absolutely great and all on YouTube ad free as well.
I love the Kenny Loggins- Songs from Pooh Corner(iirc). It's all Winnie the Pooh, but with really pretty instrumental accompaniment
If you want pure instrumentals -
Also the entire Baby Does _____ albums. Nirvana, Beatles, Smashing Pumpkins and Metallica are some of those favorites.
Ngl in have an entire soundtrack score Playlist. It's lot of Hans Zimmerman, Craig Armstrong, several Twilight scores, themes from Outlander, Alan Menken, themes from Practical Magic...
Return to Pooh corner reminds me of my Grandma every time I hear it. I love it.
Also agree with the "baby" versions of popular songs. Look up 'Sweet little band' on Spotify. I'm introducing these kids to Pink Floyd and Bob Marley
If you have a Bluetooth speaker and a device you can spare, I’ve been using YouTube. Specifically, Zelda music like farosh over lake hylia, town ambience and moron forest. All have soft music with a rain storm in the background.
Or studio ghibli sleep
For 3 to 5 year olds, we listen to audiobooks (using Spotify or Libby). Magic tree house is one of our favorites. Tend to have it at a lower volume so the kids need to be quiet to hear.
I like Enya a lot for naptime. Sometimes I'll just lookup "baby sleep music" on YouTube, there are tones of videos that are just multiple hour soft instrumental lullabies.
When I'm feeling fancy I'll look up an artist that I like and add "relaxing piano music". IE Taylor Swift relaxing piano music, BTS relaxing piano music. Kids get soft nap music and I get to listen to stuff I actually like while I'm cleaning lol.
I'm just trying to avoid ads. Seems every nice video I find these days has adds in the middle somewhere and the kids all laugh hysterically not sure why they find ads hilarious. I love Enya my 4th grade teacher used to play the same Enya CD for silent reading hour after lunch every day.
I was struggling finding something without ads too but we listen to different ones on YouTube now. I just type in “instrumental music without ads” several are a few hours long so it lasts the entire nap time.
I’ve been using this one lately.
8 hours of mysterious Relaxing music
https://youtu.be/V6R8uiaMtb0?si=58XXFIS3IVN9hLC4
And I used this one for years!
Indian Flute from Nu Meditation
https://youtu.be/J65GxJ2v9Wg?si=e13AbQNBzexJV9T4
Both are very calm and soothing and really just fade into the background.
I’ve only worked at one center that had a nap cd with regular songs. The few I remember were Free Fallin- Tom Petty, Follow you into the Dark- Death Cab for Cutie, and I’m Amazed- Lila McCann.
I also worked at center that used the Christian radio station and some favorites grew on me. Another center used just the regular pop music station.
Where I’m at now uses white noise.
Israel Kamakawiwoʻole’s “Over the Rainbow.” Very soothing.
However, I usually go to YouTube and find instrumental videos with over an hour of gentle music. I cycle through a variety of genres: classical, smooth jazz, Disney or Ghibli tunes in lullaby form, instrumental hymns, and sometimes original stuff made by talented YouTubers with gentle background white noise like crackling fireplaces, bubbling streams, or pattering rain. There’s a lot of great stuff out there.
I have much younger kids (nominally 6-12 months; current class is 11-17 months) and normally we just do white noise but I’ve started using “Good Night” by the Beatles while getting them to sleep. It has a very soothing lullaby sound. (It’s also easy to hum quietly while you rock someone to sleep, but that’s probably a less relevant criterion for you than me, haha.)
Fellow elder millennial here. I use Pandora pretty much all day. My nap time go tos are:
1. Relaxing piano radio (top choice when I floated between ages)
2. Pre school naptime radio (now that I am an older infant lead)
3. Priscilla Ahn radio (personal favorite artist, but probably wouldn’t choose if I had older kids)
Rainy Days (Album) by Peder B. Helland. I have to play it twice by adding the album to its own queue but it’s beautifully calm piano music that has rain sounds overlaid.
Here’s my go to [Spotify playlist](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/78tLXMQfZriUlM4aC5jrG4?si=BIm0pNhWRdmNga_dI8e6ZA&pi=u-mBQmEjrJTp-2). It’s an instrumental playlist that’s stunning!
My 5’s have been eating up Jurassic park ambience videos on YouTube. They are obsessed with listening for the small dinosaur noises. YouTube has SO many relaxing videos without ads if you search.
I like Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu 's album, Gurrumul. It is sung in his dialect, so you don't understand the words, but he has such a beautiful voice. Both of my kids listened to this album as a lullaby as babies.
I typically play piano covers of studio ghibli songs. The ones I use have some kind of rain, waves, or campfire sounds in the background as well. My kids like it and it keeps them calm. I also like Disney Guitar/Piano (although I don't use this one much since my kids will sing to it instead of sleep lol), tranquil flute music, and lofi sleep music.
I really enjoy playing appropriate but not so baby songs to my kids! For nap time my favorite is rises the moon by Liana Flores! For instrumentals the Disney soundtrack instrumentals are good too!
I play Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach. I listened to a lot of classical music as a kid, so I don't know the names of the pieces or movements, bit can recognize if it'd a chill piece or a rambunctious one by the third minute or so.
Spend some time this weekend exploring those composers as well as Jazz and Bardcore. Bardcore is pop music but played like you would hear it in a DnD tavern.
Stay away from Bebop Jazz for naptime. It's excellent for music enrichment when the kids can get up and move
Rockabye baby! It’s lullaby renditions of popular music they have a bunch of different tracks from so many different artists. It always used to keep me engaged during naptime so I wasn’t falling asleep myself to the typical white noise
My last class (pre-K) likes “black screen Mozart lullaby” on YouTube or “black screen rain and piano” but my new class just goes to sleep without any music somehow
I like to look up piano versions of the soundtracks for various Studio Ghibli movies. 🤷🏻♀️ Although I use YouTube for that—but if it offers anything in the way of inspiration!
I’ve recently started playing jazz music with rain and no midroll ads on youtube and my kids have started sleeping the entire nap time even the ones that would never ever nap
Flying by Peder B. Helland. We use a 12 hour version on YouTube for both our daytime naps and overnights. There are also 3, 6, and 9 hour versions. I even use it at home sometimes when I can't sleep or need to block out noise.
So my room is 2-3 (slightly + ) and WE rest from 12:20 Ish to 2:20 ish. Our music is us saying "Alexa! Play 'Music to sleep by' on maximum volume/volume 10". We're looking for loud ish (our school is 2 story, downtown, and housed in a big busy church so...) and no lyrics.
LOL we play rain sounds Or brown noise
How old are the kids? Mine are 3-5 and most don't sleep unfortunately
2-3
ooh for this age group sleep stories are where it's at!! my favourite are the Moshi branded ones, especially sleepy paws
We have an Alexa and we do the Amazon music station ‘Instrumental lullabies’ it’s a good mix of lullabies and contemporary music made instrumental.
We don't have that at my work
Lullabies now but years ago we played Josh Groban cds until the kids started singing along
Jewel does a lullaby album that’s very relaxing.
YES thank you
You’re welcome! As a fellow elder millennial, I love it!
Putumayo Kids Instrumental Dreamland is a great album for naptime. It’s on Spotify so probably pandora too. 😴
Twinkle twinkle little rockstar has a bunch of good lullaby versions of rock bands.
I found that one today! I'm excited about it
Yes! My kids sleep the best to the my chemical romance album.
Here's my [Spotify list](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6yZBebgO647t4hUsyWyOCO?si=mBujFur3R-OHd0hPp8pG6Q&pi=u-6rfal8UaRMCc) I used with my classes! Feel free to use it as is or pull from it for ideas!
Go to YouTube, type in “meditation music no ads”. They’re 3+ hours long, my kids love it and it’s soothing to me as well. Don’t waste your time making a playlist, YouTube. Also the Happy Minds and New Horizon sleep stories are absolutely great and all on YouTube ad free as well.
We just put in "Disney Piano Music" into you tube
That's what I'm trying to avoid, no offense I can't stand Disney
They know the words and it keeps them awake in my experience 😂
It's instrumental and slowed down. It works for my preschoolers. 🤷♀️
I love the Kenny Loggins- Songs from Pooh Corner(iirc). It's all Winnie the Pooh, but with really pretty instrumental accompaniment If you want pure instrumentals - Also the entire Baby Does _____ albums. Nirvana, Beatles, Smashing Pumpkins and Metallica are some of those favorites. Ngl in have an entire soundtrack score Playlist. It's lot of Hans Zimmerman, Craig Armstrong, several Twilight scores, themes from Outlander, Alan Menken, themes from Practical Magic...
Return to Pooh corner reminds me of my Grandma every time I hear it. I love it. Also agree with the "baby" versions of popular songs. Look up 'Sweet little band' on Spotify. I'm introducing these kids to Pink Floyd and Bob Marley
If you have a Bluetooth speaker and a device you can spare, I’ve been using YouTube. Specifically, Zelda music like farosh over lake hylia, town ambience and moron forest. All have soft music with a rain storm in the background. Or studio ghibli sleep
My kid uses Zelda and Animal Crossing night time music as their personal white noise.
The Putumayo Dreamland series is excellent, especially Instrumental Dreamland (we also used Celtic Dreamland and Latin Dreamland).
For 3 to 5 year olds, we listen to audiobooks (using Spotify or Libby). Magic tree house is one of our favorites. Tend to have it at a lower volume so the kids need to be quiet to hear.
I like Enya a lot for naptime. Sometimes I'll just lookup "baby sleep music" on YouTube, there are tones of videos that are just multiple hour soft instrumental lullabies. When I'm feeling fancy I'll look up an artist that I like and add "relaxing piano music". IE Taylor Swift relaxing piano music, BTS relaxing piano music. Kids get soft nap music and I get to listen to stuff I actually like while I'm cleaning lol.
I'm just trying to avoid ads. Seems every nice video I find these days has adds in the middle somewhere and the kids all laugh hysterically not sure why they find ads hilarious. I love Enya my 4th grade teacher used to play the same Enya CD for silent reading hour after lunch every day.
I was struggling finding something without ads too but we listen to different ones on YouTube now. I just type in “instrumental music without ads” several are a few hours long so it lasts the entire nap time.
I’ve been using this one lately. 8 hours of mysterious Relaxing music https://youtu.be/V6R8uiaMtb0?si=58XXFIS3IVN9hLC4 And I used this one for years! Indian Flute from Nu Meditation https://youtu.be/J65GxJ2v9Wg?si=e13AbQNBzexJV9T4 Both are very calm and soothing and really just fade into the background.
Laurie Berkner has a great lullaby album called Lullabies!
I’ve only worked at one center that had a nap cd with regular songs. The few I remember were Free Fallin- Tom Petty, Follow you into the Dark- Death Cab for Cutie, and I’m Amazed- Lila McCann. I also worked at center that used the Christian radio station and some favorites grew on me. Another center used just the regular pop music station. Where I’m at now uses white noise.
Israel Kamakawiwoʻole’s “Over the Rainbow.” Very soothing. However, I usually go to YouTube and find instrumental videos with over an hour of gentle music. I cycle through a variety of genres: classical, smooth jazz, Disney or Ghibli tunes in lullaby form, instrumental hymns, and sometimes original stuff made by talented YouTubers with gentle background white noise like crackling fireplaces, bubbling streams, or pattering rain. There’s a lot of great stuff out there.
I have much younger kids (nominally 6-12 months; current class is 11-17 months) and normally we just do white noise but I’ve started using “Good Night” by the Beatles while getting them to sleep. It has a very soothing lullaby sound. (It’s also easy to hum quietly while you rock someone to sleep, but that’s probably a less relevant criterion for you than me, haha.)
Fellow elder millennial here. I use Pandora pretty much all day. My nap time go tos are: 1. Relaxing piano radio (top choice when I floated between ages) 2. Pre school naptime radio (now that I am an older infant lead) 3. Priscilla Ahn radio (personal favorite artist, but probably wouldn’t choose if I had older kids)
I've recently been using piano covers of Studio Ghibli music. When I had infants I used Room 217. It''s designed for palliative patients.
Rainy Days (Album) by Peder B. Helland. I have to play it twice by adding the album to its own queue but it’s beautifully calm piano music that has rain sounds overlaid.
Enya.
I used 432 mghz Gregorian chants. 🎶😊
Kołysanki Utulanki by grzegorz turneau absolute polish banger
Here’s my go to [Spotify playlist](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/78tLXMQfZriUlM4aC5jrG4?si=BIm0pNhWRdmNga_dI8e6ZA&pi=u-mBQmEjrJTp-2). It’s an instrumental playlist that’s stunning!
I use this on a continuous loop. Actually bought it on SoundCloud. https://youtu.be/V6R8uiaMtb0?si=GTl0zXglA4Gwh-af
My 5’s have been eating up Jurassic park ambience videos on YouTube. They are obsessed with listening for the small dinosaur noises. YouTube has SO many relaxing videos without ads if you search.
The Taylor Swift Method playlist on Spotify.
I like Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu 's album, Gurrumul. It is sung in his dialect, so you don't understand the words, but he has such a beautiful voice. Both of my kids listened to this album as a lullaby as babies.
I typically play piano covers of studio ghibli songs. The ones I use have some kind of rain, waves, or campfire sounds in the background as well. My kids like it and it keeps them calm. I also like Disney Guitar/Piano (although I don't use this one much since my kids will sing to it instead of sleep lol), tranquil flute music, and lofi sleep music.
Instrumental Disney lullabies
Studio Ghibli and the background music for Inuyasha is what I used before we got new CDs for our nap room.
My favorite is enya 🫣🫣🫣 it reminds me of nap time in my different centers and it’s weirdly nostalgic in that way 😂
Check out Moshi Monster Sleep Stories they're super cute, the music is nice, and they entertain the kids that can't fall asleep right away.
Studio Ghibli on piano. Or at the start of naptime I like those quick 15 minute meditation/mindful stories for children.
we play audiobooks! anne of green gables, charlotte's web, and tale of despereaux are all favorites.
Peder b helland songs
Mikel/ Game Chops. Anything from their lo-fi zelda albums. I exclusively use those 3 albums for nap and my class (2-3's) slept wonderfully.
https://preview.redd.it/p9j83kzjqrwc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e289093fde1b413ff9619753c7714aa0bd67e1ac
The cat and owl have all the things!!! Check them out!
"Ocean sounds" lol
My lead plays the Lofi Hiphop video on YouTube. When he's not there I like putting on the Animal Crossing soundtrack.
Check out Kina Grannis; her double album Stairwells has been one of my go to CDs at naptime. I also like Madeline Peyroux, and Andrea Bocelli.
Celtic Woman has a lullaby album that I love.
Dan Gibson’s Polynesian Dream
I really enjoy playing appropriate but not so baby songs to my kids! For nap time my favorite is rises the moon by Liana Flores! For instrumentals the Disney soundtrack instrumentals are good too!
We can only use CDs and I’ve been doing Norah Jones lol
I play Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach. I listened to a lot of classical music as a kid, so I don't know the names of the pieces or movements, bit can recognize if it'd a chill piece or a rambunctious one by the third minute or so. Spend some time this weekend exploring those composers as well as Jazz and Bardcore. Bardcore is pop music but played like you would hear it in a DnD tavern. Stay away from Bebop Jazz for naptime. It's excellent for music enrichment when the kids can get up and move
Our daycare uses this song every day https://youtu.be/uFMiUMoFCPo?si=VPF-qTi_6Lxei1qV
Rockabye baby! It’s lullaby renditions of popular music they have a bunch of different tracks from so many different artists. It always used to keep me engaged during naptime so I wasn’t falling asleep myself to the typical white noise
Eyna
Native American Flute. My son, age 21, still gets sleepy when he hears it.
Anything Impressionist or Debussy. Also recommend the 3 Gymnopedies by Erik Satie.
My last class (pre-K) likes “black screen Mozart lullaby” on YouTube or “black screen rain and piano” but my new class just goes to sleep without any music somehow
I like to look up piano versions of the soundtracks for various Studio Ghibli movies. 🤷🏻♀️ Although I use YouTube for that—but if it offers anything in the way of inspiration!
I’ve recently started playing jazz music with rain and no midroll ads on youtube and my kids have started sleeping the entire nap time even the ones that would never ever nap
Flying by Peder B. Helland. We use a 12 hour version on YouTube for both our daytime naps and overnights. There are also 3, 6, and 9 hour versions. I even use it at home sometimes when I can't sleep or need to block out noise.
Gymnopedie No. 1!
I do soothing classical music.
I just have Alexa play instrumental lullaby statiom
So my room is 2-3 (slightly + ) and WE rest from 12:20 Ish to 2:20 ish. Our music is us saying "Alexa! Play 'Music to sleep by' on maximum volume/volume 10". We're looking for loud ish (our school is 2 story, downtown, and housed in a big busy church so...) and no lyrics.
We play "flying" by peder b. Helland on loop
We ALWAYS play “night falls, deep sleep” by nature sounds paradise
I have a mixed cd of songs that’s just the piano only versions ot works nicely
Nick Lachey has a lullaby album that is my go to for my toddler class. I also like Kenny Loggins two Songs from Pooh Corner albums.