MUSIC IS BETTER TOGETHER!
Empower your classroom and team of Prelude Partners! Our NIH, research-backed instructional services support teachers through music, sound, and play. We are building confidence, sparking joy, and setting every child on a path toward reading success.
IN-PERSON
CLASSES
Prelude Partners provides weekly push-in instructional sessions led by trained music-to-literacy specialists. Each class uses music, rhythm, and movement to build the foundational skills children need for reading success.
Each session supports:
- Sound awareness
- Rhyme and word play
- Syllables and rhythm
- Phonemic awareness
- Vocabulary and oral language
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
Prelude Partners provides professional development courses designed for how children learn best, grounded in the science of reading and delivered through song, movement, and play.
Educators will:
- Learn how to build phonological awareness, vocabulary, and early literacy skills through music, sound-play, and movement
- Practice simple, repeatable routines that can be implemented immediately in the classroom
- Gain access to curriculum tools that support daily instruction and extend learning beyond the training
MEET OUR TEACHERS
Emily Cadiz
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Emily Cadiz founded Prelude Early Learning® with a mission to make early language and literacy development accessible, joyful, and developmentally sound for all children. A former special education teacher and lifelong musician, Emily began integrating music, sound play, and movement into her classrooms long before Prelude became her full-time work.
Emily’s professional journey spans more than two decades in education, with advanced training in special education, early literacy, and language development. Her work bridges the science of pre-reading with music-based instruction, drawing on research-backed practices that support how young brains learn language and prepare for reading.
She has taught and coached children and educators across a wide range of settings, including public schools, Head Start programs, early learning centers, homeschool communities, and professional development workshops—working with learners from preschool through the early elementary years.
Emily sees this work as both her calling and her service: building confident educators, empowered families, and strong early readers through connection, music, and play. She remains deeply committed to equity, accessibility, and closing the language-to-literacy gap for young children.
Jill Denbrook
Director of Curriculum | Lead Teacher
Jill Denbrook is the Director of Curriculum and a lead teacher at Finnegan the Dragon, where she leads the development of innovative literacy programs that combine the science of reading with engaging, music-driven instruction. With a passion for early childhood education and over a decade of experience in curriculum design, Jill works to empower educators with effective tools and strategies that promote reading readiness. She holds a a masters degree in Educational Technology as well as an endorsement in Reading and an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education. Her expertise in blending research-based methods with creative learning approaches ensures that every child has the opportunity to succeed in literacy.
Travis Dockter
Speech-Language Pathologist & Lead Teacher
Travis Dockter is a Speech-Language Pathologist at Prelude Early Learning®, where he brings his expertise in speech and language development to enhance early literacy instruction. With years of experience working with children of all ages, Travis specializes in phonological awareness, language development, and speech sound disorders. His passion for using evidence-based methods to support communication skills aligns perfectly with Prelude's mission of bridging language to literacy. Travis works closely with educators and families to provide tailored strategies that foster strong communication skills and set children on a path to reading success.
WHEREVER AND
WHATEVER YOU NEED
Our instruction and services empower educators and caregivers through embedded, real-time professional learning—equipping them with proven strategies to strengthen parent engagement, connect home and classroom learning, and accelerate reading readiness so every child can succeed.
