5 Scientific Ways That Music Benefits Infants and Toddlers
Sunday, August 15th, 2010Do you like music? Whether it is rock, jazz, classical country, rap, easy listening or polka, music is important in our everyday lives. It can bring out a rainbow of emotions in us. The slow, soulful playing of violins can remind us of past loved ones. A strong beat can give us energy and motivation before starting an important task. And so-called “elevator music” helps to calm our nerves while waiting in doctors’ waiting rooms. Regardless of your background, such as being Amish and living in Amish Country Ohio, music is a part of your life. But how important is music to our babies?
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, for whom the Baby Mozart Music Festival DVD is named after, has become one of the most celebrated composers of all time. However, his musical achievements as a child are equally amazing. At the age of just three-years-old, Mozart was already playing the clavichord (basically, a small piano). One year later, he was already writing short pieces of music!
Signs of Mozart’s musical genius continued during his childhood. At just five-years-old, he gave his first concert at an Austrian university. At seven-years-old, Mozart once picked up a violin and played perfectly part of a musical piece that was new to him. Amazingly, Mozart had never had a single formal violin lessons! Young Mozart toured Europe for three years, and was featured in various concerts for kings and queens. When he returned to Austria, he wrote his first opera at the age of 11-years-old!
Will your child be the next Mozart? Well, whether or not your child is Amish and living in Amish Country Ohio, music is nonetheless important in his or her life. Here are some reasons why nurturing early childhood music is so vital:
1. Music can help to develop a child’s fine motor skills (i.e. using small muscle groups to play a piano) and gross motor skills (i.e. using large muscle groups to dance). In addition, music improves vocal, speaking and listening skills.
2. Rhythm and pitch are part of your child’s natural development. Sometimes children
would rather sing than listen, skip than walk, and dance instead of standing still. Is this normal? It is, and here is proof:
? A fetus is already aware of the heartbeat of his or her mother.
? For centuries, music and lullabies have become standard methods for helping babies to fall asleep.
? In what experts refer to as “The Mozart Effect,” exposure to classical music can have a significantly positive effect on humans’ physical and mental health. Several studies have proven this theory. And this beneficial effect of classical music influences not only adults, but children as well.
3. The sharing of musical instruments and playing in a “band” can help toddlers to learn important social skills.
4. Music can have an important influence on the development of a child’s brain, particularly through the age of six-years-old. During these years, the most significant brain development occurs.
5. Infants and toddlers tend to be less inhibited about making errors, than older children are. After children start elementary school, they are required to learn the “correct” way to sing a song or play an instrument. However, pre-school children can have jam session on a toy grand piano, without being worried about hitting the right keys. As a parent, try to grin and bear the sour notes.
Not every child can become a musical genius. However, regardless of whether or not you are Amish and living in Amish Country Ohio, music is fundamental in nurturing your child’s physical, mental, and social development. It is more than just music to his or her ears.