Music education benefits all children, regardless of whether they are the next Beyonce or prefer to sing in the shower solos. Studies show that children can learn the do-remis to help them excel beyond basic ABCs.
Music is not all you need
Studies have shown that music learning allows children to learn other subjects and improve their skills in those areas. Mary Luehrisen is the executive director of the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation (NAMM Foundation), a non-profit organization promoting music-making’s benefits.
Music is more than just singing or playing an instrument. A child who learns about Music must have multiple skills, sometimes simultaneously. Kenneth Guilmartin, the cofounder of Music Together, is an early childhood music program for infants through kindergarteners. The classes include parents and caregivers.
Music learning is a support for all learning. Guilmartin states that Mozart doesn’t make you smarter. However, it is a stimulating, integrating pastime or activity.
PLAY – Make Music with these colorful maracas made from recycled toilet paper rolls
Language Development
Luehrisen says, “When you think about children aged two to nine years old, one of the breakthroughs is Music’s benefit in language development. This is so important at this stage.” Music education can help children develop their natural ability to decode sounds and words. She says that children often benefit from growing up in musically rich environments for their language development. Luehrisen says that these inborn abilities must be reinforced, practiced, and celebrated. This can be done at home or in a formal music education setting.
The brain can show the effects of music education on language development, according to the Children’s Music Workshop. Recent studies clearly show that music training can physically develop the brain’s left side, which is responsible for processing language. It can also wire the brain in certain ways. The group suggests that linking familiar songs with new information can help to imprint information on young minds.
Young children also benefit from this relationship between music and language development. “The growth of language over time tends toward improving parts of the brain which help process music,” Dr. Kyle Pruett (clinical professor of child psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine) says. Pruett is also a practicing musician and clinical professor of child psychology at Yale School of Medicine. “Language competence lies at the root and foundation of social competence.” The ability to communicate verbally is strengthened by musical experience.
IQ increases
E. Glenn Schellenberg, University of Toronto at Mississauga, published a study that found a slight increase in the IQ of six-year-olds who received weekly voice and piano lessons. Schellenberg gave nine months of voice and piano lessons to twelve six-year-olds. Schellenberg also provided drama lessons (to determine if exposure to Music and arts had any effect) to another group of six-year-olds. Schellenberg did not provide lessons to the third group. Before entering the first grade, the children were tested for their intelligence. The second grade was then completed.
Surprisingly the average IQ of children who took music lessons during the school year was three points higher than those in the other groups. While the drama group did not experience the same increase in IQ as the music-only group, it experienced increased social behavior benefits that were not present in the music-only group.
The Brain Works Harder
Research shows that the brains of musicians, even young ones, work differently from those of non-musicians. There is good neuroscience research showing that children who are involved in Music have a higher growth rate of neural activity than those who don’t receive music training. Eric Rasmussen is the chair of the Early Childhood Music Department at Johns Hopkins University. He teaches a specialized music curriculum to children aged 2-9 years.
A study by Ellen Winner, Boston College professor of psychology, and Gottfried Schlaug (professor of neurology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School), found brain imaging changes in children who received weekly music practice and instruction for 15 months. According to the Dana Foundation (a private philanthropic foundation that supports brain research), the students who received music instruction had better sound discrimination skills and fine motor tasks. Brain imaging also showed brain network changes associated with these abilities.
Spatial-Temporal Skills
Research also shows a link between Music and spatial intelligence. This means that children can understand Music to help them visualize the various elements that need to go together, just like when they solve a math problem.
Pruett, who founded the Performing Arts Medicine Association, says that there is good evidence that music instruction can improve spatial-temporal skills over time. These skills are useful in solving multi-step problems in engineering, mathematics, gaming, and, especially, when working with computers.
Higher Test Scores
Christopher Johnson, University of Kansas professor of music therapy and music education, published a 2007 study that showed elementary school students with high-quality music education programs scored 22 percent higher on English tests and 20 percent higher on math tests than students who attended schools with lower-quality programs. This was regardless of any socioeconomic differences among the schools and districts. Johnson compares music training to the concentration required to be successful on standardized tests.
Johnson’s study, which is not limited to test scores, highlights the positive impact that music education can have on young children’s success. Luehrisen summarizes this psychological phenomenon in just two sentences. “Schools with rigorous programs and high-quality music and art teachers will likely have high-quality teachers from other areas.” People who work in a positive environment are more likely to do great work.
It doesn’t stop there. Music training can also help with basic memory recall, in addition to better performance on concentration-based tasks. Pruett states that formal training in Music can also be associated with cognitive strengths, such as verbal recall proficiency. “People with formal musical training are more likely to retain verbal information in their memory.”
Being Musical
While Music can enhance your child’s ability to learn and perform other tasks, it doesn’t make them smarter. Pruett explained that music education has many intrinsic benefits, including being disciplined, learning a skill, and being part of the music world. It also helps you manage performance, be proud of your accomplishments, and even struggle with a poor teacher.
Pruett states, “It is important not to oversell the smart music can do for you.” Music makes your child happy and interesting and will make them smarter later. It gives your child a greater appreciation for Music and the people you meet.
“There’s a huge benefit to being musical, even if we don’t know it all. But it’s personal. Rasmussen states that Music is for the sake of Music. Music education is, for me, about being musical. You will gain a greater understanding of yourself. He says that Music can expand your horizons. “You will gain a better understanding of art and the world. You will also be able to think and express yourself more effectively.”