76 Guide to Kids’ HealtH summer 2012 77

harmony&

i n p e r f e c tlearning

B y M a r a G o r M a n

music

phot

o by

gar

y la

ndsm

an

“If your child feels good about mastering something, he will be able to do anything—math problems, science, and even relationships.”Mark Wood, Trans-Siberian Orchestra founder

*

78 Guide to Kids’ HealtH summer 2012 79

What if someone told you that from the moment your child was

born, you could to do something to improve her self-esteem, confidence, social skills, eye-hand coordination, and eventually her grade point average? Of course, you would sign up, maybe even if it meant extensive training or expense.

But here’s a little parenting secret: You can easily offer all that and more simply by incorporating meaningful exposure to music into your family’s life. That’s right: Singing lullabies, sharing favorite songs, and using pots and pans as drums can jump-start your child’s cognitive development. Here’s how.

Top instruments for young kidsMusic teacher Melinda Hudson-Oriani gets excited by the variety of instruments available for children. Here are some of her top picks.

VoiceYou may not think of it as such, but your child’s voice is her first and best instrument. Encourage her to use it by singing with your child.

PercussionA good-quality drum is a great investment for kids of any age. Also good for younger tod-dlers are rattles, shakers, and rhythm sticks.

KeyboardStart your 3- to 5-year-old off with individual one-note reso-nator bars. When your child learns to read, he can graduate to the piano keyboard.

thIn

Ksto

CK

InfantsChildren are never too young to start experiencing music. In fact, the most fertile time for music learning is between birth and 5 years old.

Playing a variety of recorded music in your home is also important. Diana Rohini La Vigne says she started playing music for an hour every morning and evening from the first day she brought her daughter home from the hospital. La Vigne also took her daughter to outdoor concerts from the time she was 3 months old. “I noticed she started really getting into the music as soon as she had the dexterity to show her musical sense,” she says. “In an elevator, she would lightly tap the wall to the music in the elevator. In the car, she uses toys as drumsticks to drum along to the beat, and now [at 22 months old] she has started singing along with me.”

Musical rxIncorporate music into your child’s life by following this simple age-specific guide

2 music makes kids smarter. Studies show that early and consistent exposure to music

improves children’s academic performance. The explanation lies in music’s ability to affect brain development.

3 music is culturally important. There are few things that reflect cultural heritage more than music does.

And since it is so accessible, it offers an easy way for all of us to experience not only our own culture but the culture of others as well.

1 music education is for everyone. Best of all, even if you don’t have formal training or consider yourself musically inclined, you can provide your children with important musical building blocks simply by doing simple, fun activities together.

Whether your child takes lessons and learns to play an instrument or just enjoys singing and listening to music at home with you, remember that the music you share with your child is a gift that will be carried well into adulthood. John Jacobson, a music educator, choreographer, and composer, says his earliest memories of his grandfather involve sitting on his grandfather’s knee while his grandfather sang. “When you share music with your children, you are giving them a generational gift,” he says. “They will remember you through the songs that you teach them.”

At birth, your child will love your voice more than anyone else’s. Sing to your baby often.

Repeat favorite songs daily. For example, choose a lullaby to sing to your child each night.

Move with your child to music. Sway to a favorite song or bounce gently to familiar nursery rhymes.

Play together with age-appropriate toys that make sounds, like rattles and shakers.

It’s easy to engage your baby with music. Here are a few simple suggestions from Melinda Hudson-Oriani, head of early childhood instruction at the Music School of Delaware.

** *

*

Make room in your day for music

MusIc& kids

photo by gary landsman

children who engage in musical activities

from infancy end up with stronger literacy,

language, and math skills. They also typically have

higher SAT scores and are more likely to graduate

from college.

80 Guide to Kids’ HealtH summer 2012 81

scHOOl-age kIdsYou can continue to listen to and share music with your school-age child as well. There are lots of ways you can do this, including by continuing to incorpo-rate music freely into your daily lives.

“We always have music on—all kinds. We play it for our kids and discuss it with them so they know bands and instruments and types of music,” says Eileen Wolter, mom of two sons ages 7 and 3 and blogger at asuburbanstateofmom.com. “We have frequent dance parties in the house, and we have all sorts of instruments in the house for making rhythm. We also play relaxing music during homework time in the afternoon.”

Sandy Borden, who blogs at adventuretrio.com, gives her 10-year-old son, Jack, ample opportunity to play music by making instruments available throughout her house. The living room contains no furniture but features two drum sets, four guitars, several keyboards, and other smaller instruments. You don’t need to go quite that far, but having a space in your house dedicated to musical instruments can encourage your child to play.

Technology is the next frontier when it comes to music, and it can help older kids engage with music even more. Mark Wood learned classical violin at Juilliard before inventing the electric violin and founding the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. His Electrify Your Strings pro-gram helps school orchestras introduce not just technology but also contempo-rary music to their repertoires. He says kids are fascinated to see and interact with the high-tech equipment he brings. Wood’s 15-year-old son, Elijah, is an accomplished drummer and collaborates with musicians around the world via the Internet. Look into musical smartphone apps and online tools your kids might enjoy exploring.

Many children begin musical instru-ment lessons around 7 or 8 years old, and if you think your child is ready for the discipline of daily practice, this is a great time to look around for a music education program.

Both Borden and Wood emphasize the value of practicing, once your child has started playing an instrument. Make it part of your job to make sure that your child practices daily. “My son loves music, but he’s a 10-year-old boy,”

PrescHOOlersWhen your child grows older, continue all of this singing, dancing, and playing musically while incorporating music into your daily routines.

Music makes a great teaching tool. “Everyone knows their ABC’s because of the melody,” says Carol Penney, director of education for Kindermusik, a music education program. ”Traditional children’s songs are perfect learning devices for turning sounds into words and words into creative thoughts.”

Music teacher John Jacobson suggests extending your singing beyond the alphabet song and applying it to other tasks you want your child to learn. Use a familiar melody like Mary Had a Little Lamb and make up lyrics like “Now’s the time to brush your teeth,” or “This is when we pick up toys.”

Tangela Walker-Craft, whose 9-year-old daughter has played piano for the past three years, says listening to music before learning to play helped her daughter to be sensitive to subtle sounds around her. “She often notices and comments when people have pleasant-sounding voices,” says Walker-Craft. “She also notices the music playing in the back-ground of movies and commercials.”

You can prepare your preschooler for music lessons by continuing to incorporate movement into your musical activities through dancing, musical games, and finger play like The Itsy Bitsy Spider. And don’t forget the value of repetition! “You’ll get tired of singing The Wheels on the Bus long before your child is done listening to and learning from it,” Penney says.

“Music education actually rewires the brain in the same area where you develop math, language, and spatial reasoning skills.”Jill todd, president, Music Intelligence Project* But I’m not

musical!“My mother likes to tell

me my musicality is all the result of my father, a guitar

player,” says Drew Holloway, a music teacher and member of Recess Monkey, a Seattle children’s music band. “Lies! She was the one who sang to me while she rocked me

to sleep and changed my diapers. She says she sang horribly out of tune, but the

truth is, it doesn’t matter. Sing, no matter your range, and it

will make a difference. You are your child’s favorite musician,

for at least a few hugely influential years.”

{

{

kindermusik classes use percussion instruments like

the Japanese den-den drum, seen here, to encourage rhythm and movement.

Practice active listening› Put on music and listen together. Then talk about changes you hear in the music or move your body in different ways as the music plays.

› Give your child a wooden spoon and encourage him to tap it against a variety of sur-faces to hear what sounds it makes.

› Listen to nature sounds: Buy a CD or download an MP3 of bird calls and then go for a nature walk and count how many you hear.

Finding music classesThrough programs like Kindermusik, you can find classes for children of all ages, even as young as a few months old. Classes are typically offered at music schools, university music programs, and community centers. Don’t forget to also check out:

Churches (many of which have choirs or other music-enrichment programs for children)

Music storesPreschoolsLibraries

Borden says with a laugh. “Although he’ll play on his own, I still have to make sure he practices regularly.”

Wood agrees that practice is an important part of growing musically and also as a person. “I never talk about how hard it is. I always talk about how fun it is to be strong when you are good at something,” he says. “If your child feels good about being strong and mastering something, he or she will be able to do anything—math problems, science, and even personal relationships.”

many kids start lessons at 7 or 8,

so look into a music education program if you think your child

is ready for daily practice.

photo Courtesy of KIndermusIK ga

ry la

ndsm

an

MusIc& kids