Much can be done using music. An eighteen-month-old can learn a phone number! How/Why? A child might not remember a seven-digit number; he can remember a seven-tone melody! Teach the phone number as a melody. Music incorporates teaching the whole child, teaching the body, heart and mind. It’s a way to express emotion, a vehicle for movement and different styles exposing children to different cultures. All this through song!
Music is one of the only activities utilizing both sides of the brain. The left side is used for words, the right for movement. Each component of music is processed in a different region of the brain, involving the whole brain. The brain works at maximum capacity guaranteeing a better success rate for retention.
The corpus callosum, nerves connecting the two hemispheres of the brain, ends its first growth period between the 4th and 8th year. During these first years adults should take advantage of stimulating the brain with enriching activities. This is your opportunity to load in information. Music is an easy way to get information in!
Studies have shown that children with course work in music score much higher on standardized tests than students with little or no music classes. The size of the corpus callosum is shown to be about 15% larger in people who have music experiences in their lives. This allows for better communication between the hemispheres of the brain. There is also evidence of larger cerebellums and more grey matter in musicians.
Participate in music with your child. Take advantage of the many opportunities there are to involve music in your time with children. There are many programs out there, including free ones at your local library. Don’t brush it off because you have them enrolled in a school program. They may get music there. But, they don’t get music with you!
Your child will be in school, then work, for the rest of their life. The moments they can spend doing these things with you will not last forever. Having your child participate in group activities is a good thing. Let those group activities compliment, not replace, group activities you could do together. When your child is graduating from college, you will look back and have fond memories and connections for a lifetime. The saddest thing would be to look back and regret. Because you won’t be able to go back. Get involved. Not only will it be fun, it will make a difference!
For daily brain facts, please like our FB Page : Music with Mar., Inc.
Music with Mar classes are a great way to interact with your child with music and movement! There are several options right here in Eastern Jackson County! You can go to the website www.musicwithmar.com and click on the class listings.
See the Macaroni Kid calendar for Music with Mar classes in Independence, Lee's Summit, Blue Springs and Oak Grove.
