The Effects and Benefits of Music on Child Development

Effects and Benefits of Music on Child Development: children playing violin

Research on the effects of music on child development has revealed that there is a bond between music and early brain development.

From this point of view, music will be a good tool to support the development of your baby, who begins to distinguish music sounds from the womb.

Your child’s academic development, especially; language development, social-emotional development, physical development, in short, all areas of development will be supported in many ways thanks to music.

Music from the Womb

A person who listens to music relaxes and feels happy thanks to the secreted endorphin hormone. During pregnancy, the mother’s listening to music will also pass on to the baby in this way, as she will feel happy and peaceful thanks to the endorphin hormone secreted.

I mean, the effects of music on child development begin in the womb.

It will especially contribute to the emotional development of the baby and will help establish a positive bond between the mother and the baby.

Musical Development of a Child of 2-6 years

2-year-old

  • Children from 2 years old enjoy playing with music, waving their arms, clapping hands, and jumping.
  • They respond to the music they hear by moving their heads or dancing.
  • Body movements are quite enthusiastic.

3-year-old

  • The motor skills of a 3-year-old child are significantly increased. Physical movements varied.
  • He/she makes different sounds from its body. For example, clapping hands, hitting the knees with the hands, hitting the feet on the ground, etc.
  • During this period, as the child’s vocabulary and language skills develop, his vocabulary of songs in which the same words are repeated frequently becomes richer.

4-year-old

  • A 4-year-old child has more advanced skills than a 3-year-old. He/she can distinguish objects and make criticisms about them.
  • In this way, he/she can explain and match the source, type, intensity, tone, and duration of sounds.
  • A 4-year-old child can repeat various sounds, tones, and rhythmic structures, as well as use a story or song to tell his feelings and thoughts.
  • The ability to use musical instruments by hitting them with their hands, shaking them, has developed.
  • One of the important skills that children acquire during this period is to try to match their own voice to the tone of that song while accompanying a song.

5-year-old

  • He/she memorize songs correctly. He/she can make up his own tunes and can play simple instruments.
  • A 5-year-old can truly make music. Can recognize different sounds in new songs more easily and quickly. It can hit simple beats accurately.

6-year-old

  • 6-year-old children especially like to sing their favorite songs. In this way, they discharge their emotional and physical energies. They have a developed sense of rhythm.
  • They can understand and apply rhythm patterns and the concept of tempo. They can play simple percussion instruments, produce simple tunes and match them with movements.

So, what about the Effects of Music on Your Child?

You can also notice your child’s interest in music for the first time at this age, who starts to imitate sounds from the age of 1-2.

Music is an important tool that has a positive effect on all areas of your child’s development, which allows to gain an aesthetic point of view, as well as increase his/her auditory intelligence.

In the researches that children who have been supported by music since infancy have higher academic achievements, their brain development is faster.

In the same way, thanks to music, a rapid development of the child’s self-expression skills is observed. The combination of words with rhythm makes it easier for children to learn.

What Are the Contributions of Music to Your Child?

  • it develops the aesthetic feelings of children
  • supports creativity and imagination
  • let your child relax and express himself correctly it allows him/her to
  • helps the child socialize and join the group of friends
  • it has positive effects in areas such as attention, concentration, and math skills
  • children who listen to music develop a sense of rhythm
The Effects and Benefits of Music on Child Development: Kid playing piano.
The effects and benefits of music on child development: it has positive effects in areas such as attention, concentration, and math skills. Photo by Bretwa – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link

How Can You Support Your Child’s Musical Skills?

With the little touches you will make, it is possible to attract your child’s attention to the music and guide him/her in this regard.

For example,

  • listening to a lullaby before going to bed
  • you can attend music workshops, to introduce different instruments
  • a spoon/tambourine that makes a sound, etc. giving the child the opportunity to examine the instruments and make various sounds with these instruments,
  • singing together
  • simple activities such as playing music that supports your child’s development in the background while doing activities
  • you can go to concerts organized for children
  • In addition, guiding your child to play a musical instrument that she/he is interested in and supporting her/him to educate on this subject is extremely important in terms of both contributing to her development and increasing her/him musical skills
  • In the meantime, you will have the opportunity to observe your child and discover their interests and talents
Effects and Benefits of Music on Child Development: children playing violin
Effects and Benefits of Music on Child Development: guiding your child to play a musical instrument that she/he is interested in and supporting her/him to educate on this subject is extremely important in terms of both contributing to her development and increasing her/him musical skills. Photo by Stilfehler – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

Sources

Ceren Bayraktar
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