We are in full Summermusik swing, and it is pure magic!
We are proud of how our wonderful educators create magic each week in class. They work hard every week to perfect their lessons and to bring the most joyful learning activities to your children. They are so fun and filled with delight your children don’t even realize they are learning and building skills!
And while our educators bring the magic, it wouldn’t be complete without YOU. It is your commitment to bringing your children to their music class that makes our studio tick. As you invest in this experience for them, it will pay dividents for well beyond the time you spend in class. We are in the business of building better brains, and your child will benefit from that for their entire lifespan.
Experts have found that the most “bang for your buck” when it comes to the benefits of music and its affects on the brain occurs between the ages of 0-7. Yes, that’s right. From birth until 7 years old is the time the brain can get the most benefit from musical study. And that benefit can be measured later in life as they can excel in school, learn to solve increasingly complex problems, work collaboratively in their adult life, and even as their risk of dementia decreases in later life. Isn’t that incredible?
While musical study gives the most brain benefits when experienced early in life, those benefits are available at any time, to any person, at any age. It is never too late to study music or learn an instrument. So if you are concerned about your own brain, pick up your old school instrument. If you are worried about your aging parents, encourage them to join a community choir and stave off the effects of cognitive decline.
Caretakers of young children are pulled in a million directions. There are so many demands on your time that you have to really understand the value of music classes in order to invest the time and money into them. Our objective is to communicate those benefits and that value to you during our classes, through this blog, and in our weekly newsletter. There are so many resources available there to support you in your parenting journey.
So keep on coming back so we can keep giving you more! More music, more laughter, more joy, more learning, more development, and more benefits. Isn’t music just like magic?
Times are busy. Commitments are tough. So, what makes a music class for toddlers the right choice for your family?
Research tells us learning that happens in the first three years of life is vital to early brain development. And we also know that when multiple areas of the brain are activated at once, the brain gets a complete workout. Enter Kindermusik…
A Better Organized Brain
What exactly does that mean and why is it important?
Daniel Levitin (a researcher into early childhood music experiences and the brain) found “Musical activity involves nearly every region of the brain that we know about.” Schlaug and other researchers (2010) claim that the benefits not only result in a better organized brain, but also produce long-lasting change even after the brain has reached its mature self.
A well-organized brain results in learning more easily and a higher level of skills. These benefits not only last for early childhood but lay the foundation for skills that will affect brain growth and formation well into adulthood.
Balance
Better balance comes through making sure the vestibular system is working accurately. The vestibular system is a small set of three semi-circular canals in the middle ear. It is the governor and chief of all sensory input, and allows us to stand, jump, balance on one foot, move in any way, and not be dizzy.
During a Kindermusik class, the vestibular system is connected to every activity, whether it be rocking, balancing on bilibos, or jumping like a rabbit.
Social Skills
Social skills are learned over time and with lots of practice. Reading cues, taking turns, and responding appropriately to other toddlers is an essential step in growing into a balanced adult.
In a group music class, toddlers dance and play instruments with their peers. They get their own instruments and learn to hand them back in a given timeframe. They wait for their turn during circle time. So, opportunities to refine how to interact with and respect others are always at the forefront.
Emotional Intelligence
Toddlers are (appropriately!) egocentric, but they can begin to learn what it means to be sorry, to think of others, and to recognize when others are hurting or sad and how to respond to that.
Kindermusik classes are a wonderful way for your toddler to begin learning those essential skills. Through the help of class interactions and parents or caregivers, they learn to build empathy, which is key to healthy social-emotional growth.
Language Skills
Increased language is one of the biggest benefits of Kindermusik classes for toddlers. At a stage where language is still developing, your toddler gets to hear different sounds, is exposed to a variety of musical styles, and plays with their voice in vocal play. All of these experiences allow your child to process and learn different nuances in sound, and the skills acquired translate to language where the differences between letters is so small.
Math Skills
Math and music share a lot of the same skills in a similar way to music and language. Children learn skills such as division (as they hear the division of beats between slow and fast notes), counting (as they count the number of instruments they have and learn to count in their books) and categorizing and sorting (as they put instruments back in their correct container).
They eventually learn to count forwards and backwards and other opposite concepts such as fast and slow, high and low, all of which play a huge role in school readiness.
Confidence
Routines within a music class for toddlers encourage self-esteem and confidence, but only at a pace that each child is comfortable. The emotional security of knowing what is coming next helps a child feel more secure.
Plus, children who are shy are given the space to grow in confidence within timeframe. For example, they can slowly venture out to get their instruments for an activity and then return them again. Or they can sing along in a group with the comfort of their special grownup nearby.
You Can Benefit Together.
The best part about a Kindermusik class is that the adults benefit as much as the little ones. You’ll discover community with other parents and caregivers, learn musical tips to help better communicate with your child, and so much more.
If you’re looking to boost brain development in a joyful environment, a group music class might be the perfect way to keep your child (and you!) engaged with learning that sticks.
As we see school budgets being slashed, often one of the first things to get cut is music. This is unfortunate and will be to the detriment of students because music is not elective. Music is core.
Music is one of the most amazing ways to experience the world. Humans are able to appreciate music even from birth. Has your nighttime lullaby singing ever soothed your fussy infant? Has a favorite album played in the car ever quieted your restless toddler? Before infants learn to speak they are able to express themselves and respond to emotional stimuli through music.
This is why it is so crucial that children have access to musical instruments from the earliest days of their development so that they can explore the possibilities of self-expression through sound.
This musical experimentation helps them develop fine and gross motor skills. It helps them with emotional awareness. It gives them a sense of confidence and individuality as they explore different ways to play an instrument.
All these experiences are present in every single Kindermusik class. From our foundations classes for babies all the way up for our more advanced music education classes for our 5-7 year olds.
The intellectual and technical skills practised through learning an instrument benefit children in other areas. Children who begin to learn reading music at an early age typically do better in core subjects such as mathematics and literacy during their primary school years. This head start can set them on the path to lifelong academic success, as well as providing them with the foundations for a skill which can be developed throughout childhood and enjoyed in later life.
A musical start in life is a smart start. A musical start is a joyful start. A musical start is a beneficial start. The benefits roll in from the earliest of days and can continue through a person’s lifespan.
This is the why of Kindermusik. This is why Song of the Heart Studios exists. To bring the benefits of music to you, to your families, to your lives. It is our hope that your time here in our studio will set your children on a path of musical experiences, abilities, and appreciation that will last them for many years to come. The investment you are making now will pay dividends long into the future.
But as beneficial as it is to your child’s development, an immediate benefit is the joy and connection it brings to you both NOW. We hope every day that you join in with us is a day we bring you delight.
