5 Ways to Make Music a Part of Your Child’s Life

Music offers so many incredible benefits to children and adults alike. Listening to and making music floods our brains with dopamine, the chemical associated with pleasure, motivation, and reward. It makes us feel good.  Beyond these positive effects, research has shown that early music introduction provides even more benefits to children. Integrating music into your child’s daily life can:

 ●     Help with language development

●     Increase neural activity

●     Expand spatial understanding and problem-solving

●     Improve listening and fine motor skills

 Also, enjoying music with your child is an incredible bonding experience. It’s a great way to connect and bring curiosity and playfulness into children’s lives.

 It’s never “too early” to start introducing music to your child – pregnant mothers can even begin when their child is in utero. There are many ways you can introduce your child to music at any age and incorporate it into your lives every day.

 

1.  Play music throughout the day

The best way to introduce music is by playing music as part of your and your child’s daily routine. Start the day with some classical or other “chill” music for a slow wake-up. Include some tunes while you’re preparing for and eating meals. Put on a song to help with clean-up time or as part of a bedtime routine. You can also use songs to teach or reinforce new concepts like colors, numbers, letters, and new languages.

 

2.  Sing to your child

It doesn’t matter whether or not you think you have a good voice or can carry a tune particularly well; your child benefits just from hearing you make music. One of the most common ways to add singing to your routine is a nighttime lullaby to aid your child in getting a good night’s sleep. However, you can start singing at any time. Perhaps it’s using a familiar tune to sing about what you’re picking up at the grocery store or what you see on your walk. Sprinkling in a little auditory experience throughout your day will make the experiences more memorable and put music in your child’s mind.

 

3.  Dance around with them

Along with singing, you can imprint music by bringing some movement to the experience. Children learn with their whole body, so matching music with movement ingrains it in their memory. Your dances don’t need to be synchronized or even on beat – just add little hip wiggles to your clean-up song or a shuffle to your dinner prep tunes. Not only will dancing help your child appreciate music, but it will also create some great memories for you, too.

4.  Teach your child to make music

You don’t need to wait until children are old enough for formal lessons to start teaching them how to make music. Making music includes singing, whistling, and even banging on some pots and pans. Everyday items can have musical properties too, like snapping buttons, zipping zippers, and swishing brooms. Show children how to create rhythm and sound in all places, and they’ll be able to bring the joy of music with them wherever they go.

5.  Provide them with musical toys

Alongside unconventional music-making objects, provide your child with some musically-specific toys as well. Play pianos, simple bells, and even plastic guitars can be a big hit. Don’t worry about children playing “correctly” – it’s all about them hearing musical tones.

 Another great gift is a music box to allow children to hear music on demand. They may be too young for a music player or tablet, so a music box is an excellent starting point. It’s easy to use, and the repetitive nature is calming. You can even customize music boxes with songs that are special to you and your family, giving children the comfort of home no matter where they go.

 

Start Bringing Music to Your Home from Day One

Music is one of the greatest gifts you can give children, and you can start the moment they come into the world. Because music is easily accessible and always available, children can use music throughout their life if you teach them how. Giving them this tool can help them work through their emotions, motivate movement, activate learning, and more. Instilling an early love of music will benefit children their entire life, and you’ll be forever grateful for your musical memories together.