I was not a conventional learner. I had a lot of trouble just memorizing the sequence of multiplication numbers in class. My teacher maintained that if we only listened to her repeat the times tables enough times we would memorize them. She gave us charts and math problem after math problem. No matter what she tried, I just couldn’t get it. Then my mom brought home Schoolhouse Rock. All she did was play it in the car going from our house to school and some how, the songs stuck! I excelled in math all because of a few cleverly composed songs. From then on, anything that I couldn’t memorize, we simply set to song. To this day I still sing Three is A Magic Number in my head. If music can make such a big difference in my education, what can it do to a child’s learning overall learning from an early age?
It’s Science
Music for children isn’t just entertaining; it has power over our brains. Music has the ability to stimulate parts of the brain used in memory. In fact, Alzheimer and dementia patients have shown significant improvement in their memory tests when they were asked to listen to classical music. If this is the case for Alzheimer and dementia patients, then music must have some affect on a child’s ability to retain information, right?
According to LifeSounds Educational Services, sounds hold our attention, tap into our emotions and even help us to visualize images more clearly. These are very different parts of the brain so no matter what kind of learner you are; music can make all the difference in how you hold on to that information. When a child, or even adults, can successfully pay attention to what they are learning and, better yet, remember it, they become more cheerful about learning in general.
A Positive Mood for Learning
Children who struggle in school aren’t exactly thrilled to get up and try again. The best way to get a child excited about learning is to give them an environment they feel safe in. Once they are relaxed, it becomes okay to try and even fail, thus enhancing their ability to learn. Music goes a long way in creating a relaxing environment for children to study.
Choosing the Right Song
Depending on the activity you can use different music. When you need your child to keep positive and get them excited about learning, try putting on some upbeat, popular music. So long as the theme of the song is encouraging, your child will be encouraged to go study. If you are trying to get your child focused on studying, writing or reading, instrumental music enhances concentration and creativity. Music has the ability to switch up the energy in the room so it is a wonderful tool to get kids on the wavelength you want them on. For more information on how to use music to increase your child’s learning, visit LifeSounds Educational Services and OnKidWriting.com.
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