publication date: Feb 16, 2014
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author/source: Liisa Henrickson-Macaulay
Music brings harmony to the whole family, and here are the first two of my top ten tips on how you can engage musically with your child. Even years before your child is old enough to begin formal instrument training, you can be their first music teacher.
1. Sing to your child
Did you know that your baby would rather hear you sing than speak? I didn't. But this is what science has found. Most adults have some hang-ups about singing in public – they say that public speaking is the number one fear of people above the fear of death, but I reckon public singing is even more fear-inducing! However, your child should be a grateful audience: no matter what you may think of your voice, if you just "let it flow" and sing songs that you enjoy, you will find this a great way to bond with your small child – and it helps them learn language, too!
Furthermore, singing has incredible emotional benefits. When my son was a sleepless baby, the last thing I felt like doing was singing in the middle of the night. I wish I had, as later during my research I found that when you sing to a crying baby, they calm down with a 94.5 per cent success rate. That's 19 times out of 20 emotional upsets sorted. And that is why making music with your child makes you happier too.
2. Play music to your child
Children enjoy recorded music almost as much as your live singing. Children and babies have much more eclectic tastes in music than us adults. Children from birth to five enjoy classical and popular music alike - they even understand complex jazz time signatures and modes. Their brains are open to all learning, and the same goes for music.
However, one genre of music may be above all others. In 2007, scientist Glenn Schellenberg and his international research group found that children got the biggest mood boost from listening to children's songs – and in fact they became more creative as a result.
And no, it doesn't have to be awful renditions of nursery rhymes: although perhaps rarer in quantity, good quality children's music does exist – the type that doesn't drive parents insane even at repeated plays. (I recorded the Moosicology songs with a chart-topping producer for this very reason, and just as well I did, as my son proceeded on playing the Moosicology albums on repeat for a good few years).
It goes without saying that if you play any instrument yourself, you don't have to just rely on records. After all, it is good for children to know that music doesn't just come from a CD or a computer.
