Position your baby on his back. Beginning with your hands at the top of your baby’s chest, slowly move your hands outward and down, in the shape of a  heart, to gently warm up his mid-body. Sing or hum Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star or another favorite lullaby as you continue to move your hands slowly outward and down. This type of loving touch stimulates healthy levels of stress hormone in your baby’s brain and aids his digestion and circulation.

More activities for babies, toddlers, and kids to come!

“To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak.”
~ Hopi Indian saying

…Moving on…

The one thing that I thought long and hard about after reading these research findings – something that is truly is amazing to me – is the amount of hard research surrounding the topic of the benefits of music education on babies, toddlers, kids, adults, & even senior citizens. In fact, this particular study found that “musicians might have brains that function better than their peers well into old age.”

As the Huffington Post reports:

Researchers tested the mental abilities of senior citizens and discovered that musicians performed better at a number of tests. In particular, musicians excelled at visual memory tasks. While musicians had similar verbal capabilities to non-musicians, the musicians’ ability to memorize new words was markedly better, too. Perhaps most importantly, the musicians’ IQ scores were higher overall than those who spent their lives listening to music rather than performing it.

Kindermusik just posted on this blog about how 6 year olds taking music lessons were shown to have enhanced IQs. This study shows that the benefit to intelligence and IQ lasts throughout life, well into the senior years. That leads to another very important point that I read. The research proved that the younger the musician was when he or she started playing an instrument, the sharper the mind in old age. Now, that doesn’t mean starting your toddler at piano lessons at age 2 is right either (there is an appropriate age for proper music instruction to start). But, it does mean that doing age-appropriate musical activities with your children from a very young age may actually help raise your child’s IQ and intelligence.

And, that’s why my family involves music in our every day life. We think Kindermusik music classes are essential to our son’s development. My oldest son, Marcus, who is 5 years old, has some special needs. He has epilepsy and, as a result of his abnormal brain activity and daily anticonvulsant medicine, has had some speech and language learning developments. Since he started his Kindermusik Young Child curriculum, which gives him the opportunity to practice his speech in a social environment AND expend his energy, he has shown a lot of progress in his development! The ‘homework’ assigned in music class gives him the chance to practice singing, words, and creative thinking. And, in his words, “Music class is SOOO fun!!!” So, he has a great time too. #Winning!

But, to me, it’s really all about the time we spend with our kids outside of a classroom. We make it a point to hold daily jam sessions, where we all play instruments (homemade & real musical instruments) and sing!  I swear our newborn, Parker, lights up immediately when the music starts and sometimes even sings along!  We have dance parties – Marcus is a huge fan of the Pandora mixes I created (yep, my five year old LOVES Gorillaz, Cake, Jamiroquai, Stevie Wonder, 70s Funk, & Jazz) and picks the songs he likes and dislikes. He break dances to the ones he REALLY likes. We buy age-appropriate musical instruments and toys for Christmas and birthdays. We have musical apps on the iPad that the kids interact and perform with, although, we do try to keep screen time limited. I even remember my husband helping a 5 month old Marcus sit up, grip drumsticks (they were chopsticks) and bang on the drums (a peanut butter jar, a sugar canister, and a single toy drum).

There is just too much research out there proving the amazing benefits of music. I feel that I wouldn’t be doing right by my boys if I didn’t involve music in their lives! On my end, I think I better pick up those guitar lessons again. Maybe it will sharpen my wit and help me win a few more arguments

…Moving on…

The one thing that I thought long and hard about after reading these research findings – something that is truly is amazing to me – is the amount of hard research surrounding the topic of the benefits of music education on babies, toddlers, kids, adults, & even senior citizens. In fact, this particular study found that “musicians might have brains that function better than their peers well into old age.”

As the Huffington Post reports:

Researchers tested the mental abilities of senior citizens and discovered that musicians performed better at a number of tests. In particular, musicians excelled at visual memory tasks. While musicians had similar verbal capabilities to non-musicians, the musicians’ ability to memorize new words was markedly better, too. Perhaps most importantly, the musicians’ IQ scores were higher overall than those who spent their lives listening to music rather than performing it.

Kindermusik just posted on this blog about how 6 year olds taking music lessons were shown to have enhanced IQs. This study shows that the benefit to intelligence and IQ lasts throughout life, well into the senior years. That leads to another very important point that I read. The research proved that the younger the musician was when he or she started playing an instrument, the sharper the mind in old age. Now, that doesn’t mean starting your toddler at piano lessons at age 2 is right either (there is an appropriate age for proper music instruction to start). But, it does mean that doing age-appropriate musical activities with your children from a very young age may actually help raise your child’s IQ and intelligence.

And, that’s why my family involves music in our every day life. We think Kindermusik music classes are essential to our son’s development. My oldest son, Marcus, who is 5 years old, has some special needs. He has epilepsy and, as a result of his abnormal brain activity and daily anticonvulsant medicine, has had some speech and language learning developments. Since he started his Kindermusik Young Child curriculum, which gives him the opportunity to practice his speech in a social environment AND expend his energy, he has shown a lot of progress in his development! The ‘homework’ assigned in music class gives him the chance to practice singing, words, and creative thinking. And, in his words, “Music class is SOOO fun!!!” So, he has a great time too. #Winning!

But, to me, it’s really all about the time we spend with our kids outside of a classroom. We make it a point to hold daily jam sessions, where we all play instruments (homemade & real musical instruments) and sing!  I swear our newborn, Parker, lights up immediately when the music starts and sometimes even sings along!  We have dance parties – Marcus is a huge fan of the Pandora mixes I created (yep, my five year old LOVES Gorillaz, Cake, Jamiroquai, Stevie Wonder, 70s Funk, & Jazz) and picks the songs he likes and dislikes. He break dances to the ones he REALLY likes. We buy age-appropriate musical instruments and toys for Christmas and birthdays. We have musical apps on the iPad that the kids interact and perform with, although, we do try to keep screen time limited. I even remember my husband helping a 5 month old Marcus sit up, grip drumsticks (they were chopsticks) and bang on the drums (a peanut butter jar, a sugar canister, and a single toy drum).

There is just too much research out there proving the amazing benefits of music. I feel that I wouldn’t be doing right by my boys if I didn’t involve music in their lives! On my end, I think I better pick up those guitar lessons again. Maybe it will sharpen my wit and help me win a few more arguments

“Music can name the unnameable and communicate the unknowable.”
~ Leonard Bernstein

Puddle Jumping:

Scatter several hula hoops on the ground or floor. One person is the “drummer leader”—drumming on a box, trash can, bucket, or hand drum. As long as the drummer is just playing a beat, the other players walk between and around the hoops. On a loud bang, everyone find a hula hoop and quickly jumps in it. Take turns being the drummer leader. Try running, leaping, skipping, hopping, twirling and other ways to move between and around the hoops. This activity combines sound, movement, cues, and social interaction, helping preschoolers develop their attention skills.

Keep an eye out for more Rainy Day Activities for Kids, Babies, & Toddlers!

The insert includes a number of pieces linking music to success in academic achievement and life. As the first article states,

“Every year, more studies unveil the impact that early interaction with music has on babies, toddlers, and school age children who participate in age appropriate, sequential music education. This vast body of scientific research shows that children who have comprehensive music education as a part of their early childhood experience and in their school curriculum enjoy improved success in their studies, think creatively and critically, stay in school and go on to graduate college.”

As the document continues to outline through more good information than we can include in this post, humans are wired to respond to music – and the benefits of music to cognitive development is incredible and proven (many times over).

“According to the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), the many benefits of learning to play music instruments include increased self-esteem, improved cognitive skills, and higher test scores. Research supported by NAMM explores the connections between music making and academic achievement and has found that children’s overall academic performance is higher if they participate in a rigorous music education program.”

Yet, so many schools continue to cut down on or completely eliminate music education because resources are lacking or curriculum has been narrowed to meet the demands of testing. A recent U.S. Department of Education study shows that 15 to 20 percent of middle and high school students participate in school music programs. And, in many places, the students don’t even have the option or opportunity to participate.

“Without fail, high performing schools have robust music arts programs and often low performing schools do not. Simply put, a child’s education is not complete unless it includes music education.”

The article “Tools for teaching young children about music” is especially in line with Kindermusik’s mission and values, as this covers the tools you can use during the most critical young years (the first five or so years after birth) for essential early childhood development. As we know and are further informed, “the preschool age is the period of most rapid growth in cognitive ability. Therefore, it is the best time to engage children in an active program of music education.” This is why 100,000 families choose to enroll in Kindermusik music classes with their children aged newborn to 7 each year. It also explains why schools choose to utilize Kindermusik’s music and movement-based curricula to teach language arts and English language learning! We definitely recommend you read this particular piece if you are a Kindermusik parent, educator, or even former student, as it really validates the importance of these music activities for kids in their early years.

The final must-read in this piece is the most important – and that is because it outlines the top 25 ways YOU can take action to help keep music in our kids schools. Some of our favorite ideas on how to make a difference were:

# 1. Start early: Provide your child with access to the benefits of music education from birth; sing to your baby, move to music and feel the joy of making music together. Visit your local community music school to find musical opportunities and discover what you can do to get started. (Find out how to get your children started early by finding Kindermusik classes in your area!)

#4. Get involved: Participate in school and/or district planning committees including curriculum, assessment and budget. Position music education as an important instructional tool for improved student leaning and to close the achievement gap.

#8. Form a coalition: Encourage parents and community members to become advocates for your community’s school music programs and form a local coalition.

#15. Educate your community: Turn a local performance into an ‘informance’  by placing interesting music facts inside concert programs. Hold a reception after so that community leaders can start conversations with music supporters.

#19. Reach out to TV and radio: Ask your local television and radio stations to publicly recognize local music programs throughout the year and salute “Music In Our Schools Month” in March. Follow this by providing a calendar of local musical events during March and ask your local media to dedicate them to “Music in our Schools Month.”

#22. Take it to Congress: Write a letter to your Member of Congress about the value of music education in your community and take a delegation of music students to meet with your Congressional representative at their local office. List upcoming local school music events and invite him or her to attend.

#24. Get donations: Encourage local business to support music programs with special donations for special projects that supplement core education funds from the district. Be sure that this support is not seen as a replacement for district funding of music programs.

We’re doing everything we can to ensure that every child is inspired by and developed through music from birth. We’d love to hear what you’re doing to support music education and will feature the best advocates’ efforts on our blog!

Download the PDF of NAMM’s Washington Post music education insert here.

“Hands-on parenting cannot be underestimated in its effect on young children and their brain development. As parents, we must provide numerous, ongoing, and enriching experiences that will nourish our children’s brains. Music is such an experience.”

~author Sharlene Habermeyer

As Victoria’s mom wrote:

Have no doubt that the impression and affect you have on children (and parents) lasts a lifetime… We are still enjoying all we learned in Kindermusik. The girls are both taking piano now and are getting quite good. They also sing at their piano lessons — I am loving this new teacher.

Miss Lindsay really felt that it was “so moving to hear that the program really did have a long-term impact” on these girls and instilled a great appreciation for music! Even better, her former student, Victoria, was prompted to write to her because they were singing the Kindermusik song, “Hello, how do you do?” which made her think to share her good news with Miss Lindsay. We believe that early exposure to music and movement will instill a lifelong love of music – and we’re always happy to feature stories that show this is the case. So, Kindermusik parents, feel free to comment below and share YOUR favorite story about how Kindermusik made an impact on your child(ren)!

And, we would like to wish good luck to Victoria & Katie Beth in their Nutcracker performance this year!

As Victoria’s mom wrote:

Have no doubt that the impression and affect you have on children (and parents) lasts a lifetime… We are still enjoying all we learned in Kindermusik. The girls are both taking piano now and are getting quite good. They also sing at their piano lessons — I am loving this new teacher.

Miss Lindsay really felt that it was “so moving to hear that the program really did have a long-term impact” on these girls and instilled a great appreciation for music! Even better, her former student, Victoria, was prompted to write to her because they were singing the Kindermusik song, “Hello, how do you do?” which made her think to share her good news with Miss Lindsay. We believe that early exposure to music and movement will instill a lifelong love of music – and we’re always happy to feature stories that show this is the case. So, Kindermusik parents, feel free to comment below and share YOUR favorite story about how Kindermusik made an impact on your child(ren)!

And, we would like to wish good luck to Victoria & Katie Beth in their Nutcracker performance this year!