benefits of music research Archives - Minds On Music

Sep. 11, 2013 — In a new study looking at toddlers and preschoolers with autism, researchers found that children with better motor skills were more adept at socializing and communicating.

This was the exciting headline in Science Daily just recently, giving fresh insight for those in early childhood special education. Researchers have now identified a clear link between autism and motor skill deficits. Expert Megan MacDonald specifically recommends taking the approach of early intervention by teaching motor skills.
“Even at this early age [14 to 49 months], we are already seeing motor skills mapping on to their social and communicative skills,” MacDonald said. “Motor skills are embedded in everything we do, and for too long they have been studied separately from social and communication skills in children with autism.”
As the world’s leader in music learning for young children, Kindermusik International has long been an advocate of the strong correlation between movement and learning. “You have to move to learn!”, our educators are fond of saying, as they encourage the parents and children not only to move, but to explore moving in different and creative ways.
“Movement is a universal, full-time, personal, childhood occupation, and its importance in children’s early learning experiences cannot be overemphasized…” (from Moving and Learning for the Young Child by William J. Stinson, Ed.)
The Kindermusik curricula reflect and embrace the different developmental stages of children, with appropriate motor skills explored, practiced, and enjoyed accordingly. Kindermusik believes strongly in the powerful combination of music and movement that is important for all children, but is especially potent for those with special needs – including autism. The benefits of music on children, especially during the early years, are immeasurable.
Read the full article from Science Daily here.

Improve your child’s motor skills and inspire them with a love of music with Kindermusik. Try a free class today!

Written by Theresa Case, whose Kindermusik program at Piano Central Studios in Greenville, SC, is proudly among the top 1% of Kindermusik programs worldwide.

“Music is great, music is fantastic, music is social —

let them enjoy it for what it really is.” said Ms. Parbery-Clark, a doctoral candidate in the Auditory Neuroscience Lab at Northwestern University. Even the NYTimes is giving attention to the benefits of music for kids in their recent post; Early Music Lessons Have Longtime Benefits.

Early Music Lessons Have Longtime Benefits — Photo Credit: NYTimes | Joyce Hesselberth

As mentioned in this NYTimes post…research studies continue to show the correlation between musical training in childhood and strengthened auditory skills and language-based learning.

Researchers at Northwestern University recorded the auditory brainstem responses of college students — that is to say, their electrical brain waves — in response to complex sounds.

The group of students who reported musical training in childhood had more robust responses — their brains were better able to pick out essential elements, like pitch, in the complex sounds when they were tested.

And this was true even if the lessons had ended years ago.

At Kindermusik, we know it’s important to incorporate music into children’s lives for many reasons, including early childhood development. We see developmental milestones happen every day with so many children. As new research and studies are conducted, we continue to learn the importance and understand the lifelong effects and benefits of music – and look forward to incorporating this into our curriculum and share this knowledge with our Kindermusik students, families, and educators around the world.

Tag: benefits of music research

The Lifelong Benefits of Music – New Research

“Music is great, music is fantastic, music is social —

The group of students who reported musical training in childhood had more robust responses — their brains were better able to pick out essential elements, like pitch, in the complex sounds when they were tested.

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