Music & Movement Benefits: Rhymers Will Be Readers

Today is World Poetry Day. And while your child may not be up to appreciating Robert Frost or Elizabeth Barrett Browning

just yet, he/she does benefit significantly by learning (and enjoying!) children’s rhymes and poems. Why are rhyming songs and chants so vital to a young child’s development? Reading expert and author Mem Fox explains why:

“The importance of getting rhymes and songs into children’s head’s can’t be overestimated. Rhymers will be readers: it’s that simple. Experts in literacy and child development have discovered that if children know eight nursery rhymes by heart by the time they are four years old, they are usually among the best readers by the time they’re eight.” (Mem Fox, Reading Magic, pg. 85-86)

Experts agree. Music is a powerful vehicle for learning and enhancing development in every area. As an educator, one of the things I love most about Kindermusik is the way that it inspires children – and parents – to learn together in ways that benefit the child now and for the rest of his life.

So the moral of this story is… If you can’t quite remember those rhyming songs, chants, and Mother Goose rhymes from your childhood, take a Kindermusik class! Remember… rhymers will be readers.

– Special thanks to Theresa Case for this post. Theresa’s Kindermusik program, Kindermusik at Piano Central Studios, is in the top 1% of all Kindermusik programs worldwide.