Happy World Smile Day! Today is the day to smile…and pass it on. Mother Theresa said: “Let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love.” Remember the first time a baby smiled at you? Your heart melted just a little bit didn’t it? Afterwards, you probably did everything you could to coax another smile!
Well, it should come as no surprise that we use music to bring smiles to children, families, teachers, and everyone else we can. So, we wanted to start World Smile Day off with a little music, of course. Take a listen…and try NOT to smile.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=to7uIG8KYhg[/youtube]
You smiled didn’t you? It’s hard not to smile when watching young children engaged in music. It’s an undeniable truth: Music gives us so many reasons to smile. Here are just a few.
9 Ways Music Gives Us Something to Smile About
1. Music causes children to move and dance and react in amazing ways. It really is impossible not to smile when seeing young children naturally respond to music. After all, you couldn’t help but smile when watching those babies’ faces light up and their bodies begin to dance when their dad started playing his guitar.
2. Music is a gateway to family fun. When families listen to music and then dance around in the living room, smiles and bursts of laughter blend in with the beat. Or when families sing together in the car, they transform even the most mundane errands—or the longest road trip—into memories that last a lifetime. In the daily routines of family life, music brings fun.
One Kindermusik parent put it this way:
“Kindermusik started out as a way for our family to bond and a place for my daughters to express themselves long before they had words to communicate. Now it is a place for us to be silly, meet new families, and make lots of music together. We love Kindermusik!” ~Kindermusik Parent, Emily R
3. Music provides many health benefits. Listening to music makes us feel better, boosts the immune system, reduces blood pressure, encourages relaxation, and even releases pain-fighting endorphins.
4. Participating in musical activities supports cognitive development in children, including language and literacy, spatial-temporal reasoning, and mathematical abilities.
5. Playing music with others makes the world a better place by promoting a sense of community and belonging and fostering cooperation and helpful behavior.
6. Playing instruments or singing provides a creative outlet and opportunity to express thoughts and feelings in a unique way.
7. Music connects us to our past and creates new memories in the present. Hearing the music of our parents and grandparents helps us understand them just a little bit better and provides a bridge between the generations. This also happens when we sing the same lullaby to our children that our parents sang to us.
8. Music is the one language in the world every single person speaks. We see this the world over. Bring in a basket of instruments to children in Ohio, South Africa, Italy, Australia, The Philippines, Mexico—and everywhere in between—and they will shake, scrape, tap, beat, and create beautiful music. No translation needed.
9. When our favorite song comes on, we can’t help but sing all the words, loudly. This phenomenon can happen in the grocery store, in an elevator, at the doctor’s office, in the car, anywhere. And, yes, it can happen even when the “kids’ music” unexpectedly comes on and you find yourself singing along…even when you are by yourself.
See, music gives us all something to smile about on World Smile Day. Now pass the love on!