Do you like music?
I LOVE MUSIC. I love how the symphony jumpstarts my Monday blues; how the symphony eases my frowned eyebrows; how the symphony calms my heavy anger breathing. I love it from every single angle and dimension.
I think that’s why kids love me too- Children LOVES music too, and so we can be best friends. Music evolves in so many forms, from nursery rhymes ‘The Wheels on the Bus’ to brainwashing fun song ‘Baby Shark’, and even to the hit songs ‘Let It Go’. No matter in which form the music is, children love it all.
But, do you know, music actually affects the way we learn? Especially among children. Music is one of the few activities involving the whole brain processing and absorbing. It encourages language development, memory functioning, attention sustaining and dividing, and even for physical coordination. Last but not least, INTERACTION AND COMMUNICATION.
So, how does music perform such a mesmerizing magic performance?
1. The repetitive patterns within the song. Let’s turn on ‘Baby Shark’ and tell me what loops in your mind endlessly? Yes! The repetitive, XX shark du du du du! As we mentioned in our previous blogs, repetition is a vital factor in promoting interaction and language. Repetitive patterns help children know how and what to imitate, and eventually it will be registered in each child’s vocabularies (library). Not only do songs promote vocabularies development, but some songs also teach social greetings and interaction skills such as ‘Hello hello how are you’ ‘Do you like broccoli donut? No!’ Etc.
2. The easy but fun dancing steps. Rhythms make people have the urge to dance, it is innate in individuals. Don’t underestimate the simple dancing steps you see in nursery rhymes, it is actually challenging to your children, and at the same time promotes language development. They learn that the action of their palms hitting against each other is ‘clap’; they learn that bending knees then pushing feet against the floor is ‘jump’, hand near the mouth is ‘eat’. This association further facilitates the development of understanding about body language, making them an informative communication partner in the future, both visually and verbally.
3. The unexpected ‘Whoah’ moments. You know songs have bridges, it catches your attention unexpectedly and makes you want to finish the song as it ends. And kids love unexpected moments. Because they are fun! Think about the ‘hooray’ ‘whoah’ exclamatory words, or the intonation-stressed lyrics, which hypes them up most of the time! Hence, they are able to sustain within the songs and continue exploring the wonder of songs.
Now, you see the wonder of music? Go check it out with your little ones. You will be amazed!
Lastly, STAY TUNED to our blog page, we will be talking about strategies you can use when you sing with your little one to facilitate language development.
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