Today I'm sharing this guest post with you, which asks the question, Could music lessons really make your child smarter in school?
As a parent, the intellectual progress of your child is likely to be a priority and you undoubtedly want nothing more than for them to succeed in all they do. We’re often told that those who are introduced to music during childhood are more likely to excel in their education. So what is the relationship between your child’s intelligence and learning to play an instrument? Let’s take a look at whether or not music lessons really could make your child smarter in school.
Early introductions
If research is anything to go by, a child may be more likely to succeed if they’re given the opportunity to learn an instrument from a young age. A recent study carried out by Lutz Jäncke, a psychologist at the University of Zurich, suggested that if a child starts musical training by the age of two and continues this for six years, their IQ can increase by seven points. Scientifically speaking, neural pathways are put in place before the age of seven, and while a child older than this could still benefit from learning an instrument, the knowledge is not “hard-wired” into the brain, meaning the skill can easily be forgotten.
However, if you feel your child is too young to take on the responsibility of learning an entirely new instrument but you still want them to develop a flair for music, there are alternative approaches you can take. For example, simply listening to songs and clapping along to the beat can also be beneficial. As pointed out by instrument experts Caswell’s Strings, fun activity packs and sing-along CDs are an entertaining and engaging way to introduce music into your child’s life. While research leads us to believe that taking up an instrument should be done before a certain age, there are other steps you can take before your child gets their hands on an actual instrument.
Academic improvements
Where academia is concerned, there are numerous theories that state the ability to play a musical instrument greatly improves a child’s performance at school. Over the years, scientific studies have been conducted to monitor the effect of music on children’s cognitive brain function. One study, carried out by researcher Ellen Winner of Harvard University, showed that just 15 months of music training had a significant impact on a child’s brain development. Both the left and right-hand sides of the brain showed signs of improvement, with the areas responsible for maths, language ability and spatial sense appearing strengthened.
Emotional benefits
While musical training can improve brain functionality, it can also have an impact on a child’s emotions. As a form of art, music has been proven to be a great stress reliever and it can even act as a form of therapy. It can play a particularly useful role in helping children with disorders such as autism and depression.
It’s clear that learning to play an instrument from an early age has its benefits. If you decide to enrol your child in music lessons, you’ll hopefully see some clear advantages.
I paid keyboard at the age of 8 and played it till I was 11 or so. I wasn't any smarter to be honest. It might also because I stopped playing then.
ReplyDeleteMusic helps in improving the attention span and concentration which enables the child to perform better in class and answer questions correctly. Music with good rhythm and tempo can help in the developing children in their initial years by encouraging them to move around which helps children in perfecting their motor skills.
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