One of the best things you can do for a growing child is to get them music lessons, helping them learn an instrument and discover the joys of music. Summer music lessons can help them stay busy over the summer, and private music lessons or music classes throughout the school year can help them gradually refine their skills.
But why is this the case? Why are music lessons so valuable for growing children?
Staying Busy
It's perfectly fine for children to have free, unstructured time; in fact, it's good for them. But there is always the possibility of “too much of a good thing.” If your children have nothing to do, if they're not engaged with any specific activities, or if they find themselves bored too frequently, they may feel understimulated and/or develop at a slower rate. Music lessons will give your kids something productive to do, both during the lesson and after it.
Music and Academic Performance
There’s a strong association between music participation and academic achievement. Kids who study music are more likely to get good grades in school and achieve more later in life. There are many possible explanations for this. It could be because music stimulates the brain in specific ways and leads to a more robust development of certain intellectual abilities or skills. It could be because higher levels of creativity necessary for understanding and playing music also lead to better critical thinking and versatility in a challenging academic environment. Whatever the case, teaching music to your child could set them up for a bright academic future.
Physical Development
Learning an instrument requires significant physical coordination. Your kids will be practicing physical abilities in several different ways, which vary depending on the instrument they're playing. All instruments require you to practice some kind of dexterity, usually in your fingers, hands, arms, and face. Some instruments, especially percussion instruments, practically qualify as exercise.
Social Development
Playing music is a social activity, for the most part. If your child is taking private lessons, they might be working with a teacher one on one. They might also be playing with a group of people, and they will certainly be practicing with likeminded peers on a regular basis. This is an excellent opportunity to make new friendships, build lasting bonds, and help your child learn the importance of collaboration and mutual respect.
Creativity Development
Learning music can make you more creative, and in several ways. Once you start learning more about music, you'll become better capable of creating new music of your own; whether you're composing new work or just improvising some new riffs, you'll be engaging your creative muscles and thinking in new ways. You'll also need to think creatively when it comes to finding new ways to practice, finding ways to implement new techniques, and finding ways to play music more fluidly together as a group. All this experience with creativity will make your child a more creative thinker overall.
Discipline and Patience
Not even the best prodigies have been able to master an instrument overnight. Everyone starts off as a horrible, hopeless instrument player. It's only over time, through discipline and patience, that you're able to gradually build your skills and become adept. This is a challenging experience, and sometimes a frustrating one for beginners. But once your children have had the experience of seeing their discipline and patience pay off, they'll be able to be disciplined and patient in other areas of life.
Music Appreciation
Teaching a child music early will give them a sense of music appreciation. They're going to have a better understanding of the songs they hear on a daily basis, and they may be prompted to seek out new forms of musical art they otherwise wouldn't consider. It's an excellent gateway you can use to show your child more about the artistic wonders of the world – and you might be setting them up for a lifelong passion.
Music Opportunities in the Future
Once you start learning some of the basics of music, other instruments become easier to learn. If you learn piano as a small child, you'll have an easier time learning the saxophone in middle school. If you learn the trumpet in middle school, you'll have an easier time learning the guitar in college. Early music lessons give your child a foundation they can use for any musical pursuit in the future.
Confidence and Self-Esteem
Learning how to play an instrument will build confidence and self-esteem. Once your child starts to realize how far they've been able to progress, they'll feel excellent about their accomplishments – and will be more likely to carry that confidence into their next set of life goals.
Music lessons are some of the best ways to support your children as they learn, grow, and develop. With the right instructor, music lessons are enlightening, enriching, and engaging – all while giving your child more creative power and a robust set of physical, mental, and social opportunities for growth.
