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Within a week of birth, babies and mothers begin a kind of musical storytelling. When mom or dad sing and chant rhymes to their infant, loving exchanges take place. Baby gets that precious sense of well-being.
“Babies are born with a musical readiness that includes a basic sense of timing and rhythm, “ declares Dr. Colwyn Trevarthen, a psycho-biologist. (University of Edinburgh). “Our brains possess a storytelling sense from the beginning. Infants intentionally prompt musical exchanges with adults. Infants know when they’re being invited by a grown up to interact,” Trevarthen says. “Within weeks of birth, mom and baby compose brief musical vignettes that turn up a budding relationship.”
When our children were infants, we began our own musical storytelling with songs and poems. Dad’s favorite was to chant The Grand Old Duke of York while gently bouncing a baby on his knee. And when the baby was older, he’d swoop him up “to the top of the hill.” I loved clapping and tapping to the beat of nursery rhymes at playtime, bedtime, and even in the car. Enjoy the beat! The rewards are fantastic.
Birth of the beat by Bruce Bower, Science News, August 14, 2010
Playing classical music as your child stacks duplos, pinches play dough, or pours water into measuring cups at the kitchen sink adds pleasure to the activity and increases attention. But music listening will not increase your child’s brain power.
“The effect of listening to beloved classical music is at best small and fleeting,” says Dr. Glenn Schellenberg (University of Toronto), in his current research on active musical instruction. “Learning to play is a far better bet.”
“Learning to make music changes the brain and boosts broad academic performance, says psychologist Frances Rauscher. As for The Mozart Effect attributed to her early studies, Rauscher says, “We made no such claim!” “Findings across the board suggest it is spending money and time on music lessons and practice,” that makes a difference in brain development.
However, child psychologists agree that music listening, whether lullabies or symphonies, is soothing and comforting for our little ones. Keep playing music for your baby. Add a tub of sturdy instruments for singing, banging, and plucking. And when the time is right, add musical instruction. Making music is a powerful force for learning.
Playing along with the Mozart effect, by Melissa Healy, Orlando Sentinel March 1, 2010
