Parent Handout

www.familycenterpirc.org

A program sponsored by The Family Center of Utah Valley

Music

Musical Development Stages

Birth – 12 months

• 5 days old -discriminates pitches

• 30 days old - makes melodic sounds

• 30 days old - makes rhythmic sounds

• 30 days old – has a three octave range in vocal play

• 60 days old – matches pitch and melodic contour

• 8 months – initiates movement in response to music

1 year old

• Fascinated with loud and soft sounds

• Loves to explore sounds

• Bounces to recorded music

• Will stay still and listen to recorded music

• Begins to create their own songs

• Begins to understand musical decoding

2 year old

• Begins to sing songs of the culture

• Will sing long improvised songs

• Love to play song games with others

• Create a pattern and repeat it over and over

• Attempt to imitate adult patterns

• Move in response to music with greater coordination

• Will quietly attend or listen to music

3 year old

• Begins to show musical preference (musical taste is established)

• Match pitch in mid-range

• Can sing accurately

• Loves to change songs

• Interested in correct way to sing and play instruments.

A child ready for Kindergarten should:

• Know at least 5 rhymes they can recite with vocal flexibility and expression

• Know at least 10 songs they can sing

• Know that music is valued by family members

• Know what music notation looks like and that it represents musical sounds

• Have been sung to often by loving family members

• Have made music together often with family members

• Have had many opportunities to create rhythms on a number of sound sources.

• Have heard a variety of recorded and/or live instrumental music

Why Music and Movement

• It helps to integrate social, cognitive, communicative and physical development.

• It helps a child learn to feel/recognize the steady beat which is important in language development. It helps increase expressive and receptive language skills. When children listen and follow directions of an action song, they are improving their receptive language. When children are singing or writing a song, they are improving their expressive language and vocabulary.

• It helps “lay down” or use new neurological pathways. Music has been shown to involve left, right, front and back portions of the brain. It strengthens the auditory cortex, the area of the brain where sounds are processed and where most learning is originated.

• Music increases self confidence/mastery.

• Sets the child up to be interactive with people, objects and space. Through music your child is encouraged to make eye contact, sing simple songs independently, respond to questions, and handle instruments properly. These skills help children in other social settings.

• It’s fun!

• Movement develops—trust, expression, creativity, imagination, communication, invention, separation, control, boundaries.

• Children learn a variety of concepts through music. Colors, numbers, body awareness, seasons, animals, and directionality are just a few things that can be learned, reviewed and reinforced through music. Children remember concepts better and for a longer time through the use of music.

• Music helps a child with gross and fine motor skills. Through action songs, children learn to coordinate movements, involving arms, legs, and large muscle

(eg. marching, swinging, jumping, running). Learning to play an instrument requires fine motor skills.

• Music provides sensory stimulation. Music involves hearing, seeing, feeling, touching, and moving.

• Music can improve attending behavior. When children enjoy a musical experience, they focus longer and learn more. As their attention spans increase, they are less distracted and more able to control impulses. The longer children pay attention, the more responsible they become for their own behavior.

• Music increases the emotional bond between parent and child.

• The window of opportunity for learning to play an instrument opens in early childhood and extends into the early teens.

Adapted from Parents as Teachers and Susan Kenney Ph.D BYU music workshop