Music is an integral part of any well-rounded childhood education. Music isn’t just fun — it’s highly beneficial for your child’s brain. At Crème de la Crème, we have a dedicated music studio to get your child involved in song, dance, and instruments. Schedule a tour of your nearest Crème de la Crème facility to check out the music studio for yourself.

The Benefits of Music for Children

Music offers mental, social, and emotional benefits for children. You can use music to build connections with your child, prepare them for playtime, and engage their brain.

Enhancing Brain Development

Listening to music helps improve brain development in numerous ways. In one study, children who listened to music during social play demonstrated better pattern recognition and a greater ability to predict rhythmic patterns than those who didn’t. These skills are essential for language development, meaning that listening to music or playing with musical instruments can directly help your child as they learn to speak and communicate.

Bonding With Others

Anyone who has been to a great concert knows the sensation of bonding with other audience members over the shared experience, and the science backs up this experience. A study of adults listening to music showed that the attendees’ brain rhythms synchronized with one another better when they were listening to live music than when the music was prerecorded. 

This can transfer to experiences with your children. Experiencing live music together creates a bonding experience for anyone present, whether you’re at a singalong session at the library with your family or your child is taking part in a music class at Crème de la Crème.

Bonding also occurs when individuals move together to the beat of a song. In one study, 14-month-old children were put in a room with unfamiliar adults while music played. The toddlers were more likely to retrieve dropped objects for the adults who bounced with them in synchrony than with adults who bounced out of sync with the music.

Promoting the Right Mood

Music is great for setting the mood. Lullabies have long been a busy parent or carer’s go-to method for soothing overtired infants into sleep. Upbeat music can engage children and keep them interested in an interactive activity. Selecting a lively song can help prevent your child from drifting off to sleep or cause them to sit up and pay attention, making it a powerful tool for nearly any part of the day.

Activating the Brain

Music has a unique ability to activate the right and left sides of the brain, which is important for absorbing new information. Singing about key learning concepts, such as counting or the alphabet, can help young children retain the information. 

Fostering a love of music in children from a young age can also help enhance their learning later in life. Listening to music while studying improves students’ ability to absorb information, which is a trick your child can easily turn to in later grades and even in college to enhance performance.

Essential Songs To Teach Kids

Teaching your children classic songs is a great bonding experience. These timeless tunes can also help your kids bond with others since it’s likely that many of their friends will know the same songs. Let’s explore some popular songs to sing with your child at home so you can experience some of the excitement and education your kids will receive at Crème de la Crème.

The Name Game

The Name Game song is a great choice any time you’re introducing your child to a new group of people. Teach your child this rhyme so they can use it to get to know their new classmates at Crème de la Crème. The rhyme goes like this:

Jack, Jack bo-back

Banana-fana fo-fack

Fee-fi-mo-mack

Jack!

The rhyme can be adapted for the name of almost any new friend. For example, the first line for a child named Tim would be “Tim, Tim bo-bim.”

Old MacDonald Had a Farm

Old MacDonald is a classic song used to teach children about animals. You can make the farm as large and exotic as you want, which is part of the fun. The order and appearance of the animals are random, so you can let your child introduce their favorites. If you need a refresher on this classic, the core of the song is:

Old MacDonald had a farm

Eee i ee i oh

And on his farm he had some (animals)

Ee i ee i oh

With a (sound) (sound) here

And a (sound) (sound) there

Here a (sound), there a (sound)

Everywhere a (sound) (sound)

Old MacDonald had a farm

Ee i ee i oh.

Five Little Ducks

Five Little Ducks is a classic counting song that provides a great learning opportunity. With the right-hand movements, this is a highly engaging activity. The song begins with five ducks:

Five little ducks went swimming one day

Over the hills and far away

Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack”

But only four little ducks came back.

Hold up your fingers for the ducks and swim them away behind your back for each round. Decrease the number of ducks until they’re all gone, then sing the final round with, “Old mother duck went out one day,” for the first line and a triumphant last line singing, “And ALL of those five little ducks came back.”

The Alphabet Song

The traditional alphabet song is essential when your child is learning their ABCs. Teachers often return to this song to help kids as they proceed into alphabetizing. If you’re feeling a little burnt out on the original alphabet song, there are plenty of alphabet spinoffs to explore. Just dive into the abundance of online videos offering modern updates and alternatives.

Enroll Your Child in Music Classes

If you’re ready to explore the benefits of music education for your child, contact your local Crème de la Crème today. Tour your nearest facility and see all that Crème de la Crème has to offer, including our music, art, and creative movement studios. We’re dedicated to providing an enriching experience for every student.

Photo by Jelleke Vanooteghem on Unsplash