#laughandsing

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

Bouncing the Beat may influence infants' social preference and helpfulness

"Musical behaviour like dancing, singing, and playing musical instruments encourages high levels of interpersonal coordination, and have been associated with increased group cohesion and social bonding between group members. Specifically, individuals who walk, sing, or tap together are then more helpful, compliant or cooperative in later interactions with one another. The purpose our study was to determine when in childhood this effect starts to influence social behaviour. In our first experiment, it was revealed that 14-month-old infants were more likely to help out an adult stranger after having been bounced to music in synchrony (as opposed to out-of-synchrony) with that person’s movements. We are now investigating whether 10- and 12- month old infants also develop a social preference for someone after moving with that individual in synchrony to music. To see some example videos and sounds from the experiment, click here."

Laurel Trainor, McMasters University

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

“In terms of music in the schools,” Patel says, “it’s interesting that music is often the very first thing to be cut when budgets get tight, and as far as I know, that’s never based on any research or evidence about the impact of music on young children’s lives; it’s based on the intuition that this is sort of a frill.” Gaab, Patel’s fellow neuropsychologist, agrees. “Currently there’s a lot of talking about cutting music out of the curriculum of public and private schools, and I think it may be the wrong way to go,” Gaab says. “It may cut out some of the important aspects, such as to train executive functioning and have fun and emotional engagement at the same time.”

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/07/unpacking-the-science-how-playing-music-changes-the-learning-brain/

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

I’ve been a musician for most of my life. I started piano lessons at age 9 but began developing a love for singing as early as age 4, when I started in the church preschool choir in Miami. Somewhere there’s a photo of me and Monica Nichols fighting to hold the microphone a few years later at a Music Makers performance. I never realized how much those early years of singing helped to develop my ear until I had my own child and started to research the links between child development and early music education.

Every week or so I like to search for early music education research related to the development of toddlers and babies. My most recent find is from the NAEYC, the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The six page article is available in PDF online, and you can read more here: http://www.naeyc.org/files/yc/file/201003/ParlakianWeb0310.pdf.

Scanning the article, I am excited and proud that I found Musikgarten when I did. The curriculum is well-rounded and includes so many of their suggestions!

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

Today I led a group of 4 year olds in a story and sing along at the Sarasota Children's Garden. They were adorable in their pirate and fairy outfits! We danced, played instruments, and sang songs from our Musikgarten curriculum. I weaved the stories together with a silly story I made up about the birthday girl going to the Neverland escorted by Peter Pan.

If you're interested in having me come to your kid's birthday party, just e-mail me [email protected] for a quote. Send me the date, location, time, age of the child, and any special requests. I'll send you a quote ASAP!

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

Music lessons spur emotional and behavioral growth in children, new study says

It’s true!

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

The musician is constantly adjusting decisions on tempo, tone, style, rhythm, phrasing, and feeling – training the brain to become incredibly good at organizing and conducting numerous activities at once. Dedicated practice of this orchestration can have a great payoff for lifelong attention skills, intelligence, and an ability for self-knowledge and expression.

— From A User’s Guide to the Brain, May 31, 2003; Ratey, John J., MD

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

One of the best Ted Talk videos I've ever seen! 

[laughandsingmusic-blog]

Students in high-quality school music education programs score higher on standardized tests compared to students in schools with deficient music education programs, regardless of the socioeconomic level of community. Playing a musical instrument significantly enhances the brainstem's sensitivity to speech sounds. This relates to encoding skills involved with music and language. Experience with music at a young age can "fine-tune" the brains auditory system.

Nature Neuroscience, April 2007