More Music, Please!

Asparagus may get a yucky face, but what if you offer extra servings of music? “More Please!” they shout. Good music just makes life better all-around.  It is glue for early childhood memories, and developing brains thrive on it. Have you considered upping the minimum daily requirement of music in your children’s diet?

“The Itsy Bitsy Spider” song is one of my earliest favorites. Remember the giddy pride the first time your fingers cooperated to make the spider climb forefinger to thumb, up, up, up? I also remember standing in a circle on the multi-colored oval braided rug in our Sunday school room as we sang and played “The Farmer in the Dell.” What songs bring back your childhood scenes? Tub songs? Bedtime songs? Car trip songs?  Consider adding those or a few new ones to your child’s daily routine.  You’ll be providing happy memories that will stick with them for life.

Even more important than placing tunes in their musical scrapbook, daily music will help your kids’ brains develop. But if you come to Kindermusik, you already knew that!  Kindermusik is based on the science of how music positively influences brain growth.  More sensory stimulation equals more neural connections, which is how intelligence develops. To get the most out of your Kindermusik investment, do your musical homework with your kids.  It’s fun that pays back.

Delight, pleasure, fun, joy….music adds all these to life. When we travelled, my parents sang their generation of pop songs. We enthusiastically learned them and sang along. (My mischievous father taught us his Navy drinking songs, too!)  What silly fun, all the more memorable for its benign naughtiness and how quickly  music made the miles whizz by.

When doing chores, “whistle while you work” turned drudgery to fun.  In my teen years, cleaning up the kitchen was my nightly job. I put on my favorite music (turned up loud, of course), which made the task fun. Named “Music-To-Do-Dishes-By,” the practice became a memorable part our family tradition. How has music sprinkled happiness into chapters of your life?  Consider passing those pleasures on to your children.

Quite simply, music makes life better. It creates happy memories and it’s good for us! Why not be more intentional about your child’s musical intake? Add more music into the nooks and crannies of your life. Sing, hum, whistle. Expose your kids to concerts in the park, classic CD’s–like Disney musicals, Tom Chapin, Farmer Jason, Putnamayo, and your own favorite playlist.  The possibilities are endless.

Cook up some music at home, too. As a child, an old ice cream tub held my cymbals, a triangle, tambourine, bongo drums, maracas and recorder flute, which made for endless musical creativity. Buy a keyboard, or a piano, or guitar so they can experiment. Musical fun helps create a happy family life.

 Make your house a place where your children can easily dish up all the music they want.

-posted by Donna Detweiler who is glad that through the library, radio, and community events, incorporating good music into her children’s lives can be very affordable!