Love, respect, and appreciation for music are easy to share with our children and build life skills at the same time.

During the first years of our child's life, musical skills build self-esteem 
and enhance expression. Musical rhythms spur motor development. 
Learning melodies and words stimulates listening capacity and 
help children develop receptive language. Specific areas of child
development and learning are positively affected by exposure to 
and training in music. Preschoolers given piano and voice 
lessons, for example, have been found to improve dramatically in 
their ability to put together picture puzzles of animals. Playing
the piano at the preschool age influences development of the 
cortex, the part of the brain used for thinking, talking, seeing,
hearing, and creating.  Music training contributes to the ability
to learn or enhance mathematics skills.

Music clearly is a resource for living, growing, and learning 
and can be an integral part of our children's growing experiences. 


Exploring Sound, Rhythm, Melody and Music

Music is controlled movement of sound, in time. 

Music is three basic components: Sound + Rhythm + Melody = Music 


Sound

To help children understand music, it is helpful to look at each 
component separately. First there is sound, one that we make or 
one from another source. A few examples of sound are a bird 
chirping, a teakettle whistling, and a child banging on a pot 
with a spoon. If music were compared to a painting, sound would 
be the background color. In our bodies, sound corresponds with 
our central nervous system. A pleasant sound opens and expands 
us. It can energize or calm us. A shrieking sound puts our 
nerves on edge. Like the background in a painting, sound is 
the first step in creating music.

Here are some ways to explore sound with our children. 

 · Have your children listen to the sounds around them. How many 
   different sounds can they find in the kitchen or backyard? 

 · Encourage children to be creative making sounds. Have them 
   use their voices or household objects to make sound. Allow 
   them to make pretty, irritating, or silly sounds. They are 
   all music if they reflect creative exploration or honest 
   feelings. 


The purpose for creating sound is not necessarily to make 
"beautiful music" but to foster self-expression and open 
up our children's ears to the world around them.



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