The importance of music and movement in the development of children

Many people think of learning the alphabet, counting and recognizing shapes when they visualize early childhood education.  While all of these goals are very important for children to learn, music and dance can also be helpful. Incorporating music and movement into early childhood education can help young children with language development, social interaction, and growth.

EARLY EDUCATION

Early childhood education, for children 6 and under, is the beginning of a student’s academic experience. This is an important learning and brain development time for children in preparation for the rest of their education.

Playing music and moving to a beat provides stimulating experiences for young children and encourages learning at home or in the classroom. Parents and early childhood teachers can incorporate music and movement into daily routines. In addition, children learn routines to the rhythm of music and movement , which makes them more willing to learn them and associate learning with fun, something essential to be able to learn autonomously and with great motivation towards academic content!

BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

85% of brain development occurs when the child reaches 3 years of age. As children grow , they need to learn specific activities that are important for development. For example, very young children begin to move and crawl to move, and while these activities are part of learning to walk, they are also essential for brain development.

Additionally, patterned activities at home or in the preschool classroom, such as clapping to music or jumping in time to stimulate brain rhythm, stimulate brain function and help the brain organize thoughts and behaviors. In this sense, at home, do not hesitate to put on music and have your child jump and clap his hands so that in this way, his development begins to fly to the rhythm of the music!

IMPROVE THE LANGUAGE

The language has its own tempo;  speaking a language fluently involves regular pauses, stops and starts in the appropriate places . For example, most people don’t speak in a constant rant of words; rather, they insert pauses between sentences, use accents, and increase or decrease the overall speed of speech.

The music has a rhythm and songs for teaching young children with rhythms, or learn to march in time to make a melody can help students learn the rhythm of speech and improve their communication skills .

THE TYPES

Several different types of music and movement activities can be incorporated into early childhood education. Teach songs, like the alphabet, or “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands” while clapping or playing, you can teach rhythm and cadence while learning new words.

Songs involving action and hand gestures that follow the music teach children not only the meaning of some new words, but also how to move and sing at the same time.  Other types of activities to use in the classroom include dancing with streamers or scarves, playing small musical instruments, singing songs in circles, singing while cleaning, marching to the rhythm, or imitating animals. Not only can this be beneficial academically, but it also keeps kids moving, which is good for their little bodies.

At home, if you want your children to have fun, implement “music and dance time” in your routines, and allocate a few minutes of the day to dance and move to the rhythm of the music. Children will have a great time and also your emotional bond will be greatly strengthened.