Why Music Is So Important to Our Children?
I have seen the child’s self-expressions brought out vividly when music is used and as the child reacts. When a song has a strong emotional impact, children's express themselves by attempting to sing, sway their bodies, dance, or clap. You will note that music becomes an excellent medium for these group experiences and allows interactions in an acceptable and successful non-threatening way to reach children at different levels of abilities.
Almost all children love music to varying degrees and some naturally start to dance when they hear it. I remember a child with cerebral palsy in a wheelchair arise out of his wheelchair, stand up, turn around to grab the wheelchair arm rests and then started to wiggle to the music. The staff said they thought he was deaf and were amazed what happened that day! Others
enjoy clapping along in a group with sing song games. And many enjoy singing
to themselves or with others. I used a kazoo to reach a child who would not talk and whisper and the humming brought out his voice.
This love for music is natural and great for the children. Music is important to the healthy development of the children. The love of music will remain part of their successful experiences! It encourages the growth
of creative impulse in the children. But more than just encouraging creativity
and supporting, it helps to forge important pathways
to the brain which have been shown to improve math and thinking skills. Additionally, children with the music therapy tend to be more capable of developing and controlling their
physical movements. And finally, music is something, which inspires joy, and a
joyful child is a happier, more well developed child.