Music is the universal language that can reach beyond just about any barrier, including age. Learning to create beautiful sounds from the touch of a finger has shown to have a very powerful influence on the development of our brains, especially beginning at an early age. With the combination of movement, coordination, listening, hearing, and of course, dedication to improving, imagine just how much your child can learn and grow.
Whether it’s the school band, church choir, or even at preschool, immersing your children in music good and early can benefit them in countless ways. If you’ve been considering signing your child up for music lessons, you may be wondering when is a good age to start. Here’s what to know:
The Magic Age of 3
You child can begin comprehending and learning from music as early as three years old. This is due to the fact that the circuits in the human brain begin to mature around this age. By initiating your child’s brain with an influx of sound from an instrument, it can significantly enhance the development of their brain in a variety of ways.
At this point since the development is still early, initial classes may involve more free movement and experiments with sounds and instruments. This allows them to gain an understanding of movement of their body, together with the correlation of the sounds that they are making. It also enables your child to find what particular instrument and sound that they enjoy most.
Allow Them to Choose their Instrument
When your child reaches the age of 5, it’s a good time to introduce them into a more formal class structure. Of course, many parents have undoubtedly experienced the frustration of signing their child up to learn an instrument only to be faced with the gruelling pouts and temper tantrums when you child refuses to participate in the lesson.
To avoid this, it’s important to give your child the opportunity to find what it is that they enjoy learning and listening to in order to make that process a whole lot easier.
Respect That Each Child Learns Differently
When it comes down to it, all children learn differently. So when you take your child to their first music lesson, don’t be surprised if they don’t seem too enthused for the first initial period. The reality is that we each have our individual styles and timeframe as to what we will absorb, enjoy and even dislike.
Size, strength, and motor skills may also be a factor. Your child may be interested in playing guitar, but he or she may not have the manual dexterity yet to grip the neck or place enough pressure on the strings, even with a child-size instrument. They may want to play drums, but be too small to reach the bass pedal yet. Many parents start their children off with piano lessons to learn the basics of music and music theory before transitioning to another instrument down the road.
The best way to get your child involved in music is by starting them off good and early. Once your child has reached the age of 3, take advantage of that time by introducing them to different sounds and instruments so that they can grow and develop an enthusiast affinity for learning through music.
Resound School of Music offers at-home music lessons to students through the Metro Vancouver area, including Burnaby, Surrey, and Coquitlam. We specialize in piano, guitar, bass, drums, violin, and voice lessons. If you have any questions about starting your child in lessons, please get in touch or give us a call at (604) 574-0406.
