As a parent, you probably already know that learning to play a musical instrument will benefit your child in so many ways. An important question we may not always ask is whether your child understands what value it holds for him or her. And even if they know the benefits, do they appreciate its significance?
If you are like me, you want your kid(s) to complete their K-12 education with far more than factual knowledge and an ability to score well on tests. You don’t believe that your child’s success in life depends primarily on cognitive skills — the type of intelligence that is measured on IQ tests and such. You don’t believe that school should be primarily focused on stuffing kids’ brains with as much factual knowledge as possible, but instead is focused on growing skills and mindsets that will last a lifetime. Psychological traits that include:
- The patience to persist at a tough (and perhaps boring) task;
- The ability to delay gratification;
- The curiosity and grit to problem solve;
…just to name just a few. Via NAfME
The first step, however, is to communicate these benefits to your child. And when you do, it’s important to focus on the most important value of learning an instrument – the life skills your child will learn. Improved cognitive skills that result in better grades are great, but the life skills that kids learn will benefit them for their entire lives – not just in the classroom.
That musical instrument your child is holding could be the key to gaining these vital skills, and it’s important for you as the parent to let your child know this. Tony Mazzocchi shares three things parents need to understand and express to their children as soon as they start learning a musical instrument.
- “You are allowed to fail, but it’s your failures that will make you better”
Becoming good at anything in life demands that we struggle – and that’s a good thing. You need to help your child understand the value of the learning process. The destination is much more enjoyable, but it’s the journey that makes you grow.
There are no red pen marks for missed notes in music the way there are on tests — there is nothing to feel bad about when you play something “wrong” in music.
…In your child’s case, they need to sound bad before they sound good; they need to work on things just beyond what they are capable of in order to get better and smarter, and that means they need to make mistakes.
…Learning a musical instrument allows us to grow from our mistakes. Via NAfME
- “Hard work trumps talent!”
Getting good at something through hard work promises much greater fulfillment than being naturally good at it without hard work.
Practicing a skill over and over, the right way, fires circuits in our brains that solidify that skill. Sure, some people find some skills easier at first than others, but the people who practice that skill daily in order to “burn it” into their brain will always far surpass people who don’t practice enough. Practicing a musical instrument helps children learn the universal truth that hard work trumps talent. Via NAfME
- “This is a long-term commitment”
Studies have shown that students who identified that they would play their instrument for longer than one year outperformed students who only committed to one year of playing by up to 400% — practicing the same amount of time if not less! The ideas and mindsets students bring to their musical instrument study have a direct effect on their success, and it’s the parents’ role to set the tone on the first day by not giving their child an “easy out” to quit. Make the decision to invest in your child’s music education for at least a few years of their schooling and you will see results. Via NAfME
Knowing the kind of benefits that music promises, maybe parents should put just as much effort at encouraging their kids to work hard at it like they do other core subjects. Again, like any other subject, your child will treat his or her music education with the same level of value you place on it.
There are not many subjects taught in school that have the potential to give our children the life skills they need to be successful beyond their school lives. Our children can learn how to have grit, motivation, problem-solving skills, flexibility, and character during and after their K-12 schooling — and music is the vehicle to teach these skills.
What if we as parents treated music like any other core subject and expected our children to study it for at least 4 or 5 years? What does “success in school” mean to you and your child? Via NAfME
Featured Image: Image Credit
Fashion and music students interpret the 2015 #NobelPrizes. Exhibit opens 4 Dec @NobelMuseum https://t.co/KWaDgKMzne pic.twitter.com/15ITSeDb6k
— The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) December 1, 2015
“Your child’s experience w/ music will shape their adult lives more than you’ll ever know.” https://t.co/ioGu9bhT1v pic.twitter.com/giE2fbOV4i — NAfME (@NAfME) November 27, 2015
Related Articles:
Learning a musical instrument boosts kids’ brains
In a new study, published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, a child psychiatry team has found that learning a musical instrument could help children to reduce feelings of anxiety, gain a greater control of their emotions and give a stronger focus to their attention.
The authors describe the study as “the largest investigation of the association between playing a musical instrument and brain development.”
The aim of the study was to assess any associations that may exist between playing a musical instrument and cortical thickening in the brain. As children grow up, the outer layer of the brain (cortex) changes in thickness, and certain changes have previously been found by researchers to be associated with altered mental states. Via Medical News Today
Musical Instruments for Kids to Make
I am a big believer in child-led activities. So when my kids saw Curious George make instruments out of recyclables, they were eager to do the same. Of course, I jumped at the chance. We spent the entire afternoon painting, dreaming, and making a whole band’s worth of instruments. Best of all, they have been holding “secret” jam sessions to surprise me on Valentine’s Day with my very own concert.
Here’s how you can make your own musical instruments:
Rainstick:
Materials Used:
– Long Cardboard Tube (we used a paper towel roll)…Via Kids Stuff World
Program Brings Musical Instruments To Kids Who Can’t Afford Them
HOPKINS (WCCO) — More musical instruments are getting into the hands of eager young musicians thanks to a new donation program.
It’s called “Instruments in the Cloud” and its goal is to double that number in the first year.
On Friday, volunteers spent hours fine tuning instruments into playing shape – to give to students eager to join school band program.
“We have clarinets and flutes in different states of repair,” Caitlin Marlotte said.
Marlotte points to cases filled with instruments inside a stall at the Storage Mart in Hopkins. Via CBS Local
