June 2025 Blog: Music is Magical for Childhood Development

5 Magical Benefits of Music:

1. Caregiver Bond: Babies have been shown to recognize melodies from before birth. Newborns can even distinguish their mother’s voice from other people!  These memorable melodies and voices help babies create bonds with their caregivers. Try this! Sing, hum, or play the same music during your child’s daily routines.
2. Language Development: Repetition is an important part of language learning. Music has a natural repetition of words and musical notes. The repetition of music supports language learning. That is also true for children learning more than one language!  Try this! Replace a word in a familiar song with something new and listen to how long it takes for your child to notice the difference. For example, “The itsy bitsy LION went up the waterspout!”
3. Social Emotional Development: Researchers compared caregivers singing and talking to their babies. The researchers discovered that singing kept babies calmer. Babies learn how to soothe themselves by being soothed. Singing and music helps babies to learn self-soothing skills. Try this! Play calm music during quiet times, or let older children make their own playlists of songs for different emotions.  
4. Motor Development: Music helps with both fine and gross motor skills! Fine motor skills come from singing and playing musical instruments. The tongue and small muscles in hands work hard to make musical melodies. Gross motor skills come from playing musical instruments and keeping rhythm. Try this! Imagination and movement make the song “We Are the Dinosaurs” by The Laurie Berkner Band a blast for all ages.
5. Cognitive Development: Sensory input from music helps make brains stronger! Researchers learned music helps babies’ brains respond to speech, specifically the auditory cortex and prefrontal cortex. These parts of the brain are important for controlling attention and recognizing patterns. Try this! Play your favorite music and songs for your child. Your child’s brain pathways will become strengthened while you get to listen to your favorite tunes! 

The amazing advantages of music go far beyond child development. From cultural exchange to pure entertainment, children can experience immense joy and other benefits from musical experiences. You do not have to be a musician to share this incredible gift with children. A simple song and your voice are enough to bring the magic of music to children. 

Join us for Books and Bops on Mondays at 10:00 AM or sing along with the lullabies in our Baby Nursery exhibit whenever you come to visit. 

See you at the Museum! 

–Zoe Tyler, Education Specialist II 

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Sources 

(https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3813619/) 

(https://education.umd.edu/importance-music-early-childhood)