The Benefits of Music and Movement at Preschool

The Benefits of Music and Movement at Preschool

"Music is an amazing way to engage a child of any age. When used in conjunction with movement, music has numerous benefits across all aspect of development. Read on to learn about the duo’s many benefits and begin to use it with your little one today!"(1)

Music creates connection

Children need to move their bodies to engage their brains. Moving along to music is not only fun but also a great way to create new pathwyas and connections in the brain to reinforce movement patterns and fundmental milestones such as hopping, skipping and jumping. "Music is one way for young people to connect with themselves, but it is also a bridge with others. Through music, we can intoduce children to the richness and diversity of the human family and to the myriad rhythms of life"(2)

"Music encourages speech

Your (child) gets exposed to the structure of language, word and letter sounds, and also various vocabulary and rhymes from the get-go. It encourages them to sing along, and eventually make up their own songs. It also helps them learn how to articulate certain sounds and apply what they’ve learned routinely.

Music and movements build confidence.

Many kids shy away from music and dancing when surrounded by others. They feel silly or insecure. But, when introduced to it in conjunction with being very young, children learn to love the two and gain lots of confidence performing around others. They may even turn out to be better public speakers as they age since they were encouraged to let loose and allow the music and movements to break out of their shell. Consider building a platform in your home to serve as a stage so they can perform for you and their siblings and friends.

The duo also fine tunes coordination and large and small motor skills.

Toddlers need to use grasping, swinging, clasping, and other fine motor skills when playing instruments. When they dance, they target their large motor skills and are more likely to master milestones such as jumping, skipping, trotting, and running. They also have better balance over all.

Music and movement helps develop rhythm, and understand sequence, a series of beats or steps, and it also helps improve memory. 

Kids can remember verses, sounds of notes, can memorize lines and choruses. Kids who are exposed to music and movement early on are also more likely to play instruments long term, over time; and just be more musically inclined over all. They also tend to be better readers because they have a strong understanding of rhythm within a sentence or stanza when reading poetry.

Kids will love the entertainment of playing along to a favorite song, singing to nursery rhymes, and putting on a show-and parents will love the fact that they aren’t relying on television or technology in order for their child to feel engaged. Singing, dancing, and playing instruments is also a fun activity for parents because it allows them to actively participate in a hands on activity with their kids..."(1)

(1) 2022 Bright Beginnings Preschool.

(2) Daniel A. Carp