Born to Boogie!

As a 15 year veteran, music educator, I am often asked how young is too young to begin music study. Typically, private instrument study should not begin until the elementary school years. However introducing your child to music concepts can begin much earlier. I recently read about a study on the effects of music and rhythm on babies as young as 5 months old. The findings suggested that babies are born pre-wired to move with rhythm and music. "We also found that the better the children were able to synchronize their movements with the music the more they smiled," said the University of York's Department of Psychology researcher, Dr Zentner.

I have seen similar results with babies even younger than this in my Kindermusik classroom. Musically speaking, this early start to music exploration greatly increases your baby's ability to appreciate a variety of musical styles as well as understand beginning music concepts, such as loud/soft, beat patterns, or fast/slow. Nevertheless, early music exploration and experiences benefit all areas of development in children, from language skills to reasoning, physical development or cognitive awareness. Whatever the developmental benefits, babies were just born to boogie!