Let's start by getting into the head of the human brain and how soon after someone is born does their brain begin to grow. Human brains do most of their growing in the first five years of life, quadrupling from birth to 95 percent of adult size. (source: American Museum of Natural History)
So early teaching is most important to the parent(s) of the child, as they begin to grow into their adolescent years.
What happens to some children once they are born? Some parents (not all) position them in front of a screen and turn on the television and go about their business around the house. As the child sits there, they don't really understand what is going on or words being said. What if you put on a video that had the ABC song played over and over in front of them, then what? According the Kim Gorenflo, Founder of Ready, Set, Read tells parents all the time they need to expose kids to words. So for the youngsters not old enough to enter kindergarten there are musical programs for them too. Partnered with Ready, Set, Read. Silly Bus has music videos that feature the ABC's. The child begins the grasp something about the video, only because it is the ABC song over and over. What happens when children listen to educational music? Judith Hennenberger, Elementary Educator and the author of Stepping Stones said, "They develop their rhythmic and motor coordination, their attention spans and socialization skills. If you have ever seen a little one dance around, I do have to say it so cute. So there is their so-called coordination skills beginning to develop. The capacity for learning is greatest when we are just mere toddlers. So you may be asking what is Silly Bus, then? Well, Silly Bus is a member of the NARAS, a grammy award winner for children's education through music media.
Ok MoMo Now, I definitely like the idea of introducing children to particular music programs at an early age to assist with the growth and development, considering some of the alternatives that are on tv I feel have a debilitating influence on a developing brain.
ReplyDeleteThis is something really cool to read about. I have a 1 year old cousin who I have been trying to do this with and expose her to more educational music. She is just now beginning to "dance", so it's really something to see continually develop.
ReplyDeleteHi Monique, I like your research. Its very interesting when I begin to think about it. It never cross my mind the development of motor skills through dancing and grooving around to music. I always figured I'd just give them a soccer ball to gain their coordination skills.
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