Sing and play music with to your little one (0-3months)
It is not surprising that when our musical family of two became a family of three, our little baby was immersed in music from day 1.
Lucas’ first experience of music was daddy serenading him to sleep,
moments after coming home from the hospital.
A forever treasured moment.
Although it seems obvious that musical parents would naturally want to play and sing to their child, there are so many more benefits than just sharing enjoyment of music. I would like to highlight some reasons why all parents should sing and play music to their newborn, even if they have never had any experience of music before.
The 'Mozart Effect'
Playing classical music to newborn babies has been widely regarded as a way of promoting brain development. You may have heard of the term ‘Mozart Effect’ being used alongside this notion. This term is a way of referring the effects of classical music on children’s behaviour, brain function and overall intelligence. Now before you get excited that somehow you will create a ‘super baby genius’ just by playing your newborn classical music, this is unfortunately, rather unlikely. Trust me, I have tried extensively to find any solid research that suggests that the ‘Mozart Effect’ has any long term impact on future intelligence or abilities. Don’t worry though, for as your little one grows, – there is vast and impressive research that learning music, not just listening, has a huge impact on childhood development. Furthermore, research does suggest that playing classical music, with its complex and varied timbre and structure, is an excellent way to stimulate babies’ auditory senses. In fact, a study has shown that babies as young as three months can recognise music that they have heard before as well as pick out musical structure.
We regularly played Lucas a variety of classical music to help stimulate and encourage him to develop his auditory senses. We watched him grow more responsive to music everyday and it was fascinating to see his body movements and facial expressions respond to music.
Sing Sing Sing
If classical music really just isn’t your thing, if you take anything from this blog then please, Sing Sing Sing to your baby.
Newborn babies are surrounded by a whole bunch of stimuli as soon as they are born- new sights, smells and sounds. However, the one sound that they have heard over and over and is very familiar to them is the sound of your voice. Singing to your newborn is a great way to develop a close bond and provides you will an assured way to comfort, soothe and play with your little one. I found singing to Lucas to be one of the only ways to stop him crying in the car when I couldn’t physically comfort him. As he grew older, (2-3months) and was more alert during the day, singing nursery rhythms and being silly became a regular part of our daily play. It was lovely to see him smile and giggle as well as be so focused and attentive. We developed such a close bond through the enjoyment of song. I sang a variety of nursery rhymes to him countless times a day, but these two rhymes below seemed to be his favorite (even now).
'The Wheels on the Bus'
'Old Mac Donald'
Singing and enjoying listening to music with your newborn is a great way to start your musical experience together. As your baby grows out of the newborn stage, continuing musical activities has a much more long lasting and positive effect on their childhood development. So spark an interest and love for music in these early days!
And remember,
‘A child who sings is a happy child’
Please share your thoughts and experiences with your little one. We would love to hear from you!
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