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5 Easy Things to Do to Support Your Child in Music

Sing to your children: Performing music of any kind relies upon one's ability to "hear" or "sing" something either aloud or internally.  "If you can sing it, you can play it."  Singing for children and encouraging them to sing is the #1 best thing to do for your child’s musical development.  Regardless of your skill level, you are modeling positive habits for your child.  By doing so, you are also modeling an aptitude for music making.  Children who have parents who say, “I can’t sing” or “I don’t sing” are likely going to have the same attitude for the rest of their lives.  Singing is a part of life across all cultures.  We want our children to sing lullabies to their children and to be able to sing happy birthday to their grandchildren.  You don’t have to be an Adele, Aretha Franklin, or a Luciano Pavarotti.  Just sing!

ASK: Ask your child what they did in music class.  If they say, “nothing,” try to dig a little deeper.  See if your child can explain an activity that they did or teach you something that they learned.  This shows that you are interested in what they are doing in music and that it is an important part of their education.

Support and supplement their learning:  If your child expresses an interest in a particular musical activity, help to support this interest.  Seek out opportunities for local children's choirs, camps, or lessons.  If your child studies an instrument, help them to locate music that will help them to grow as independent musicians.  Check the internet or local music stores for songbooks that motivate children to practice and advance their skills because they have chosen the music that they are learning.

Play with Sound:  Fill a small bin with small instruments to make a musical toy box for “playing music” at home.  If you don’t have any instruments you can make them.  Then let them make some noise!  There is definitely a difference between noise and music, but many children need to experiment with sound before they can create music with sound.

Change the Station: Try listening to a variety of music and encourage your children to do so, too.  This will broaden your child’s taste in music and help to develop their musical ears.  There are hundreds of musical genres, so why listen to the same thing all the time?  Your new favorite may just be waiting for you to discover it.  Explore the many internet-based radio plaforms to experience new genres of music.  Like what you hear?  Check out even more great performances on youtube.

Go to Concerts: Turn off the TV and get out there!  Whether it’s live music at a coffee house, a school event, or a concert in the park, going to a concert is a very exciting thing for people of all ages. You don’t have to pay money to see live music, you just need to know where to look.  Check your newspapers and social media for listings.