If you have ever been around a baby or small children, you will notice they love to hear songs, rhythm, or music. Whether they are swaying along to a tune or stomping their feet to the beat, children truly enjoy a musical environment. Research has shown that the effect of music on babies extends past enjoyment. Studies have revealed that music affects the physical, emotional, and intellectual development of babies and helps to strengthen cognitive and sensory development.
Music in the Womb
Music's effect on a child starts before birth. Children who have been exposed to classical music while in the womb experience more of a positive change in regards to their physical and mental development. One study showed that during the last few weeks of pregnancy, babies who were exposed to at least 70 hours of classical music were more advanced than babies who did not listen to music. At six months of age, babies with a music stimulus were stronger in motor skills, linguistics, and intellectual development.
Music's Effect on Development
Music has the ability to affect many areas positively in both the mental and physical spheres of a child's brain. Frequently playing music around your baby helps to activate the neural pathways that are responsible for many skills, from creativity to emotional intelligence.
Creativity
A study based out of Hungry looked at 3 to 4 years old who received music and singing lessons. Compared to children with no musical training, the musically inclined children received higher marks in creativity.
Memory
Music has prover to help babies, as young as three months, to remember things they have just learned. Music helps to provide significance to the learning process, making it easier for a baby to remember it.
Language
Music and linguistic development are closely tied together. The two skills require the ability to tell apart similar sounds like "B" and "P." Exposing your baby to music helps differentiate between sounds, decode auditory data, and help enhance their auditory memory. All of these abilities are essential when it comes to language comprehension.
Emotional Intelligence
Our emotional intelligence refers to our ability to recognize emotions and evaluate them. Music can evoke many emotions and impact how we feel, whether that is happy, sad, or relax. Babies who listen to music can detect the moods in other people by how they react to certain music. At the same time, babies are developing their internal process and discovering how the different types of feelings that are evoked by music. 