EARLY CLASSICAL MUSIC and How it Helps Children

DOES EARLY CLASSICAL MUSIC REALLY HELP CHILDREN?

YES

However, it depends on:

• HOW we use it
• WHAT KIND of music
• WHEN we use it
• WHAT TEMPO we use
• WHICH frequencies are resonating

Children certainly love music.  No one would dispute that, but how can music be used to specifically engage a child's developing brain AND can it impact any other areas of a child's development?

Yes.... and YES!

Music In context with activities: (active use) 

Using music in context with activities is a powerful step for a teacher to make.  By doing this, multiple intelligences and personalities are addressed making it easier for all children to comprehend in their own way.  For example: 

1) Reading while music is playing, known as "surfing the words" creates a "film score" for the reading of any book.  This research-based technique also addresses those children who are visual (looking at the book), those who are auditory (hearing the music and the words), and those who are kinesthetic (acting out what is going on in the book).  

2) How we breathe and how relaxed we feel can be impacted by the kind of music we have on in the background.  In fact, specifically breathing with music is used by many hospitals as a means to deal with stress and depression.

3) Listening to music and becoming those words descriptively with your body, known as the Art form of Embodiment is a great way to help young children acquire more vocabulary in meaningful ways. This is also a key part of the professional development I'm involved with across the country with teachers, who love to play once they remember that we're all children inside!  Using music in combination with kinesthetic strategies is extremely effective.

4) Painting while listening to music is another way to engage multiple learning modalities and the style of music definitely impacts the way in which the students, or adult, paints.

5) Peaceful and calming music can be used to create a sense of safety for children in any classroom and home learning environment.  Any space can be made to feel as if it is outside on a glorious blue-skied day!

Ok... so here are the nuts and bolts answers to the questions I posed at the beginning of this article and WHERE you can get this kind of music without having to measure tempo, frequencies and more. This information is research-based and proven in the field since 2001.  It's also recognized as effective by the National Endowment of the Arts in grant #418-02.  Take this information and USE IT to help children become life long learners.

• HOW we use it - this was answered in part in the body of this article.
• WHAT KIND of music
• Music from the Early Classical Period.  While I use music from all over the world and many different styles, when I want to help children enter the optimal state of learning, I use music from this period.  The days of Handel, Corelli, Mozart, Bach, Haydn and more.  Keep reading for an easy to use resource that does all the homework for you.
• WHEN we use it
• To change any learning environment as a background use
• To change our own mind-body state of being as a more direct use.  For example, listening to slow classical music on your drive into work can have some wonderful effects on your on sense of calm and peace.
• In context with activities as mentioned in this blog.
• During TRANSITION TIMES.... this one is really big.  Using music during transition times acts as a friendly reminder that it's time to clean up, or wash your hands, or line up to go outside.
• WHAT TEMPO we use
• 60 beat per minute music for creating a response that is calm, purposeful, focused and peaceful.
• 120 beat per minute music for creating an elevated energy that is still focused.
• WHICH frequencies are resonating
• In simple terms, high-frequency.  
• High-frequency sound energizes your brain while at the same time releasing muscle tension. This creates a relaxed body and alert mind.  The five instruments which created the highest frequencies are:
• Piano
• Acoustic Guitar
• Flute
• Violin
• Human Voice

Because of my friend and colleague's hard work, you can now get exactly what you want at the EARLY EDUCATION EMPORIUM.

Thank you  Debbie Clement!

I invite you to visit the EEE and check out Enrique's Brain Games, Music and Strategies.  There are only a few Music selections up, each with an attached handout, but there will be more resources going up soon.  The music was produced using world class symphony musicians at specific tempo's and frequencies in mind.  If you're interested in the research behind this music, you'll want to read the book "Living Like a Child" which I authored last year (available in both hard cover and ebook).  I'm so excited that there is a super affordable way to now bring all of this to anyone anywhere in the world.

Happy New Year and may we find ways to use Music to bring peace to our world.