Almost done

I have one more post to do after this one. My makeup post will be my final blog on this topic. Who knows... Maybe I'll create another blog at some point in my life. :) But for now, I'm doing fine with my scrapbook. :) I have so much to catch up on. But that's besides the point. Our topic for today is encouraging our school systems. :)

In case not everyone knows, music education is in danger from being extinct in high schools. Of course our economy is slowly getting better, but we can't let dropping music education. We must all encourage our school systems to continue with music programs. Can you imagine an elementary school without music? Without recorders?

Almost done

I have one more post to do after this one. My makeup post will be my final blog on this topic. Who knows... Maybe I'll create another blog at some point in my life. :) But for now, I'm doing fine with my scrapbook. :) I have so much to catch up on. But that's besides the point. Our topic for today is encouraging our school systems. :)

In case not everyone knows, music education is in danger from being extinct in high schools. Of course our economy is slowly getting better, but we can't let dropping music education. We must all encourage our school systems to continue with music programs. Can you imagine an elementary school without music? Without recorders?

Money

Money may be an issue when parents want to start their children with music. Especially if they have multiple kids who want to play different instruments. Not only are the instruments expensive, but the private lessons are as well. Who can pay all these expenses unless you have an amazing high paying job? Many people are willing to provide the solution to this problem. If you attend a church then there are many people who are willing to give cheap music lessons to your children. Also, you can talk to people who live close to you who have the instrument that your child wishes to play in case you don't have the money to get the instrument for your child to practice. Then later in life, when you see that your child isn't giving this up, you can invest in an instrument.

Creativity

All kids need creativity in their lives. A good way to do this along with learning is by music. They will learn about authority by listening to the teacher and they will learn a new intelligence entirely. Playing music will help broaden their mind.

This isn't to say that kids who don't play music won't get this experience, they will just get it from a different place.

Lonely kids

Children sometimes have trouble getting involved in activities. Some may not like sports or they may not like to play outside with their friends. Some don't even like video games--or maybe they are too hooked on video games. Music lessons are the perfect solution for all these problems. It gives the children a chance to get involved with something different and something that they don't have to interact with others other than the teacher. Music will give them something they can relate to and understand. If music doesn't seem to solve the problem then at least it gave the child an experience to try to things so that they can find something they can relate to.

Higher test scores

It is a proven fact that those students who play a musical instrument have higher test scores. All parents want their kids to excel. Parents who play music want their kids to play music as well. It is really encouraging to musical parents that these two desires are related! Not only will music help their brain development and confidence levels, but it will also help their test scores.

Or perhaps it isn't the music that helps their test scores. Maybe smarter kids choose to play music rather than students who are academically challenged.

Either way, the best way to determine which is the true answer is to just start your children in music. This way, they will have a hobby, a potential talent, and possibly higher test scores. Colleges will love seeing their extracurricular activities. Music makes a student very well rounded. When their applying to college with music and higher test scores, they will be much more competitive than how they would have been without music.

Journey through music

Many are nervous and have stage fright during the beginning of their music experience. This is the same for all starting experiences whether it's music related or not. Pushing through fear is the only answer to reaching confidence in your actions. A perfect example of this is music.

When I started taking piano lessons I was eight years old. Of course I had played around with the piano before that, but I did not start playing concerts or recitals or take lessons until age eight. I'm sure I was nervous in the beginning, but after getting years under my belt I lost the nervousness. I still get it before playing in front of big crowds, but it always diminishes as soon as I press the first key. The more experience you have with pushing through your fear, the more confidence you have with that action.

Connections

Music teachers have stated that children who take lessons at five years old and do well tend to lose why they learned once they start school. They are not used to less practice time. Some music teachers have also found that children who had played well lost interest during ages 7-9. To avoid this--start music lessons at age 2-3. Then they will have enough under their belt before they start school to where their abilities won't "vanish" and they will have music for a larger part of their life so they won't "plateau" from ages 7-9.

Brain development is so important at a young age. If children take music lessons early on then their musical abilities will grow alongside with their brain. Their brain will know music which will cause music to become a comfort for the child. The child will begin to know and love music. I understand this is not the case for every child, just children who have some sort of musical talent inside of them.

Some mothers put headphones on their pregnant belly to invite their child to the music world very early. These children will get to experience the low murmur of music through their mother's belly. Then once they are born and they hear music in a clear tone they will familiarize with it.

Music and brain development

ScienceDaily (Sep. 20, 2006) — Researchers have found the first evidence that young children who take music lessons show different brain development and improved memory over the course of a year compared to children who do not receive musical training.

Even if children don't want to take music lessons at first, it will help them with their brain development and memory. If they end up hating music and they decide to quit once they are old enough to make such a radical decision, then they will still thank you for the improvements taking music lessons has given them.

Taking music lessons and practicing also sets a standard for the child--you must work hard to get good results. That standard will help them in school and with their career. Children who don't take music lessons (assuming they aren't involved in other lessons) do not get the experience of working to get what you want. This is such an important aspect of life! If children don't learn this, then what will our society be like in 40 years? They will be the ones running this place. How will they run it effectively if they have not experienced that you MUST work hard to get good results?

Not only do many ideas support giving children music lessons at an early age, but they also support them having to work hard each week to prepare for their lesson. There is not one teacher who likes a child to use their lesson time as practice time. They must practice at home and come to rehearse and be critiqued during their lesson. This is how they would learn to work hard--not just by going through the motions.

Musical kids

Having musical children is truly significant for musical parents, but the problem is that not all children have an interest in music. Now the question is, “How will we get our children interested in music?” No one answer will gratify this question.

Many believe that forcing your children to do music is wrong if they do not want to do it, but is it really forcing if they are too young to make such an important decision? Many kids will not want to do music because they would not want to do something that will take away from playtime and that would require practicing.

I hope that my children will be like me and WANT to play hours every day. I still remember the days that seem like yesterday, when I had all the time in the world to practice. One reason why I support the act of compelling kids to learn music so young is for this reason. They do not understand how lucky they are to have that much time available to focus on music—to focus on bettering themselves at one thing they will love. I understand that not all children will love music if their parents do, but they must be pressed to do it until they are old enough to make that decision.

No age is too young to play music

"I want to find out if little kids can do music," my 6 year niece, Ashlyn, said. Starting children on a musical instrument at a very young age is not only an acceptable action, but also a healthy hobby for the child. If a child is even just somewhat interested in music, then the parents should take action and start them on private lessons. If musical talent runs in the family, then the parents should also take action in order to encourage the child's interest in music. No age is too young where the parents couldn’t start them on an instrument.

For example, the parents of a two year old child who enjoys listening to them play music and who likes to mess around on an instrument should pay for private lessons for their child. If the child decides that he/she does not like music after years of trying, then he/she should try to find another hobby.

Nevertheless, I believe that the parents should try to keep the children playing until they are a teenager, and then he/she can choose whether to drop music. The reason for this strict and harsh rule is that if the child starts their first instrument at age 8 like I did, then they will always be behind those who started younger. They will start their second instrument a few years later, and by then many have already been playing that instrument for years.

When I have rehearsal for the Richmond Youth Orchestra Program, I look at the nine year old cellist in my orchestra among the rest of us and I hope that my children get to be as excelled as she is. The only way for a nine year old to be able to play in an advanced orchestra is for their parents to have them start at a very young age. If you let years pass by without learning, you will never be able to get them back. You will always have wasted years where you could have been just that much better. Anybody can quit after one decides one does not like music, but no one can make up for lost years.