There’s no doubt that music brings happiness into just about any scenario, including (and maybe especially) early childhood education settings. While that alone is an excellent contribution, there’s much more to music than many expect, including a range of significant neurological and psychological benefits that bolster learning outcomes for children.

Let’s explore how music interacts with our brains and minds to enhance the learning environment and outcomes for children’s wellbeing and development.

Neurological Impact of Music

Music profoundly influences brain development and function, enhancing areas critical to language, reading, and mathematical skills.

Brain Structure and Function: Music training improves brain development, especially in regions related to language and reading skills. In fact, musicians usually have better skills in recognising and working with sounds because their hearing area in the brain works more effectively.

A study in the Journal of Neuroscience found that children who received music training had enhanced development in the auditory pathways, which are crucial for language and reading skills.

Cognitive Connectivity: Music strengthens the neural networks that are vital for mathematical thinking. The beats and rhythms in music help improve skills related to timing and order, which are important for understanding maths. 

Research on school-based music programs from Frontiers in Psychology highlighted that music education could enhance children’s abstract reasoning skills — pivotal in mathematics and science.

Psychological Effects of Music in Learning

Music’s impact on psychological development creates a supportive learning atmosphere, boosting motivation and emotional wellbeing.

Emotional and Motivational Enhancement: The emotional impact of music can facilitate a positive learning atmosphere, reducing stress and anxiety and improving concentration. This positive atmosphere facilitates better memory retention and recall, according to this publication on the power of music on children’s intellectual and social development. 

Social Cohesion through Music: Collaborative music-making fosters teamwork, empathy, and communication, essential for comprehensive social learning. Music helps forge a strong sense of community within the classroom, vital for emotional and social development.

Music as an Educational Strategy

Incorporating music into the curriculum is not just a fun addition, but a strategic educational approach that enriches cognitive and social skills. That’s why we built our entire Bonkers Beat program around it to help make it easy for other childcare services to embed music into every day.

Music serves as a powerful tool for cognitive development, engaging various brain regions to enhance language, reading, and mathematical abilities.

Beyond cognitive development, music plays a crucial role in nurturing emotional intelligence and social skills. It offers a unique way to express emotions, manage stress, and work collaboratively, laying the foundation for well-rounded development.At Bonkers Beat, we advocate for music’s integral role in educational curriculum, not as an extra activity but as a core component of teaching methodologies. If you’d like to learn more about it and how you can harness the power of music, head to our Bonkers Beat programs website here.