If you want to cultivate your children's strong points, what musical instruments should they learn? How old should they start to learn musical instruments? What are the advantages for children to learn musical instruments compared with their peers? How to make children fall in love with musical instruments and develop their interest?
Research conclusions of Harvard Medical School and Boston University Institute of Education
Harvard Medical School and Boston University Institute of education have jointly conducted a study. They found that children who have continuously studied and played musical instruments for more than five years have obvious differences in cognitive level compared with those who have never touched any musical instrument, especially in auditory discrimination, dexterity of fingers, intelligence of body, and so on The level of vocabulary and non-verbal reasoning ability is generally high. It can be said that children who have been exposed to musical instruments for more than five years in a row tend to have more flexible minds and thinking.
Why five years?
Maybe it takes some time for quantitative change to achieve qualitative change, right? The child said that he had not found a more detailed explanation of the time. However, it is worth mentioning that this is an average value, that is, some children may need more time than five years, and some children may not need five years to get it.
How does learning musical instruments promote children's intellectual growth?
1. Sound stimulates the auditory organs
Just as the intelligence of the fetus develops in contact with the outside sound, the auditory organs of young children, who have frequent contact with different notes for a long time, receive the auditory stimulation brought by high and low audio, promote the development of intelligence, and improve the children's auditory ability and sensitivity to sound. Mozart began to learn piano when he was 3 years old. By the time he performed around Europe at the age of 7, he had already recognized the rising a key or falling e key and was extremely sensitive to sound.
2. High intensity coordinated movement of fingers
Fingers act on musical instruments, high-intensity coordinated movement between high and low tones, different keys, strings, drums and so on. Fingers combine with sound to train high-intensity switching such as flexion, push and touch. In the long run, it can improve the flexibility and coordination of fingers, which is ultimately conducive to the growth of children's intelligence.
3. Music score changes quickly between the input and output of the brain
When children are exposed to musical instruments, they must have music scores. While reading music scores, they need to coordinate with their ears, eyes, mouth and hands to help the music score quickly switch between the input and output of the brain. At the same time, it acts on the language function of the left brain and the image function of the right brain, and trains the brain's reaction ability and sensitivity to the greatest extent.
Many music theory experts say that children should learn musical instruments late rather than early. Why?
First of all, many musical instruments need the strength of fingers. Too young children's finger bones are not fully developed, which may damage their bones too early; In addition, learning musical instruments requires a strong ability of concentration, which is not conducive to the learning of too young children. Generally speaking, it's better to be over 4 years old. Individual musical instruments may require children to learn after 7 or 8 years old, such as saxophone with high vital capacity, or flute that can lead to tooth deformity if they learn too early. Those musical instruments without special requirements for the body, such as violin, can be learned around the age of 4, but if children are interested, they can also start at a younger age.
Learn musical instruments, do not know how to cultivate children's interest? Then don't make trouble
Although every child can learn musical instruments, but children still have to remind: children learn musical instruments, if parents do not know how to cultivate children's interest? It's better not to toss about. Otherwise, most of them have a beginning but no end. Why?
Confucius said, "those who know are not as good as those who are good, and those who are good are not as happy."
It is said that dutar (a kind of Xinjiang musical instrument) is because a little boy of ancient Uygur loved music so much that he could not afford to buy musical instruments because his family was poor. He picked up some gadgets and made them into a simple musical instrument, which made dutar a classic handed down to the present day. Interest makes an ordinary child obsessed with music, but also create a legend, which is the charm of interest. So, where does interest come from?
1. The best way to cultivate initial interest: edification
Those children who say they like a certain musical instrument at first but say they don't like it a few days later are at best just curious, not interested. In order to cultivate children's interest, the most correct way to cultivate children's interest in musical instruments is to let children enjoy more and contact more, and get interest from edification.
Einstein listened to his mother Pauline playing the piano when he was young, and he could listen to it when he was 3 years old. Because of the influence of music, Einstein fell in love with music, and playing musical instruments became Einstein's lifelong hobby.
2. The only way to cultivate long-term interest: positive feedback
Let children have a steady stream of interest, should be children from learning musical instruments to get a sense of achievement, so as to produce a steady stream of power. It's hard for a child to fall in love with musical instruments because he or she studies them badly. But if children learn well, their sense of self achievement and praise from others can make them have endless interest and love. This is actually the positive feedback mechanism in psychology.
Therefore, interest is to have more contact to produce love, but if you want to continue to love, you have to rely on a continuous stream of 'happiness' in the process of contact, as children learn musical instruments.
No child who breaks this rule will eventually be able to make musical instruments their long-term interest.