While music is usually seen as an add-on to make a child appear well-rounded on a college application, music education from a young age teaches surprising skills children will carry with them into adulthood. Not every music student will be better at math, but they will have more confidence and discipline necessary for any career they choose.
Music teaches some skills that overlap with sports -- teamwork, hand-eye coordination, sense of achievement, etc. -- but your children will be able to play and enjoy an instrument long after they’ve given up field hockey, swimming or baseball.
Language, Logic, and Memory Skills
When children start learning to read music, parents often think this will automatically improve the student’s math abilities. They may not see an improvement immediately, but studying music helps improve brain function overall. Music helps develop auditory skills in the brain, which can be linked to some improvement in language-speech abilities.
However, the improvements in other school subjects may be more closely related to developing memory skills at a young age. Students learn how to read music, memorize what the dots, lines, letters, and other musical symbols mean. Even when they read off sheet music, they need to remember all of these features. For guitar, they’re memorizing the finger patterns for each chord, and drummers remember the different rhythmic patterns to apply in every song.
Several studies also show music helps your brain stay sharp into old age, process multiple things at once, and improve executive function. So while scientists’ opinions (and students’ experiences) vary on the direct correlation between music and math/logic, memorizing small details is a skill they’ll need throughout their school experience.
Self-Confidence and Performance Skills
Children learning any musical instrument will find themselves performing in public from a younger age than other activities, and often as a soloist. With encouragement from private teachers and parents, students perform in a nurturing environment and build self-confidence as they see success. Even when they have a disappointing performance, they learn to bounce back and work harder for the next one.
The relationships with private teachers and ensemble instructors prepares them to receive criticism well and see it as a means of growth towards their goals. Whether or not they ever get over the nervousness of performing, they will learn how to adapt and succeed despite their nerves… something they’ll definitely need in the workplace someday.
Stress Relief
Children are more stressed than ever, and you may think that music lessons add to their activities and stress level. However, the change of pace or one-on-one time of private lessons can calm children down after a stressful day. Music also gives them an outlet to express their emotions that might be difficult in conversation.
We know creativity in the form of music lessons helps adults when they need a break from the pressures of work and life, and you can give your children that gift from a young age.
Creativity and Curiosity
As Artificial Intelligence gets better and better, the need for human creativity increases. By learning music from a young age, students develop creative problem-solving skills and imagination. Many higher-level careers rely on strategy for their everyday work, leading companies to seek out creative thinkers for these roles.
Better Test Scores
While music education does improve a child’s language and logic skills, the direct correlation to better test scores might be the discipline students learn at a young age. When a child learns to practice an instrument every day from a young age, they will learn how to study better every day in school. Essentially, they learn how to learn before they start taking these tests. Through music education, they know that hard work doesn’t always sound great or seem fun, but pays off in the end.
This discipline and perseverance shows up in the higher graduation rates from schools with music programs, and gives children the tools they’ll need as they grow into adults doing difficult things every day.
