Keeping your kids occupied during March Break isn’t always easy. It doesn’t help that the weather is usually miserable. Caught between winter and spring, the icy rain ends up keeping your family indoors. If you’ve already scheduled time to visit the library and exhausted all of the indoor activities you can think of, here’s one more: beginner music lessons. Getting your kids interested in music won’t just keep March Break boredom away. It’s a lifelong hobby that can improve their academic performance.
A quick fix though it may be, learning to play the guitar can have lasting effects far beyond March Break. Music opens many doors of opportunities for children and adults alike, as the ability to read and play music comes with a surprising number of benefits to their physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Boosts IQ: Studies show that playing music works out the brain in the same areas responsible for computation, problem solving, and language. In these studies, neuroscientists saw a direct increase in the ability to process new information in those who devoted time and effort into their practice. Children who were enrolled in regular music lessons usually scored higher than their non-musical classmates in all tests.
Your child can also see these improvements in their cognitive abilities. As their ability to sight read music advances so will their ability to read and comprehend English and other languages. As they improve their ability to keep time so will their ability to count and solve problems. As they continue to practise their chosen instrument, you’ll notice improvements to their memory.
Increase Discipline & Reduces Stress: Music lessons can affect the way they think in ways that benefit them outside of the classroom, too. Both listening to and playing an instrument has been found to be a huge stress reliever as it has the power to lower heart rate and blood pressure overall. Their lessons can also teach them valuable lessons about patience. Learning an instrument is hard, especially when they’re young. An instrument might not fit to their size, and they don’t have the life experience to teach them how to deal with frustration. If they stick with it, however, they’ll discover what they can accomplish when they put their mind to something; they’ll learn that if they put enough time into their work, they can improve their skills drastically.
Improves Hand-Eye Coordination: Though they may say they can work on their hand-eye coordination by playing video games, your children can strengthen their fine motor skills by playing their instrument. In order to hit the right note, a complex process happens in their brain. They must translate the notes on the page into the correct fingering or embouchure, timing their strokes across the fret or breaths at exactly the right moment. At first, this will be difficult, but over time they’ll find sight reading a new song as easy as tackling a new level on their favourite game.
Prying them away from a device won’t be so hard when you equip them with the best instrument you can find. Spend some time this March deciding which acoustic or electric guitar fits their personality and your budget. The best selection of Fender Guitars in Canada will include those made for younger children and will be specially designed to accommodate their smaller hand-size. If you’re unsure what kind of guitar you should set your children up with, you can always speak with a representative at the nation’s largest music chain. The reps at Long & McQuade can point you in the direction of the best instrument for their skill and age level, so your child starts their musical career on the right foot.
They can also point you in the direction of an instructor that can take them from novice to expert as they grow. Though it’s a quick way to get them out of your hair during March Break, music is a hobby that can help cope with challenges throughout their lives. Equip your kids with the best and see how music can help them grow into confident and capable young adults. The fact that they’ll be occupied during the holiday is just an added bonus.
