Listening Diet

Many “traditional” children’s songs have a similar sound when it comes to pitches and rhythms, but there is a great, wide world of music available to enjoy with your child!  Early childhood is an important time to expose your child to a wide range of musical sounds, including a variety of instruments, styles, tempi (speeds), and genres.  In addition to playing recordings geared toward children, also consider introducing your child to other kinds of music, such as jazz, blues, country, world music, and classical.

When selecting music to share with your child, variety is key.  Select some music with children singing, some with adults singing, and some with just instruments.   Pay attention to the kinds of music your child responds to, and incorporate these recordings into daily routines.  For Move & Freeze activities, I choose music that has a steady beat and is on the fast side of the continuum; since children's heartbeat is faster than adults', some researchers have found that children respond more strongly to faster music.  I also look for a "fun factor"!

Try playing recorded music and asking your child to respond through moving, engaging in pretend play, or doing some sort of art (coloring, painting, etc).   Identifying emotions, images, or stories in the music and expressing them through other avenues addresses affective learning.

There are also an assortment of children’s books that have accompanying CDs – these are a fun way to learn about the stories behind music and experience the music visually as well as aurally.