Singing teaches communication skills, and it prepares little ones for communicating later in life, as it helps them get used to the structure and inflections of their native language. For toddlers, singing strengthens their lips and tongues, which encourages clear speaking, and also expands their vocabulary and teaches them about creative language and rhyme.
Learning to sing along with their favourite songs is a great way to build up their memory and concentration too. Action songs are a great way to develop your child’s coordination, gross and fine motor skills. Exposure to music enhances a child’s natural ability to decode sounds and words.
By singing nursery rhymes to your child, you can help them to identify sound patterns and learn through repetition. In addition to that, music also helps children anticipate what is coming next in a poem or a song and they know how to put these patterns in a sequence.
By mastering these skills, children build the base of literacy and numeracy. And music usually involves dancing!
Dancing with little ones fosters their sense of physical expression, self-expression and creativity. It is as good for their minds as it is for their bodies. They are discovering their full range of motion, developing body awareness, and fine-tuning their balance, muscle strength, and coordination.
Music engages the brain by stimulating neural pathways associated with abstract thinking, empathy, and even mathematics.
Now that you know all the benefits these activities have, go and have a dance party with your little ones!