Music and parenting: how music helps children

"Music helps children learn and develop a variety of focusing skills. That's a popular academic asset of music that teachers and parents often promote. Plenty of studies exist to encourage early learning of music to initiate and/or improve a variety of childhood development milestones." writes Prin Dumas, freelance writer in the New Jersey and New York area.
 

Make music a part of your parenting
Courtesy of Dumas family album

That's not going to be my point today.

As a musician, when I first met my husband, I was relieved that he had been a disc jockey in his younger years. Even though he is not a musician, this appreciation for music made our relationship possible. I admired his passion for exposing my stepdaughter to music that was no longer on the radio, or moreso, music that had never aired over mainstream radio in the first place. 

With two children in our home, we both agree on using music for a variety of family-oriented values, including sharing ethnic traditions from both sides of the family. It's also our special way of sharing stories from the past or bringing up memories in a more fun manner for the girls. "Remember when this song played at our wedding..." is a great way to celebrate the happy time when my husband, stepdaughter and I became a family. We also enjoy telling stories about our wedding to our youngest who was not there. It's even better that my stepdaughter remembers our wedding after five years, because we've used music to help us all not forget the details of a milestone in our life as a family.
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Source: NJ.com