No less than the Wall Street Journal recently published an article (October 10th) that summarizes the latest research into the notion that children who actively participate in music-making are, well, just plain smarter and become better students. The article also mentions that, somewhere in passing, that making music is just plain fun, so music study is sort of a win-win scenario.
Read the whole article here. online.wsj.com/news/article_email/a-musical-fix-for-american-schoolsonline.wsj.com/news/article_email/a-musical-fix-for-american-schools
Recent research finds more and more evidence that young children's brain development is stimulated in a plethora of ways with musical activities.
Here is a recent article from ABC News about how beneficial formal music instruction can be for your child.
Music Lessons Linked to Lasting Brain Benefits
Music lessons early in life may have lasting benefits on the brain, a new study found.
A recent article from the Sacramento Bee about a study that connects music-making with increased empathy in children.
Music makes kids more empathetic, research finds
Exposure to music can makes kids more empathetic, a recent study has found.
This article, on the web site dottedmusic.com is called Benefits of Classical Music Training although I think it would be more appropriate to call it Formal Music Training. Whatever. In any case, here are some points to consider about what methodology to use when learning how to play a musical instrument. (And your own voice counts as a musical instrument--what is more musical than us humans!)