Today I welcome Christine Gora of Kids Music Toys with a guest post about the importance of children learning to listen.
There is so much emphasis today on the visual. Young children are bombarded with visual stimuli through television and DVD. While all of this visual entertainment may have its place and provide parents with some welcome “time-out” relief we have to understand the development of children and the development of their linguistic skills to understand the true effect of the visual and the outcome for our children. Over stimulation of the visual may be detrimental.
From babyhood, children are wired for learning language. This is not visually dependent but aurally dependent. Children naturally listen to their mothers and their immediate family. Through this they learn to speak. In fact at this age the learning of language is totally aural. Visual stimuli provide at best a secondary influence. If the predominant stimuli is visual then some children may have trouble developing language skills, simply because they have been diverted from the aural at a stage that this is critically important. The key is to provide the appropriate aural stimuli that can support language development at the time that this is crucial.
Making children aware of sound and prompting them to listen for specific things can play a pivotal part in their aural development. Musical development is very much akin to linguistic development in that both are dependent on listening and aural skills. Encouraging musical activity can focus children on the aural.
Simple music making can facilitate listening and the awareness of the differences between sounds. Some questions you can ask as you make music are:
- Is that sound long or short?
- Is that a wooden or metallic sound?
- Is it a loud or is it a quiet sound?
- Is it fast or is it slow?
- Is it high or is it low?
Baby musical toys and children’s instruments have a key role to play in providing the interest and stimulation for encouraging music making and its subsequent language development. There are the contrasting sounds of bells and castanets, drums and shakers, xylophones and glockenspiels. All waiting for you to play and have fun with your child. No TV screen is required. Just your hands on contribution and the interaction with your child, always asking questions and seeking a response.
The key factor in all of this is the aural dependence. TV, DVD and such visual elements play no role, just the simple aspect of listening and responding.
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Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood 101 as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.
But oh my! Thanks for this opportunity!
I am a huge fan of egg shakers, twist drums, the fish guiro, the rhythm sticks, the plan toys oval xylophone, the voila music box hippo {can you say CUTE!} and I think I will stop now. Certain I have spent $100 there. :)
xx
I lurve the lollypop drum, so cute. I also would love one of those little clarinets. Some castinets, bells and triangles would be great too!
Thankyou for the opportunity! $100 can buy a lot on this site!
Zoe is still adamant that she wants to learn the tambourine as an instrument at school next year - though I secretly know she'll get to play one sooner than that! Tempted to buy her one as a special surprise tho!
Oh they have some lovely CDs too, I know and like the Majors for Minors range. Oh and they have dancing scarves!!!
You know every now and then I think I'd like to teach a kids music class... *sigh* ... will stop drooling and waffling now but what a lovely site!
I would probably get one of these Tatiri clarinets for each of my girls:
http://www.kidsmusictoys.com.au/catalog/item/6778847/6817694.htm
I also saw a lil girl with the maraccas and tamberine sets in ikea on tues and was admiring!
My friends lil girl is turning one soon and i had planned to fill a basket with some lil instruments so this would be perfect.
I would enhance all of this with the marching drum, a triangle, and a fish guiro, and spend any loose change on scarves. Then her second birthday party would feature a marching band starring herself and all her friends, playing Happy Birthday, toddler style. Or at least playing a joyful cacophony in a crazy procession around the lounge room, leading up to the unveiling of Grannie's birthday cake.
Alternately, the scarves would be popular, as they all dance madly as soon as any music starts! I would love a glockenspiel simply for the name, as well as being a great instrument. Bell sticks, recorders, maracas, tamborines..this site is kid music heaven!
I would get a good selection of instruments for my little one: a drum, some bells, a triangle, maracas and a tambourine. She'd definitely have some fun with those!
I would definitely get a clarinet, a guiro, a tambourine and some scarves for each child -sounds like a party to me!
I would pick a big big drum (the Large Marching one) for him. And jingle bell wristbands for my girls, along with a Tatiri glockenspiel for me. Becasue I love the sound of the word glockenspiel!
I have given you a Beautiful Blogger Award. You can claim it here -
http://www.beautifulyoubyjulie.com/2010/02/beautiful-blogger-award.html
Best,
Julie
I have my eye on some triangles, sea egg shakers, twist drums, wooden tambourines and kingdowm bell sticks. My boys would have so much fun with all that! Thank you.
I would have to go with Plain sheer scarfs. This is an actiity I love doing with children; throwing the scarfs up to music. GREAT, now I have to buy some. lol
If I won the voucher I'd get one or the other... probably not both. The Tatiri clarinet looks like a must have. So colourful (which of course is visual) and I'm sure the sounds it makes will be vibrant too. Our home needs a new tambourine after a foot recently when through the one we got for Christmas. Not to worry though - we can still shake it out to a good song :)
Thanks for the chance to win :)
I would get a drum (I like the voila ones), wooden maracas, a wood block (love the sound they make), the star-shaped tamborine, a wooden recorder, and the set of castanets.
Thanks for the competition.
I would love the guitar for my two, from a really young age they have both loved to strum their Pop's guitar. Beyond that, we could always do with another music cd to add to the daily rotation.
And I love the idea of donating some instruments to kindy/playgroup. Our playgroup always has an enthusiastic song time at the end. The kids would adore some castanets and bells!
Thanks for the giveaway!