Lesson 7

Your participation in class and at home is powerful! In the first few years of life, the human brain forms more than 1 million new neural connections every second. These early connections provide either a strong or weak foundation for the connections that form later. Purposeful engagement with music at a young age means musical skills will be more easily learned and internalized as these neural connections are established.

Sound Beginnings classes provide many opportunities to learn to keep a steady beat. Reciting chants, imitating rhythm patterns, using simple percussion instruments, and participating in basic body movements like patting, clapping, and marching allow students to experience this foundational rhythmic skill. This skill will not only benefit future music study, but impacts other areas of a child’s development. The ability to move to a steady beat helps develops the ability to coordinate movements with proper timing such as bouncing a ball and catching it, and leads to the ability to speak and read with a smooth cadence.
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Optional home fun activity: Color the apple tree on page 21 in your workbook.

(Remember, these activities are optional but can be a great bonding experience to do with your child during the week.)