Neuroscience has established a clear link between music and language acquisition. To put it simply, learning music in the early years of school can help children lay the foundations of reading.

In the brain, neural networks involved in processing musical information and developing language overlap. From an evolutionary point of view, the processing of music developed in the brain long before that of language, which relied on these already created networks to develop and then transmit languages .

At birth, babies learn languages ​​as if they were music. They react to their own rhythm and melody before they understand the meaning of the words.

Toddlers imitate the speech they hear based on these elements of rhythm and sounds, hence the singing style that characterizes their way of speaking.

Rhythms and intonations

The basis of reading is speaking, and in order to learn to speak children must first be able to distinguish words from other sounds. Music helps them do it.

Reading consists of giving meaning to the words spotted on the page. A number of skills intersect to help us bring out these meanings, including the ability to discriminate between the sounds that make up a word and ease of reading.

This ease covers the ability to set the intonation and accentuate the sentence according to what it expresses, from anger to joy, as well as to choose the correct inflections, question or exclamation for example. These advanced skills in processing auditory information are reinforced by musical training .

Children undergoing musical initiation have better reading comprehension skills . Music can also give us valuable clues to understand a child’s reading difficulties. Research has shown that children of three and four who are able to keep pace with a steady pace become better readers by age five than those who are not.

Signs and sounds

Language acquisition begins at birth , when parents talk to and sing songs to their baby. It is mainly through the voice that babies bond with their parents and those around them. Singing is therefore both a way to get closer to them and to exercise their hearing skills.

By taking toddlers each week to well-structured music lessons, they are allowed to develop these skills so important for learning to read. It is essential that classes include activities that combine song, movement and reactions to sounds and silence. There must be good quality toys and instruments.

When starting school, a crucial period for language development, children appreciate following this type of activity on a daily basis. The nursery rhymes, songs and rhythms that children learn in nursery and kindergarten actually prepare them for reading.

Children undergoing musical initiation have better reading comprehension skills . Music can also give us valuable clues to understand a child’s reading difficulties. Research has shown that children of three and four who are able to keep pace with a steady pace become better readers by age five than those who are not.

Signs and sounds

Language acquisition begins at birth , when parents talk to and sing songs to their baby. It is mainly through the voice that babies bond with their parents and those around them. Singing is therefore both a way to get closer to them and to exercise their hearing skills.

By taking toddlers each week to well-structured music lessons, they are allowed to develop these skills so important for learning to read. It is essential that classes include activities that combine song, movement and reactions to sounds and silence. There must be good quality toys and instruments.

When starting school, a crucial period for language development, children appreciate following this type of activity on a daily basis. The nursery rhymes, songs and rhythms that children learn in nursery and kindergarten actually prepare them for reading.

Sound environments are not limited to the noise level of the classroom. They also depend on the type of sounds. Brakes that squeal every three minutes, loud air conditioning, background music, all of these impact a child’s learning abilities.

Social issues

Our auditory processing network is our brain’s first and largest information gathering system. Music can strengthen the biological foundations of language. It prepares children for learning to read and can help them along the way.

Unfortunately, it is disadvantaged students who are least likely to learn music in their school, while research shows that they are among the audiences that would benefit the most.

At a time when we are looking for ways to improve children’s reading results, the development of music education in kindergarten and primary school is an avenue that should not be overlooked.

Author Bio: Anita Collins is an Adjunct Assistant Professor and Misty Adoniou is an Associate Professor in Language, Literacy and TESL both at the University of Canberra