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WHY AM I PAYING ALL THIS MONEY?!
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THE VALUE OF A CHILD’S MUSIC EDUCATION, AND WHAT IT’S REALLY WORTH ANYWAY
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LET’S FACE IT. There are more important things to teach kids in school these days than music, right??? Let’s just teach them the basics. Math. Science. Reading. They can get their music from CDs and MTV. Did those opening sentences alarm you??? Well, that’s the mindset of many people these days with school budgets being slashed and all of us feeling the pinch of lean economic times. Do children really NEED an education in music??? LET’S TAKE A LOOK!
Few will disagree that the arts teach our children to appreciate the aesthetic beauty of life. But, couldn’t they stare at some flowers and learn that? OK, so maybe it helps them understand emotion and to express creativity and individuality, all helping them grow. But, is that going to cover the bills at the end of the month? Here’s a different take on the subject!
First, if you don’t read music, pick up a music book and read it. Now, pick up a book written in ancient Greek. You will probably not be able to make sense of either. Music is a language. It’s really just black marks on paper until it is interpreted by someone who understands what those black marks mean. Then, it magically becomes music! In this way, children who learn to read music are in fact learning a second language. But, it goes much deeper than that!
TIME magazine recently stated that if school boards understood biology, every student in America would be learning an instrument by age five. It seems music education wires young people for success, teaches them the unteachable and literally makes them smarter. That’s what you pay for when you have your children in music programs. That’s why you are writing that check each month and the truth is, it’s one of the best investments you can possibly make.
Music programs give us future mathematicians. Why? Because music is kept in time. These time “signatures” are subdivided in many different ways. Learning to divide different beats and rhythms is an excellent and fun way to teach kids math (without them even knowing they are learning)! The next paret is a bit trickier.
You see, music is a form of expression. Just playing the notes is a mechanical exercise. But, playing a song
is a means of exploring the abstract. Loud/Soft…..Slow/Fast…..Light/Hard…..to a child, these are
mind-broadening concepts that are not based on cold facts. They are complex and spatial. They are also the difference between A’s and C’s when young people get to High School.
Here’s the bottom line. Next time you are visiting your child’s school, take a look in the band and orchestra room during rehearsal. Notice how it’s full of the good kids? The ones with involved parents like you that ask a lot of questions? These children are engaged and involved in learning individually and as a team. How much is too much to pay for that? Every child plays and every child wins.
And so it becomes increasingly clear that a musical education is invaluable to a child.
The proven benefits your child will experience make music lessons the smart choice.
PSN MUSIC STUDIO / 414-541-8401 / www.psnmusic.com
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