How to develop a child's musical and rhythmic perception

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

We are surrounded by a world of diverse sounds! We hear speech, nature, music and various noises. Our ear is a very sensitive and selective organ. In a room of people talking, it is able to ignore a large amount of noise and only pick up the speech of one person. And the conductor's ear works wonders in general - it distinguishes not only individual instruments in a symphony orchestra, but also their rhythmic pattern.

All this is possible thanks to a trained ear, in other words, a developed auditory and especially musical-rhythmic perception. Yulia Deryabkina, a music teacher and defectologist of the highest qualification category, a consultant of the "Gift to Children" project, told us how to develop it in your child from an early age.

Why do some have it, while others do not?

At the time of birth, children have already formed all the senses. But why, when children grow up, some speak well and expressively, while others - monotonously and unemotionally; some can sing, while others do not; some move beautifully and rhythmically, while others - stiffly and angularly; some are incorrigible dreamers, while others cannot come up with anything without the help of an adult; for some, the world is full of harmonious sounds and music brings joy, while for others, music is just sound signals that act by ear? The answer is simple: parents did not pay enough attention to the development of musical and rhythmic perception in their baby at an early age.

But surely every mother noticed the child's reaction to music: a smile, fading, concentration, searching for a sound source or rhythmic tremors of arms and legs.

After all, music is not only a powerful stimulus for emotional communication, it is an important component of the mental and intellectual development of a baby.

Why is music so important to a child?

At first, it is known that a child can learn to speak only when he is among people. If he loses this communication, then after 3 years of age it is extremely difficult to teach him to talk. There are many similarities between music and speech. Musical sounds, like speech, are perceived by the ear. The intonation coloring of speech is conveyed using timbre, pitch, voice strength, speech tempo, accents and pauses. Musical intonation has the same capabilities. Therefore, the musical language must also be assimilated by a person in early childhood.

Rhythm organizes not only auditory or visual impressions, but also develops coordination of movements.

Everyone knows that with age, visual perception begins to play a greater role, and less attention is paid to hearing. So what's going on? Kids grow up and become indifferent to this sea of sounds that surrounds us. They have poorly developed auditory attention, auditory memory, and no sense of rhythm. Such children do not know how to sing, they have no desire to listen to music and get joy from it. As a rule, such children have insufficiently developed general and fine motor skills.

SecondlyAs you know, the two hemispheres of our brain have different functions. The left hemisphere is responsible for logic, the right one for aesthetics. And what unites the work of the two hemispheres? RHYTHM! It organizes not only auditory or visual impressions, but also develops coordination of movements, helps the baby to feel his body and even breathe correctly and evenly. In the future, articulation, smoothness and clarity of speech depend on the sense of rhythm. But outside of music, the sense of rhythm can neither awaken nor develop.

How to develop musical and rhythmic perception

1. It is very important to develop musical and rhythmic perception at an early age, because the smaller the child, the more he is receptive to the sound of the world around him.
2. The main stimulus for the development of a child's musical and rhythmic perception is the human voice, so not only talk to him, but also be sure to sing. It can be lullabies or various other songs that accompany the game and your communication with the baby.
3. Music should be quiet, calm and melodic. Start listening from 1 minute.
4. When choosing electronic musical toys, remember that the sound should not be mechanical, squeaky, harsh and rhythmically not expressed.
5. It is important to teach the kid musical and rhythmic games with a rattle, drum, pipe, metallophone. Watch our videos that will help you organize music games with your child to develop musical and rhythmic perception