Sending your kids to school for the first time, or back-to-school after a long summer break, probably brings up some memories of your own time in school and stirs up a few questions:
- Will my child’s teacher be nice?
- Will my child learn a lot in class?
- Will my child make friends?
My guess is that it’s this last question that will sit with you the most: Will my child make friends?
We all want our kids to do well in life and part of that development is learning to make friends. While you may feel like you have little control over whether or not your child can make friends, there are actually a few things you can do to help your child make friends at school in Dallas-Fort Worth, and it’s through music!
How Can Music Help My Child Make Friends at School?
There are 8 important social skills kids should develop as they grow up that can help them make friends inside or outside of school. These social skills help kids grow and develop into people who are easy and fun to get along with. And it’s an essential part of growing up. It’s called Social Learning.
Below, we will look at each social skill to be developed through Social Learning and talk about how music helps them in that development:
1. Sharing
Playing music is a great way to teach kids about sharing. Sharing a guitar in a group class or playing different parts of a song is not only healthy practice in sharing, but it also shows kids the benefits of what sharing can do - creating a beautiful song.
2. Listening
Active listening is an important skill for kids to develop, and music is a great way to help children learn this important practice in a way that easily captures their attention.
3. Following Directions
Playing music requires students to follow directions, whether that’s listening and watching the music instructor or following the notes and rhythm of the song.
Music is structured. There are rhythms, keys, verse and chorus. These structures are rules to follow and can be followed by kids in a seamless and fun way!
4. Collaborating and Cooperating
Similar to our point on sharing, music requires collaboration and cooperation, particularly when playing music in a group. This is such a crucial social skill for kids to learn. It will help them on sports teams, class at school, group projects, friend groups, etc.
5. Patience
Learning to play music takes patience. Your child will learn this as they take classes and learn to play music. They’ll also get to see the benefits of that patience when they’re finally able to play a song they’ve been practicing for weeks or months.
6. Empathy
Not everyone, adults or kids alike, is naturally empathetic, but music does something to our hearts and brains that can help us become more empathetic people.
In music, students will learn to watch the people around them for subtle cues to timing, volume, and expressiveness in a song. These same social cues can be applied to reading expressions and moods of peers at school and in other social settings.
Studies have shown that music has the power to strengthen our empathy. It has the power to activate many areas of our brain, including the piece that helps us understand what others are thinking and feeling and anticipate how they might behave in the future. Social scientists call this “theory of mind,” which can also be associated and understood as empathy.
7. Respecting Boundaries
While children often play music in groups, it’s a unique discipline that is very individual, too. Children play an instrument on their own, which gives them their own space and freedoms, and, in turn, helps them respect that space and those boundaries in their peers.
8. Positivity
Whether or not your child will walk away from music lessons with a renewed, or new, sense of positivity really depends on the music teacher or instructor your child has. Some music teachers are really great about teaching and emphasizing the importance of positivity in their teaching and as a general rule in life.
Not only will music help your child grow and develop these 8 social skills in their life, but it also has the power to boost their self-confidence so they are better equipped to go out on their own to make friends.
What Can I Do to Help My Child Make Friends Through Music?
Now that we’ve talked about the importance of music for our child’s social development, we wanted to share some practical next steps for how you can incorporate more music into your everyday life for your family.
How Can I Get My Child Involved in Music in Dallas-Fort Worth?
Bring Music into the Home
You don’t have to be a professional or excellent singer to sing along to songs with your kids or play drums on the pots and pans in the kitchen. This form of social togetherness, play and practical use of music at home is so beneficial to our kids - no matter the age!
Play and sing music in the car or your home!
Go to Musical Events in the Community
Look for local music concerts in Dallas-Fort Worth that are family-friendly and plan an evening out together! When you make music a part of what you and your family do together, your child will see and understand its importance in their life.
Enroll Your Child in Music Lessons
At Creative Soul Music School, we offer many different types of music lessons that are suitable for you and your family:
This is a great option for families with young kids, kids being homeschooled who don’t have a musical program at school or a natural way to make friends, kids who have a love for music and want to play all the time (in school and outside of it), and even adults who want to learn to play but never have.
Will Children Make Friends in Music Class?
Just like with any other extracurricular activity, having a shared experience or common interest typically creates an instant bond. Why else do you see the track team hanging out together on the lawn, the football players and cheerleaders in the cafeteria together, and the band kids outside the band room?
When your child spends extended time developing and learning a skill with others, like the discipline and practice of playing music, they will make quick connections with people who make them feel at ease and who they are able to call friends.
