7 Benefits of Learning an Instrument for Children

Cognitive development, enhanced social skills, improved mental health — the benefits of learning an instrument go far beyond the practice room. Discover how introducing your child to music lessons can transform their life — and yours.

Your child no doubt has plenty of options for after-school activities, from sports to academic clubs and more. If you’re wondering whether to add a musical instrument to the mix, in most cases the answer is a resounding yes.

Think about it: When was the last time you met an adult who regretted learning a musical instrument? Most likely never. On the other hand, how many people have you heard lament that they never learned to play? Much more common.

Music is an integral part of the human experience, and the benefits it provides extend into cognitive ability, mental health and other key areas of wellness. Here are a few reasons why you should enroll your child in music lessons as soon as they express an interest.

Music Improves Academic Skills

Did you know music and math are intertwined? Scales and chords are defined by their intervals. Melody and harmony are full of recognizable, repeatable patterns that are mathematical in nature. In rhythm, fractions are essential. A whole note is broken down into half notes, quarter notes, eighth notes, sixteenth notes and more. Time signatures are notational symbols that look like fractions but function differently; the top number tells you how many beats are in each measure, and the bottom number indicates the note value that constitutes one beat.

In many musical genres, form or song structure is shaped by patterns of geometry and symmetry, with repeating sections made up of varying numbers of measures. The bottom line is that the more your child studies music, the more mathematical concepts they’ll explore and absorb.

Learning to play an instrument also has remarkable cognitive benefits for your child. The repetition involved with reading music, hearing and identifying intervals, learning technique and practicing pieces strengthens memory. And when young musicians develop their musical ear, they’re using some of the same faculties involved with learning to read words and speak a new language.

To say it again, studying an instrument is simply good for the brain. As your child practices, they’ll be applying focused attention, multitasking, solving problems — all sorts of invaluable tools that will carry over into their schoolwork. Music will also improve your child’s reaction time and decision-making skills, through reading music and collaborating with other musicians — especially if they’re improvising. Finally, music has been known to enhance neuroplasticity, or the brain’s continuing ability to reinvent its pathways to learn new things and take on new challenges.

Learning to Play an Instrument Builds Confidence

Music lessons are a safe and constructive place for your child to learn to accept criticism. Turning corrective feedback into positive change helps build self-confidence, and before you know it your child will be learning from their mistakes. At our open houses, Music & Arts often features a free introductory group music lesson. This group lesson will help your child understand that everyone needs support when they’re learning and that there’s always room for improvement. A group-lesson situation also enables them to help others gain skills by using compassionate, thoughtful guidance.

Music Can Improve Social Skills

Music is often called the universal language, and learning to play an instrument will enlarge your child’s social circle. At Music & Arts, they’ll form an important bond through the mentorship of their teacher. Once your child begins participating in public performances and recitals, they’ll become more comfortable in social situations. Throughout the year, your local Music & Arts hosts a series of recitals and open-mic nights to showcase their lesson students.

As your child progresses in music, they’ll meet new people at music camps and other events — not to mention their school ensembles or groups they form with their peers. These situations will teach them to collaborate effectively, negotiate a variety of personalities and use teamwork to achieve larger goals.

Learning to Play an Instrument Helps Instill Discipline

Allotting a specific amount of uninterrupted time to practice every day will help your child become more disciplined — and this skill can be used in virtually every other area of their life, including test prep. Pursuing an instrument also helps your child gain time-management skills, since they’ll need to fit practice sessions in and among sports, friends, school and other activities if they want to excel.

Think of your child’s instrument as an anti-smartphone. Instead of the quick, easy hits of dopamine they receive through social media and games, their instrument requires patience, diligence, focus and goal setting. In practice and especially performance, they’ll need to pinpoint areas in need of improvement and decide on the best ways to make those necessary changes.

Learning to play an instrument is a long, evolving series of small victories that add up to an impressive skill. In time, your child will come to understand how the most satisfying moments are rooted in commitment and dedication.

Your Child Can Develop Physical Skills by Playing an Instrument

Thus far we’ve talked about the mental benefits of learning to play music, but it can also improve your child’s physical well being. Most instruments, not only the piano, will improve coordination and dexterity in the fingers and hands, as well as posture. But some offer more intense workouts.

Consider what happens behind the drum kit. The steady, often intense pulse offers cardiovascular conditioning. The focus on developing interdependence among all four limbs provides something like a full-body workout, including the core. What about woodwind and brasswind instruments? Their focus on breath technique will put your child’s respiratory strength and lung capacity through their paces.

Now imagine the exercise that ensues when playing percussion or a wind instrument in a marching band. Feel the burn!

Learning to Play an Instrument Can Reduce Stress and Anxiety

Learning to play music provides a mental-health workout as well. To start, playing an instrument lowers the body’s level of cortisol, or the stress hormone, while providing a healthy method for increasing dopamine, the “feel-good” neurotransmitter that induces pleasure after certain behaviors. What’s that mean? Playing music will calm your child’s nervous system while lifting their mood in a sustained and enriching way — rather than through the instant gratification of screen time. “Mindfulness” has become a buzzword in mental health in recent years, and it means homing in on the here and now, free of judgment and distraction. Practicing music, with its emphasis on mental focus, the present moment and constructive progress, is a great way to practice mindfulness.

Music is a means of self-expression, of course, and a way that your child can transform negative emotions into positive energy. If they’re feeling sad or angry, they can play a sad or angry piece, in a sad or angry way. Better yet, they can write an original piece that will help them navigate the complex emotions of childhood and adolescence.

Working hard and advancing on an instrument will also improve your child’s self-esteem and sense of worth, and give them a unique identity they can be proud of. What’s more, practicing music at home leads to rock bands, concert bands, orchestras and other ensembles, which mean new friends, less isolation and the joy of human connectivity.

Learning to Play a Musical Instrument Is Fun!

Whether it’s the satisfaction of finally playing a new piece without mistakes or the camaraderie of preparing for a group performance, most children enjoy the experience of learning an instrument. If you’d like your child to take part in an after-school activity that’s fun, fosters creativity, promotes happiness and helps develop their physical and social skills, enroll them in music lessons today.

Find the perfect music teacher for your family at Music & Arts!