We think our baby is musically gifted. At 8 months, she showed a keen interest in music and babbled the melodies to lullabies we sing to her. She actually learned to talk by singing and has an incredible “ear” for music. Now, at age 4, she sings songs on pitch and plays them with a simple flute we bought her. Are there any tests that measure music talent? Also, we’ve heard that “supercharging” an infant or child’s environment to enhance gifted talent is popular. What’s your opinion?
Supercharging” your daughter’s environment is unnecessary to further enhance her innate giftedness in music. Insufficient stimulation leads to lifelong stunts in normal intellectual growth and cognitive and developmental psychologists have been preaching this assumption for a half century. “Supercharging” a child’s surroundings is popular, because many caring parents mistakenly conclude from this “meager experience” model that lavish experiences will create superior functioning children.
Reading to and playing classical music to a developing embryo; placing geometric, colorful mobiles over the crib; and placing scented candles in the room will not cause synaptic connections to fire away like a spark plug in developing children.
Even though no research demonstrates that playing Mozart and Bach makes babies brighter, Georgia and Tennessee give classical-music CDs to parents and the Florida Legislature mandated that state-run day care centers play such music every day.
Your informal observations and intuition rather than a formal test are probably the best measures of your daughter’s musical intelligence. Is her singing voice pleasant? Is she aware if she’s off-key when singing? Does she enjoy listening to all types of music? Does she already have a desire to play a musical instrument? Do you feel a vacuum would exist in her life without music? Do TV jingles or other tunes run through her mind often? Can she keep the beat to music with a simple percussion instrument or by tapping on the table top? Does she know the tunes to different songs or musical pieces? After hearing a musical selection once or twice, can she sing it back fairly accurately? Does she make tapping sounds or sing little melodies while working or playing?
If you answered “yes” to most of these questions, I suggest you nurture her musical abilities by creating a special “music corner” for her. You can purchase maracas, rattles, and an inexpensive plastic flute, keyboard (toy version), and a small record player. You can build several homemade drums with her from different-sized coffee cans and oatmeal boxes. Keep it fun and create some music with her!
It’s best to nurture, not push, her keen interest in music. Refrain from “teaching” her to read music before her formal reading instruction is well underway. Master teachers of music value “feeling” over mechanics for young children — they contend that forcing creativity upon children will actually kill it. So, respect your daughter’s right to create casual music that flows naturally from her heart. Make it fun at this point; someday, she’ll beg you for formal music lessons — when she’s ready and eager!
I’m about as sharp as a bowling ball regarding musical talent. When attending symphonies with my wife, I observe her nodding her head and smiling while she “feels” the emotions and “sees” the story spawned by the William Tell Overture, while all I can envision is the Lone Ranger and Tonto. I wish your daughter a lifetime of musical enjoyment.
Robert Morton is a retired school psychologist and adjunct professor in the School of Leadership & Policy Studies at Bowling Green State University. Contact him at the Family Journal (www.familyjournal1.blogspot.com).
