6 Musical Activities for Babies

Music is a great activity that parents of a child at any age can do. Music ignites areas of child development and skills that help with school development, especially in the areas of language and verbal skills. Music can also help with babies’ brain development. A study from the Institute of Learning and Brain Sciences found that after babies listen to music, their auditory and prefrontal cortexes look different, helping with speech development.

Here are six activities that can help your baby experience the benefits of music:

1. Music and Movement

Music and movement is a classic activity to do with your child. Even when your child cannot move around on their own, there are easy ways to get them moving to the music.

• Swaying from side to side while you stand up, holding them
• Hold your baby in your lap while you rock back and forth
• Lay your baby on their back and move their legs slowly in circles
• Gently dance with your baby securely cradled to your chest

The most important part of music and movement is keeping it simple. Just moving around to the music is a great start. These active movements and the music help your baby learn about rhythm and musical patterns early on.

2. Sitting and Listening to Music

Simply just sitting down with your child and listening to the radio or a CD is the best way to introduce your baby to music. Listening to music will help your child be familiar with different kinds of sounds and help you learn what type of music they like. It can also help your child learn to listen actively, which will teach them to focus on a single thing.

3. Clapping to the Music

Typically babies are not able to clap on their own until they are around 9 months. Before your child can clap by themselves, you can clap to the music while they watch or carefully clap their hands for them. Clapping will help your child feel the rhythm of the music while also encouraging their motor development. If your baby is still you and you do not want to try clapping their hands for them, you can also tap on their tummies to the music or gently pat their back to the music during tummy time.

4. Singing Nursery Rhymes

Singing nursery rhymes is a great way to teach your baby about music. Nursery rhymes are simple and repetitive, and they will encourage your baby to listen to you sing and learn the lyrics. Singing songs to your child can also help reinforce certain behaviors and actions. For example, the song ‘wheels on the bus’ has simple hand motions that go along with it. Singing and making hand motions with your baby will help develop their motor skills and musicality.

5. Introducing Instruments

You can purchase a small drum or keyboard for your baby to play with at any toy store or department store. By using these instruments, your baby will learn audio recognition and the cause and effect of their actions. Babies love anything that makes noise, so they are bound to have a blast with a toy instrument.

6. Sing While Counting Fingers

Work on your child’s pre-math skills while also introducing them to music with counting songs. For example, sing to them ‘five little monkeys jumping on the bed’ while holding up your fingers and hiding a finger each time a monkey falls off the bed. You can also count on their fingers to show them numbers while you sing.

In Conclusion

Music stimulates the senses and positively affects babies’ social and cognitive skills. Singing songs to babies helps them to learn words and rhythm through repetition. Repetition benefits children when you introduce them to new skills or information. Music is also an excellent way to bond with your baby. Dancing together and singing songs to them will help grow your and your child’s connection in a fun way. To learn more about critical developmental activities for your baby involving music, visit The Learning Experience website and find a TLE center near you to schedule a tour!