Why Singing Works—
Brain Research
* Music and language interconnect in the brain.
* Music-making activates numerous areas of the brain.
* Singing develops the brain’s auditory processing.
* Singing develops auditory memory.
* Singing improves the neural encoding of speech.
* Singing and music skills train beat synchronization.
* Singing develops phonological awareness.
How does singing help reading?
Parents who sing to infants promote early language development and auditory neural processing.
Children who can keep a steady beat have higher reading achievement.
Babies pay more attention to mothers when they sing than when they speak.
Discriminating between higher and lower pitches is correlated with phonemic awareness and reading achievement.
Expressive speech (prosody) is correlated with better reading comprehension.
Children with dyslexia have a genetic difference in the way their brains process sound that can be helped by engaging them in rhythmic training.
More research
Click for easy-to-understand slide show about auditory processing and reading
A Special report
Click for summary of research about the effects of music-making on brain development and achievement.
Research Bibliography
Click to request our extensive bibliography