Using Music to support Health and Wellbeing
Listening to Music
Bringing music to your classroom allows children to connect with themselves and others, enabling teachers and children to get in the right frame of mind for teaching and learning. It can stir memories and powerfully resonate with feelings, helping children to express these feelings and communicatewith others. Listening to music we like also causes us to release dopamine – the ultimate feel-good learning neurochemical.
Find out from parents what music the children have been listening to (including favourite films) during the lockdown at home.- Create a playlist for playing during drop off and pick up times as well as at times during the day to create feelings of familiarity and security.
Making Music
Collective music making supportsco-operation, pro-social behaviour, belongingness, relationships, collaborative learning, social advancement, group identity, solidarity, taking turnsand helping others – it can also serve as non-verbal and pre-verballanguage.
- Try playing some instruments along with a video from the YMI YouTube Channel.
- Use these video’s to support music making, singing
and collaboration in your setting.
Moving to Music
Moving to music has benefits for mood and mind- improves energy, buoys mood and lowers stress in ways similar to aerobic exercise. It encourages social bonding- moving and grooving in rhythm with others helps you feel a sense of connection and sameness. Music increases confidence; if you can loosen up enough to dance and move with music in front of people, you’re a lot less likely to feel self-conscious speaking in front of an audience. It also improves fitness, particularly as it involves movement in all directions.
- Join in with the action songs videos on the YMI Youtube channel – YMI Making music.
- Action songs are an important part of moving to music. Try out these songs first and head to our YouTube channel for more.
Don’t stick your Fingers up your Nose
Links to Resources & Information
You can subscribe to our YMI Borders YouTube Channel where we have playlists and learning videos from all the tutors.
This the link to the Early Years Playlist on the channel
For teachers and support staff you can access our YMI Making Music Team pages on Glow. If you are not already member of the Team you can request access.
