How to Know If Your Child Has Musical Talent

From the early stages in their lives, children are exposed to music. It could be the lullabies their parents sing to put them to sleep, the nursery rhymes they listen to enthusiastically while eating, or the songs aired on the television or played on mobile phones. Whatever be the type, music becomes an integral part of a child’s formative years and is loved by everyone. But as parents, how do you identify if your child has got musical talent or a special inclination towards music? Here are some signs you should look for in your child to know if he/she is musically gifted.

Musically-responsive movements

Start exposing your child to different music genres – from country music and classical music to rock and roll, the Blues, jazz, folk songs, and more. Include them all in your list to help your child identify what he/she likes. His/her preference will be usually displayed by how his/her body responds to music.

If your child has inherent musical talent, he/she will feel all the elements of music. Since a young child doesn’t have the technical or vocal skills on instrument to match this feeling and showcase it, he/she will let his/her body do the talking. As parents, you should watch your child closely when they listen to music. Notice if they move, match the song’s beat, try to use body parts to express the emotion and style of the music being played, or have movements that flow with the musical piece’s melodic contour. Any, some, or all of these would indicate your child’s musical talent.

Looking out for music in everyday life

If your child tries to find musical sounds in his/her surroundings, he/she may possess natural musical intelligence. Not sure what this means? Try to notice if your child does any or some of these:

· Tapping feet or objects in a pattern

· Getting attracted to the sounds of the world

· Echoing or singing back the sounds he/she hears (such as the bell, birds singing, etc.)

· Using his/her voice to add to another sound in his/her surroundings

Responding to bad and good sounds

You could make your child listen to bad and good performances. You could even play music that’s out of tune in certain spots. Most children (and even adults) won’t notice poor tuning unless it’s truly obvious. But if your child has high aural awareness, he/she will respond disapprovingly to out-of-tune music or performances.

Wrapping up

The signs above would let you identify how musically inclined or talented your child is. And once you know it, get him/her enrolled in a suitable online music class to encourage his/her musical journey.