Author: Kristen Raves

By Dorinne Davis

 

Have you ever thought about your body’s almost automatic response to move when you hear a specific kind of music?  Not all of us are the same so perhaps your preferred music to move to is Rock, or Country, or Rap, or even Classical.  Somewhere inside of you, your body’s desire to move to a beat triggers a response in your brain.  Your cells want to move too.

 

For the developing child, from in utero through early childhood the ability to move to a beat is linked to your brain’s response to speech.  In a study published in The Journal of Neuroscience, September 18, 2014[1][2], the brain’s response to speech was more consistent if the person was better able to move to a beat than those with less rhythm.  This movement helps synchronize the parts of the brain responsible for movement and hearing.

 

Dr. Nina Kraus in this lab study suggests that musical training which emphasizes rhythmical skills will exercise the auditory system.  This training then leads to a strong sound to meaning association which is a skill very important to the success not only for language development but also for learning to read. Her previous studies showed a link between reading ability and beat-keeping ability. Overall her study is one more support for the possible value of early musical training on the developing child’s brain.

 

As a parent of a young child, activities such as saying/singing nursery rhymes, playing repetitive clapping/patting games, or gently bouncing with rhythmical motion when singing simple songs or simple stories can greatly help with the early development of this important natural brain response.  So enjoy the interplay with your child and sing, dance, or simply move to the beat!

 

©Davis2014

 

 

 

[1]http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130917181103.htm

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The post Encourage Your Baby to Move to a Rhythmical Beat appeared first on blog.babyplus.com.

This past Christmas, my husband and I decided to take our newborn (well, 3 month old) to Florida to see her grandparents for Christmas. The idea of being in a car with an infant for 17 hours made us nervous, but we wanted them to be able to spend the holidays with her so we gave it a try.

Packing up the car to begin our journey was a bit hectic. I’d never packed so much to go on a single trip in my life. My husband and I don’t even check a bag when we go on a 2-week vacation. Anyway, we got packed and headed out on the road. As I said, I was a bit hesitant to have her in her car seat for two straight days. Well, the first day, we left around 3:00 p.m. and stopped around 7:00 p.m. to feed her and get her pj’s on. Then back in the car seat she went. We drove until after 10:00 p.m. and stopped at a hotel for the night. We got her out of the car and into her pack-and-play. Not only did she not wake up, she slept through the night.

The next day, we got on the road around 7:00 a.m. We stopped around 10:00 a.m. , 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. to feed her and get gas. Well, the 4:00 p.m. stop was also to clean up her blowout:) We arrived safely at grandma and grandpa’s house around 5:00 p.m. My husband and I couldn’t believe how well she did in the car. We brought just a few toys, which seemed to keep her well entertained. But mostly, she just slept. The drive home was pretty much the same. She is just such a calm baby!

So once again, I’ll sing praises of BabyPlus to everyone I know!

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It’s time for #TBT (Throw Back Thursday)!

I was preparing to hang some new pictures of Avalyn the other day, so I was searching through our photostream. That’s when I came across this picture and just couldn’t believe how much she had changed! I swear there are times when I put her down to bed at night and she wakes up looking like a completely different baby. It’s like she just grows leaps and bounds while she sleeps!

This photo stuck out to me because it was one we took during our first week home, so she was just a few days old. The reason why it stood out was because I couldn’t believe how alert she was. I vaguely remember taking this photo, so at the time I wasn’t aware. I have very rarely ever seen a baby this young look this alert! Again, it hit me…that’s one of the many advantages of BabyPlus. I can never sing enough praises about this prenatal education system. Interested in all the benefits it has to offer? Learn more at babyplus.com.

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I CONTINUE TO BE THANKFUL THAT I USED BABYPLUS DURING MY PREGNANCIES.

LANGUAGE ACQUISITION FOR BOTH OF MY DAUGHTERS WAS EXTREMELY ADVANCED.

ONE PUSH OF A BUTTON WAS ALL THE EFFORT REQUIRED TO PLAY EACH LESSON.

VOLUNTEERING IN THEIR CLASSROOMS ALLOWED ME TO SEE THEIR SCHOOL READINESS IN ACTION.

EACH GIRL IS UNIQUE, YET AMAZING.

BONDING TIME I HAD WITH EACH BABY WAS INCREASED BECAUSE I WAS USING BABYPLUS.

ALERT FROM BIRTH AND SO FOCUSED FROM THE START.

BREASTFEEDING HAPPENED WITHOUT ANY HELP FROM ME IN THE DELIVERY ROOM.

YOU CAN PLAY THE LESSONS SITTING, STANDING DRIVING OR DOING YOUR DAILY ACTIVITIES.

PRENATAL STIMULATION AIDS THEIR COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT FOR A LIFETIME.

LOVE HOW INTERESTED THEY BOTH ARE IN LEARNING AND THE WORLD AROUND THEM.

UNTIL YOU SEE THE END RESULT YOU MAY BE SKEPTICAL, BUT IT IS WORTH THE INVESTMENT.

SUCH A SIMPLE ACT WAS THE BEST GIFT I COULD GIVE TO MY GIRLS.

 

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Parents can often read and react to their child’s emotional states.  Parents often understand a baby’s cry or laugh as illness, fear, hunger, or more. A study reported on ABC news in 2005[1], shared that Allan Schore, a leading neuroscientist at the University of California, Los Angeles’ Center for Culture, Brain, and Development pointed out that the connection between parent and child during the first year of life affects a child’s psychological state and plays a role in physically shaping the brain. His own research concluded that the parent-child interaction plays a key role in shaping the right side of the infant’s brain.

 

The right side of the brain is stimulated when interacting with others, especially care-givers. When a care-giver interacts with an infant, the child’s brain is being affected, shaping emotional responses.  This interaction appears to help the child’s ability to handle stress and feel emotionally secure.

 

Shore also shares that the child’s brain is not only shaped by ‘genetics but also the experience of the last trimester of pregnancy through the child’s first year and a half of life’. At 7 months in utero, the ear’s neurological system is developed, supporting the stimulation both to the left hemisphere of the brain, important for speech and language development, and the right hemisphere of the brain, important for this emotional connection.  The child’s brain will be shaped by these early stimulations and personal attachments.

 

As the parent, you do not need to wait until your child is born to talk, sing or interact with them.  Start interacting while you are pregnant.  Singing lays the underlying tonal and rhythm patterns of the world, but talking provides the smaller, subtler sound changes that can also support your child’s emotional well-being. Have fun with your baby.  Chat, talk, sing and interact with them.  Enjoy the experience!

 

 

 

 

 

©Davis 2014

 

[1] http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/print?id=1362076

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