If you did not have cover your ears when I sang one of my little ditties you would know what mood I was in or you would learn something. Pleasantly singing your words like “it is time to take a seat” is far more effective than yelling “sit down and shut up!”

OUCH! Did I type that?

Singing the the Children’s Choir when I was 3 years old taught me so many skills such as standing up straight and keeping out of mischief. That singing experience gave me confidence. ( I was the little one on the left behind the man in the glasses. I had no other singing pictures of my own I wanted to use.)

Students who memorize a list to a tune have better recall then simply memorizing. There is an additional part of the brain that is is used when we sing. This gets more of our brain working in a different way. We hear in a different way toa tune versus just the spoken word.

When I was raising my children or working in early childhood education I had a song for EVERTHING to re-direct. A little rhythmic song will stick in a child’s head telling them what was expected of them! Transitioning from one acitivty to another is often not something most children want to do unless there is something in it for them. Kids feel good about them selves when they can confidently follow through with what tasks are expected fo them.

• Clean up the toys
• Go potty
• Wash hands for lunch
• Put on coats to go outside

Pre-school teachers know how well singing the “line-up song” work get get the little ducks in a row in order to count noses for an orderly transition on and off the playground. Busy parents who adopt this singing a little tune or 2 find that getting out the door in the morning with todllers is so much smoother going than if they don’t have a plan of action.

Old familiar tunes that can be adapted to your words:

I’m a Little Teapot

Row, Row, Row Your ‘Boat

BINGO

Old Mac Donald

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

From all my experience working with children I have always kept songs in my ‘bag of magical tricks”. But I had found too many quick sources to scientifically quote from. Thanks to Time Magazine I can copy and a quote written by Stacy Horn. See quote below.

Singing Changes Your Brain

“Group singing has been scientifically proven to lower stress, relieve anxiety, and elevate endorphins…”

The elation may come from endorphins, a hormone released by singing, which is associated with feelings of pleasure. Or it might be from oxytocin, another hormone released during singing, which has been found to alleviate anxiety and stress. Oxytocin also enhances feelings of trust and bonding, which may explain why still more studies have found that singing lessens feelings of depression and loneliness. A very recent study even attempts to make the case that “music evolved as a tool of social living,” and that the pleasure that comes from singing together is our evolutionary reward for coming together cooperatively, instead of hiding alone, every cave-dweller for him or herself.

BusinessBalls.com also lends credibility to the fact that singing is good all of us physcially and mentally.

Body parts mentioned in an article titled Singing-well being beneifits listed:

• muscle tone in neck, face and jaw
• increase oxygen to the brain
• improved muscle tone in the larynx may help with snoring
• stimualtes the thyroid

Singing requires focus to perform whether or not you sing well or not. Singing perks up the ears of the listener as well.

Singing plays an intrical role in spituality as well as stress mangament. Personally I think those spirituality and managemnt of stress go hand in hand.

Why did I write ” you would know what mood I was in”. I occured to me that I had not been singing.

Personally, I have not been singing like I used to sing my little song for everything. Those who are close to me know that when I’m not singing under my breathe that something is very wrong. I have not been feeling well.

Bluntly, I have been crabby over some very stressful living situations in our neighborhood. Now that I have found a better home to move to, I feel a new song coming on…

..As I try to heal my frayed nerves with light at the end of the tunnel, my sweet son has been playing some of our favorite song to get me to sing along with. We have been watching “The Voice” together”.

What would my family do if I sang them a tune? They would breathe a sigh of relief that my mood was getting more hopeful.And now we have sceintific prove that singing is a good thing even if I can’t carry a tune in a mop bucket any more.

With my scanty sceinctific proof that singing a song is good for all of us, how do you think you can apply a singing a little tune is your family’s life?

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