Geniuses are made, not born - or so parents are told. Research nowadays has proven that we can create a genius out of a child. But is it appropriate that we do so? This is a dilemma faced by parents because they are increasingly consumed by studies that steps could be taken from early infancy to early childhood to increase the brain power of their child. During this period, vital brain connections (millions of nerve cells in every part of the brain area connected by synapses) are made permanent. The number of neurons and synapses are what intelligence researchers have found to be consistently linked to a person’s intellect. Scientists now believe that to achieve the precision of the mature brain, stimulation in the form of movement and sensory experiences during the early developing years is necessary (Greenough & Black, 1992; Shatz, 1992). Conversely, brain connections die if it is not stimulated and studies have shown that the brain size of children who are raised in environmentally deprived facilities with little or no experience of sounds, colors, pictures, interactions, and sights are smaller than those of children who grow up in a rich sensory environment within meaningful relationships.
Despite the parent’s good intention to stimulate the brain development of a child, parents must be careful not to overly stimulate and stress their children with intensive brain training activities. According to an article “The Quest For A Superkid” in the Time Magazine, “the marvelously anarchic institution of childhood has been slowly turning into little more than apprentice adulthood……… Preschoolers who would have spent their time learning simply to play and share are being bombarded with flash cards, educational CD-ROMs and other gadgets designed to teach reading, writing and even second languages. Grade-schoolers are spending longer hours at school, still longer ones sweating over homework and filling what time they have left with a buffet line of outside activities that may or may not build character but definitely build résumés. Kids who once had childhoods now have curriculums; kids who ought to move with the lunatic energy of youth now move with the high purpose of the worker bee.”
In their vigorous attempts to program their children’s brains, many Parents overlook what their children really enjoy. Many have taken a back seat in the social and emotional development of a child while some ignore the tell-tale signs of a stressful, unhappy and socially withdrawn child. Without any effort to improve these areas, a kid may suffer from unnecessarily increased levels of adrenaline and cortisol, unhealthy mental development, over-anxiety, fatigue, sleepless nights and/or emotional turbulence which may have a long-lasting negative impact on a child’s life. Child experts are especially warning parents to select the right kinds of stimulation that is developmentally appropriate and not to frustrate a child by pushing him to perform beyond his level. Performance pressure and milestone comparisons amongst kids can turn learning into a source of anxiety, confirmed Dr. Adele Diamond, PhD, a developmental neuropsychologist and visiting faculty member at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. Benjamin Spock illustrated in his book “Dr Spock on Parenting” an example of excessive competitiveness where parents tried to make “superkids” by teaching children to recognize Beethoven’s picture on a flash card at one year, or to read at the age of two, where there is absolutely no evidence that this has long term benefits. He further gave an example on the effects of pressure on children of Japan, where a shocking and increasing number of elementary school children commit suicide because they fear their grades will not satisfy their parents.
In fact, most experts identified that the basic and fundamental criteria for a child to reach their full potential in life is a secure base and strong parental bond, which is unfortunately lacking in today’s complex society. It is those who have grown up with stunted curiosity and insufficient love who often fail in life, putting aside their academic performances. Read more on Kindermusik’s respond to this.
Kindermusik’s response to “The Quest for a Superkid”
Extracted from www.kindermusik.com
TIME Magazine Article Response
The April 30, 2001 issue of TIME Magazine featured a special section entitled, THE PARENT TRAP. Accompanying articles (The Quest for A Super Kid and What Ever Happened to Play?) took a stance urging parents to let children be children and to focus less on involvement in structured activities and focus more on old fashioned childhood play.
One article called the highly publicized Mozart Effect a myth:
"One of the greatest sources of misunderstanding surrounds the so-called Mozart Effect. For years researchers have found that playing background music can improve spatial skills of listeners, causing many laymen to conclude that creative skills can be boosted too. Last year Harvard University released a study call Project Zero that analyzed 50 years of research on this idea. The studies showed that college students who had listened to music performed better on paper-and-pencil spatial tests, but the effect lasted no more than 15 minutes and then faded away. There was no evidence that the listening improved brain power or artistic skills, and certainly none that suggested babies could realize any
benefit at all."
The articles take a discouraging viewpoint regarding the "phenomenon of the driven child"–a transformation that has seen the average school-age child’s free time (hours left after sleeping, eating, studying and engaging in organized activities) decrease from 40 percent in 1981 to 25 percent in 1997. Children are viewed as being over-scheduled and deprived of "play."
Kindermusik is not about making babies into geniuses. Kindermusik recognizes the parent as the child’s best teacher, and both classes and At Home materials are designed to enhance the parent-child bond through the joys of play, literature, movement, and the highest quality children’s music.
That notion goes hand-in-hand with another statement in TIME, which says:
"…specialists agree that the only thing shown to optimize children’s intellectual potential is a secure, trusting relationship with their parents."
Kindermusik International continues to utilize an array of well-known experts in the field of early childhood development to inform and advise the development of Kindermusik curricula. The result is a program that brings children and parents together for active, engaging, and developmentally appropriate musical fun.
Kindermusik takes the extra step in purposefully integrating parent involvement. And At Home materials can help bring an entire family together through musical activities. Our goal is not to develop a Super Kid, but rather to provide a positive environment that builds a lifelong love of music.
Did you know?
In order to develop a good brain and exceptional thinking skills, you should ensure that your baby’s mental development is ‘whole-brained’ by stimulating your babies naturally with activities that use both right and left side of the brain. The synergetic brain development (commonly called ‘Whole Brain Development/Thinking’) is confirmed by the study of Great Geniuses such as Albert Einstein and
Leonardo da Vinci, who have been referred to as the ultimate user of ‘both sides’ of the brain. In order to develop a good brain and exceptional thinking skills, you must ‘study the art of science and the science of art’.
Reference: “Brain Child” by Tony Buzan
MUSIKHAUS- Quality teaching that goes beyond music
