Singing lessons for kids: A beginner's guide

Does your child constantly sing along to the radio in the car and insist on tuning in to singing competition shows on TV? Can you always entertain them for a while with a sing-along?

They may show interest in taking online or in-person singing lessons, and if they do, you’ll want to be prepared! It can seem incredibly daunting to face the vast selection of both in-person and virtual singing lessons for kids and try to choose the one that best suits your child’s unique needs.

That’s why we at Wondrfly are here to help, with our all-inclusive guide to enrolling your child in the best singing lessons to help them expand their skills and talents.

How Do Singing Lessons Benefit Kids?

Singing is a deeply enriching activity that helps develop your child’s physical, mental, and emotional growth. Read on to discover the cognitive, creative, and health benefits of singing lessons for your child!

Mental Benefits of Singing Lessons for Kids

Singing promotes concentration, focus, and mental flexibility. Learning to memorize lyrics, melody, and rhythm and execute them all at once requires coordination from various areas of the brain all at once. Exercising this coordination is key to healthy cognitive development and the creation of new neural pathways.

Singing also exposes kids to musical concepts that prime your kids to learn math and language skills. Singing to and with kids from a very early age can boost their ability to absorb vocabulary, number skills, patterns, and the concept of opposites (by singing loud and soft, fast and slow, etc.).

Songs can often be used as a way to make learning more fun. The more you support your child’s love of singing, the easier it is for you to instill important lessons through song!

Physical Benefits of Singing Lessons for Kids

Deep breathing is a crucially important part of learning to sing. Learning how to use their full breath capacity provides your child’s brain and muscles with more oxygen and is a skill that crosses over into many aerobic sports such as yoga and long-distance running.

Singing, like exercise, also produces endorphins, chemicals manufactured by the brain that boost happiness!

For young kids, singing and movement often go hand in hand, further building your kid’s fine and gross motor skills.

Emotional and Social Benefits of Singing Lessons for Kids

Singing is known to boost kids’ moods and confidence.

By learning to care for and strengthen their instruments, kids learn valuable self-care skills that will help them in all aspects of their lives, from athletics to managing stress.

Singing provides a valuable opportunity for self-expression, which helps boost your child’s overall emotional awareness.

The act of singing also prepares your kids to handle pressure and speak in front of others. It strengthens the articulator muscles in the face that promote clear diction. Therefore, singing can help your child become a clearer and more confident communicator.

How do I Choose the Right Singing Lessons for My Child?

When searching for the right singing lessons for kids, it can be difficult to know where to start. You want to find an instructor who will stoke your child’s love of singing while encouraging them to use their voice in a safe, healthy, responsible way. Here are some questions you can ask yourself about any online or in-person singing lessons you find, to assess whether it’s a good match for your child.

• What credentials does the instructor have? Did they pursue a degree in vocal arts or pedagogy (teaching)? How long have they been teaching? What kind of performance experience have they had? Learn as much as you can about the instructor ahead of time, so you’ll know whether they’ll best serve your child’s needs.

• What style or method of vocal production does the instructor teach? There are many different ways of learning to sing. Research the methodology the school or instructor subscribes to, to decide whether it’s a good fit for your child’s learning style and vocal goals.

• Can I make these lessons work, financially and time-wise? Decide whether you can commit to the fees and schedules of the singing lessons you want to enroll your child in. Know your budget and your priorities ahead of time.

• What kind of environment will my child be learning in? Take a tour of the facilities before our child’s first lesson if possible. Or, if your child is interested in online singing lessons, make sure you have a space set aside for them to concentrate on their lessons, a stable internet connection, and no interruptions.

• Is it one-on-one instruction or a group class? Which of these will be most beneficial for your child? Consult with your child on their singing goals to find out.

How do I Prepare My Child for Singing Lessons?

Finally, here are some helpful tips and hints on how to ensure that your child gets the most they can out of their singing lessons.

• Always warm up before lessons! The vocal tract is a system of muscles that absolutely must be warmed up like any other muscle before you use it. If not, you could risk vocal injury!

• Likewise, ensure your kid brings a water bottle to their singing lessons, so they can stay properly hydrated. This is also a major factor in preventing injuries to the vocal cords.

• Don’t neglect their physical activity. A healthy singer is a good singer. Breath support and control are so necessary for singing that any aerobic, cardiovascular exercise your child performs can only help their singing progress!

• Assure them of their improvement and be their number one fan. Emphasize to your child that their voice is unique and special and discourage them from comparing themselves to others.

• Remember, the goal of singing lessons for kids is not to turn your child into a prodigy or pop star. It’s to teach your child how to use their individual, precious voice in the healthiest, most natural way possible.

To help your child reach their full potential in singing, or in any area of their life, check out all the fun learning activities available on Wondrfly. Wondrfly is the best, newest online resource for discovering kids’ activities near you!