Music stimulates expression. It is a research, carried out by a team of neuroscientists from Lyon, which leads to this conclusion.
We knew that music softened morals, so it would also facilitate communication, especially for children in difficulty. Géraldine Zamansky, journalist at Health magazine on France 5 and on franceinfo at the weekend, tells us more.
franceinfo: Does music really facilitate expression?
Geraldine Zamansky: Yes, the mere fact of listening to 30 seconds of very rhythmic and regular music has improved 15 children with language disorders. They did much better at repeating complex sentences than remaining silent, or listening to erratic music. Dr. Nathalie Bedoin, one of the coordinators of this study at the Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, specifies that this is the first time that such an improvement has been obtained for children who have a dysphasia problem, less known than dyslexia. .
What difficulties do these children suffer from?
For them, hell is above all grammar: matching the singular or the plural, the feminine or the masculine, conjugating verbs, putting words in the correct order, etc. Their ability to express themselves and understand is therefore hampered. This comes from a difficulty in perceiving the division of a sentence into sub-elements in order to identify them correctly. Remember the joys of the famous subject/verb/complement trio. However, in speaking, the rhythm counts a lot to make this analysis. And this is precisely the weak point of these children. Their brain has trouble perceiving an external rhythm and synchronizing with it to understand it. So you guessed it: listening to music enhances this process.
How do we achieve this result?
By listening to very rhythmic and regular music, their brain is so stimulated that it manages to synchronize with the outside. And it retains that ability in the minutes that follow. This is why children do better. And as to repeat these complex sentences, you have to have understood them, we can speak of real progress. Moreover, the speech therapists who work with Dr. Bedoin’s team are already seeing the effectiveness of music in their sessions. The results of this study published in the famous journal Nature should make it possible to broaden its use.
How?
It’s very simple: the percussion recordings used are shared, online. Teachers can also use it. Because children without any language impairment have passed the same test and music has also improved their results! Everyone can benefit from a little musical brain stimulation. And I also need to quickly tell you about another recent study on music and math this time. It proves that you remember your multiplication tables better by reviewing them to a tune you love. So here it is, if it’s on the holiday program, you can do it while singing…
The study (in English) on Nature.