Foster literacy: Sing today, read forever

What if there were something simple, natural and free that could help develop every child’s brain for language and literacy before age 5? What if children loved it?

The answer is singing.

Research shows that the way the brain processes and remembers sound is foundational to language and literacy, and that singing and basic music-making skills help strengthen those abilities. The process begins before birth. By five months in the womb, a fetus can hear sounds. Babies “warble” with pitch and rhythm long before they speak words, and young children naturally respond to music by singing and moving.

Research has also found connections between music skills and reading achievement. Children who cannot keep a steady beat are more likely to struggle with reading, while strong rhythm and pitch skills are correlated with better literacy development. 

Based on a large body of research, Minnesota has an opportunity to launch a musical fitness movement to help every child become ready to read by kindergarten.

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Why is this important? According to the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress, 39% of Minnesota fourth graders could not read at a basic level. While many factors contribute to reading success, brain development during the early years—especially from birth to age three — plays a critical role. By analyzing how 3-year-olds process sound, neuroscientists can predict whether they will struggle with reading later on. By singing and practicing basic music-making skills, we strengthen auditory processing and auditory memory. 

First, let’s dispel some myths.

Myth #1: Music is a special talent that only some people possess.

Not true. Music is a human ability that develops through practice. Every culture makes music, and every baby is born with the capacity to be musical. Songs combine language, pitch, rhythm, repetition, and memory, making them a powerful and engaging way to learn language.

Myth #2: Adults who can’t keep a beat or sing in tune are hopeless.

Also false. Adults can improve their rhythm and pitch skills by practicing with apps, programs or lessons. Like any skill, musical fitness grows with experience.

Sixty-five years ago, many Americans believed that physical exercise was only for athletes. Then, in 1960 the President’s Council on Physical Fitness launched a national campaign and program that began to change how Americans viewed exercise. Today, we understand that physical fitness benefits everyone.

It’s time to think about music in a similar way — not merely as entertainment, but as an essential part of healthy child development. Musical fitness means being able to keep a steady beat, clap rhythms, match pitches and sing songs in tune. These skills can be developed by nearly every child through playful practice.

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Don’t worry if you don’t feel confident in your own musical abilities. Children don’t care how you sound. They simply love hearing the voices of the people who care about them.

Here are a few easy ways to get started:

• Sing throughout the day.
• Make up rhythmic chants, raps, and rhymes.
• Use a sing-song voice during daily routines.
• Sing the same greeting song each day.
• Sing lullabies at bedtime.
• Have children pat a steady beat while chanting poems or singing songs.
• Use a free metronome app to practice keeping the beat.
• Sing a pitch and invite children to match it using “oo.”
• Use a pitch pipe app to hear different pitches, and try to match them.
• Sing or play two pitches and ask which one is higher.
• Play singing games such as “The Wheels on the Bus” with movements timed with the beat.
• Sing illustrated song tale books — available in many languages. 

The Minnesota nonprofit Rock ‘n’ Read Project has developed free resources for parents and early childhood educators: Brain Train activities, a Musical Fitness Assessment, and a research bibliography. A Song A Day: Brain Prep for Pre-Readers is a curriculum that uses singing and basic music-making to develop 17 foundational skills that support reading readiness.

Minnesota has an opportunity to become a national leader. By embracing singing and musical fitness in homes, childcare programs, and schools, we can help more children arrive at kindergarten ready to learn—and ready to read.

Sing today, read forever!

Ann C. Kay is the education coordinator for the Rock ‘n’ Read Project and a retired elementary music teacher and instructor of music and classroom teachers.

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