Some Potential Benefits Of Music Summer Camps

Parents love sending kids to camps in part because they are a way to get the kids out of the house and involved in some type of activity. However, a little kid-free time for parents isn't the only potential benefit when it comes to sending kids to music summer camps.

Benefits of Music Education

Music summer camps include music education, which in and of itself has a wide variety of benefits besides just learning to sing or play an instrument. Music education may also help improve language development, increase IQ, improve standardized test scores, improve spatial-temporal skills and improve both the discipline and the self-confidence of the child involved. It can be very empowering to work hard at a new skill and then master it. Playing together in a band also helps children learn how to work well with others, an essential skill in today's world.

Increases Screen-Free Time

Kids typically spend seven or more hours per day in front of some type of screen, which is way more than the recommended limit of two hours per day. Summer camps typically don't allow kids to spend much, if any, time in front of screens. This means that the kids get a break from all that time spent watching TV, playing video games or being otherwise involved with an electronic device. Increasing screen-free time may help to make it less likely a child becomes obese, improve the quality of their sleep, decrease attention problems and even improve school performance. It's possible to use a summer camp as a jumping off point for decreasing screen time throughout the year, as they'll get used to doing other things instead of playing on the computer or watching TV. Two hours of screen time may even seem like a lot after having none for a part of the summer.

Other Potential Benefits

Spending time at a music summer camp gives kids a chance to meet new people and make new friends. It also keeps their brains active during the summer. Kids that don't participate in any academic activity over the summer may lose as much as 2.6 months' worth of what was learned during the previous school year. As with any summer camp, music summer camps typically involve a lot of physical activity, perhaps including swimming, hiking or playing games. The kids don't spend all of their time playing instruments. They also usually may involve time doing other typical summer camp activities, such as arts and crafts, singing around the campfire while making s'mores and just spending time with friends.