Developmental Music Activities

So maybe you’re sold on music for your child’s development, but you don’t know where to start. 

That’s ok! 

Below you will find a list of appropriate ways to use music with your child at all different ages and stages of development. When you’re browsing this list, remember that each child is unique and grows and learns at different paces. Don’t worry if your child is “behind” or “ahead” of the milestone examples provided on this list, especially if your child was born prematurely.

If your child was born prematurely, subtract the number of weeks at which they were born from 40 weeks (term gestation). Take this amount of weeks and subtract it from each of the milestones. 

(For example, if your child was born at 23 weeks, subtract 17 weeks from each milestone. A 6 month old premature baby may be appropriately working on 2-3 month old milestones.)

And that’s ok! 

Also keep in mind that the suggested songs are not limited to one developmental stage. Sing, sing, sing! (And know that repetition is your and your child’s friend!) 

We hope this list gives you some ideas of how to help support your child’s development through music at home! Feel free to bookmark this page so you can reference this page often as your child grows! 

Term Birth (40 Weeks)

Milestones

  • Different types of crying (hungry, tired, hurt)
  • Responds to auditory, visual, and tactile stimuli
  • Flexes and extends arms and legs
  • Is able to calm him/herself

Music Activities

  • Lullabies for sleep and wake times
  • Quiet music with a stable, steady tempo for stimulation
  • Move to action songs
  • Use infant-directed singing (slow, high, great inflection)
  • Insert your child’s name into the song

Song Ideas

  • Hush Little Baby
  • Rock-a-bye Baby
  • All the Pretty Little Horses
  • When You Wish Upon a Star
  • Wake Up Feet

2 Months

Milestones

  • Tracks auditory and visual stimuli
  • Recognizes familiar stimuli
  • Turns head to caregiver’s voice
  • Makes cooing/vowel sounds

Music Activities

  • Position an object (red or black/white) within the infant’s visual field and move it to the beat of the music
  • Replace “ee-i-ee-i” with “oo” vowel sounds

Song Ideas

  • He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands
  • 5 Little Ducks
  • Looby Loo, Shoo Fly
  • Old McDonald

5-6 Months

Milestones

  • Rolls over
  • Crosses over middle to reach and grasp
  • Mimics
  • Makes babbling sounds
  • Initiates speech sounds, uses tone of voice
  • Responds to “no” or changes in voice and novel sounds

Music Activities

  • Sing songs with action words and help the child do the actions
  • Use books of songs and follow along. Point to pictures as you sing
  • Sing chants that rhyme with names of the child and other important people (mama, dada, sister, brother, etc.)
  • Play musical toys/instruments to the side and encourage child to reach for and grasp along with the music

Song Ideas

  • Ten in the Bed
  • Five Little Monkeys
  • Itsy Bitsy Spider
  • Pop! Goes the Weasel
  • One, Two, Buckle My Shoe
  • Hickory Dickory Dock

9-10 Months

Milestones

  • Sits alone
  • Walks holding hands with someone else walking
  • Listens when spoken to
  • Plays pat-a-cake
  • Says “ma-ma, da-da, bye-bye”

Music Activities

  • Encourage independent play. Give the child several objects that make noise and let him/her play along to recorded music
  • Sing songs that name objects. Help the child walk around and touch each object
  • Sing songs with names and replace them with the child’s name. Encourage eye contact when singing/saying the child’s name

Song Ideas

  • Farmer in the Dell
  • Alphabet Song
  • 5 Green, Speckled Frogs
  • Are You Sleeping?
  • A Tisket A Tasket

12-18 Months

Milestones

  • Climbs stairs
  • Feeds self with spoon
  • Sings songs without words
  • Uses 2-word phrases
  • Follows simple directions
  • Demonstrates 20-40 word vocabulary

Music Activities

  • Replace words of familiar songs with words for daily activities like brushing teeth, coming hair, eating, etc.
  • Sing songs with directions like clap hands, stomp feet
  • Play recorded instrumental music and give the child paper and crayons. Sing along to direct drawing
  • Play recorded music or play an instrument and encourage the child to use vocal play or babble along

Song Ideas

  • Little Bunny Foo Foo
  • Bingo
  • London Bridge
  • Shake Your Sillies Out
  • I Love You A Bushel and a Peck
  • Baby Beluga
  • This Little Light of Mine

1 Month

Milestones

  • Lifts head momentarily
  • Can put hand-to-mouth and arms-to-middle
  • Alerts to own name
  • Smiles
  • Interacts in a quiet, alert state
  • Recognizes Caregiver

Music Activities

  • Hold the infant’s hands, palms together, in front of them. Move the hands in time to the music
  • With a partner, sit on either side of the infant and sing name/smile. Take turns singing the child’s name and give the infant time to alert to his/her name and move head side-to-side. Mirror child’s facial expressions
  • Sing and use facial expressions

Song Ideas

  • If You’re Happy & You Know It
  • S-M-I-L-E
  • Mary Had a Little Lamb (use child’s name)
  • You Are My Sunshine
  • Patty-Cake
  • Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

3-4 Months

Milestones

  • Lifts head hen on stomach
  • Reaches, grasps, and moves objects
  • Laughs
  • Vocalizes with interactions, matches sung pitches
  • Balances head in supported sitting
  • Bears some weight on legs

Music Activities

  • Place the infant on his/her stomach and sit in front of him/her. When the child lifts its head, make eye contact and sing. When the head drops, stop singing. Repeat
  • Hold the infant and dance as you sing or play recorded music. Turn, sway, and dip to the beat of the music
  • Give the infant a musical toy and sing in time to his/her movement. Stop singing when he/she stops moving. Repeat.
  • Sing simple songs with few notes (Hot Cross Buns) and match vocalized responses to the infant

Song Ideas

  • This Old Man
  • Three Blind Mice
  • Baa Baa Black Sheep
  • Ring Around the Rosie
  • It’s Raining, It’s Pouring
  • Hot Cross Buns
  • I Love You, You Love Me

7-8 Months

Milestones

  • Pulls up to stand / stands alone
  • Scoots / crawls
  • Feeds self with pincer (pinch) grasp
  • Shows preference for and interest in words with 1st syllable accent/stress
  • Matches notes of simple melodies
  • Plays peek-a-boo

Music Activities

  • Sing children’s songs while clapping, holding hands, doing actions, etc. Encourage the child to do the actions with the words.
  • Sing songs with simple melodies. Sing a phrase and have the child sing back to you. Match the child’s notes and singing style
  • Sing songs with 1 syllable words and emphasize those words (like “Zoom Zoom” and “Ah Ah”)
  • Play musical hide and seek: sing “I see the ____” (Point to object) “Where did it go?” (Cover object with a scarf) “Peek-a-boo” (Pull scarf off object)

Song Ideas

  • Wheels On The Bus
  • If All the Raindrops
  • I’m a Little Teapot
  • Mulberry Bush
  • Zoom, Zoom, Zoom, We’re Going to the Moon
  • Skip To My Lou
  • Cuppycake

11-12 Months

Milestones

  • Walks
  • Drinks from a cup
  • Recognizes words for common objects
  • Moves objects in beat to music
  • Indicates wants by pointing/vocalizing

Music Activities

  • Give the child a safe toy that makes music when blown (kazoo, harmonica, recorder, etc.)  Stay with them while they have the toy. Model rhythmic and/or humming sounds
  • Use pictures and point to them during songs like Alice the Camel
  • Sing A Hunting We Will Go and find objects around the house
  • Give the child instruments to play, and sing about each one as they play. Change words as they change instruments.

Song Ideas

  • Where is Thumbkin
  • Clap, Clap, Clap Your Hands
  • Boom Boom Ain’t It Great To Be Crazy
  • A Hunting We Will Go
  • Alice the Camel
  • Mister Sun

18-24

Milestones

  • Initiates gross motor skills (arms, legs, trunk, whole body)
  • Learns to label 2-5 new objects a day
  • Shares
  • Holds hand of adult to walk across street or parking lot

Music Activities

  • Sing songs that use actions and name body parts. Encourage the child to do the actions along
  • Sing songs that name objects
  • Encourage pretend play by singing songs or playing songs that tell a story while the child plays with toys
  • Replace words of familiar songs with words for skills like crossing the street, sharing, helping

Song Ideas

  • The Ants Go Marching
  • Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes
  • Hokey Pokey
  • Going on a Bear Hunt
  • Going to the Zoo
  • How Much is that Doggie in the Window

Resources

Standley, J., Walworth, D. (2010). Music therapy with premature infants. Research and development interventions (2nd Ed.) Naperville, IL: The American Music Therapy Association

Bronson Methodist Hospital Music Therapy Department, 2016.