How Performing Arts Benefit Early Learning

How the Performing Arts Benefits Early Childhood Education?

By: Dr. Verna Benjamin Lambert

The performing arts help young kids build language skills, social and emotional skills, motor coordination and confidence, and music in particular gives children an early feel for patterns that show up later in math. Music, dance and drama do this by turning learning into something children can hear, move to and act out.

That doesn't mean every toddler needs a stage. It means the songs, movement games and pretend play that young children already love are doing real developmental work. Here's what that work looks like, area by area and age by age.

What are the benefits of performing arts for kids?

The American Academy of Pediatrics notes on its HealthyChildren.org page about play that activities involving music and art support cognitive, social and emotional and multisensory skills, and it encourages parents to let children sing, dance and move to the beat. NAEYC, the national association for early childhood educators, says on its music and songs resource page that music plays an important role in young children's development and learning.

Here's how those benefits break down.

Language and listening skills

Songs are packed with rhyme, repetition and rhythm, which is exactly how young brains pick up the sounds of language. A toddler who can't say a full sentence can often sing a whole chorus. Drama and pretend play add new vocabulary and practice taking turns in conversation.

Research backs this up. In a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in June 2018, 4 and 5 year olds in Beijing who took piano lessons for six months got better at telling apart words that differ by a single sound, according to a summary from MIT. The researchers didn't find a change in IQ or attention, so the gain was specific to processing speech sounds. That's a useful, honest finding: music sharpens listening, but it isn't a magic IQ booster.

Social and emotional growth

Group music and dance ask children to wait, watch, follow a cue and move together. Those are early self regulation skills. Drama lets kids try on feelings safely. A child who plays the brave lion or the worried mouse is practicing empathy and naming emotions.

Performing in a group also gives kids a sense of belonging. Everyone has a part, and the show needs all of them.

Motor skills and body awareness

Dance is a full body workout for little ones. Tap builds rhythm and foot coordination. Ballet builds balance, posture and control. Hip hop and creative movement build big, joyful gross motor skills. Even infants benefit from bouncing to a beat, shaking an instrument and reaching for sounds.

Over time, kids learn where their bodies are in space, which helps with everything from climbing stairs to sitting still at a table.

Confidence and self expression

Standing up to sing a line or take a bow is a big deal at age 4. Small, supported moments on stage teach kids that they can be seen and heard, and that mistakes are part of practice. In our experience, the quiet child who whispers a line in September often surprises everyone by spring.

Early math through music

Music is full of patterns. Counting beats, clapping rhythms, repeating a verse and noticing high and low notes all give children hands on practice with sequence, pattern and counting. It's not a replacement for math lessons, but it's a friendly first step into the way math thinks.

What does music, dance and drama look like at each age?

Performing arts in early childhood looks different at 6 months than it does at 5 years. The table below shows typical activities by age and how they map to classes at Benjamin Preparatory School.

Age	Music	Dance and movement	Drama and performance	Benjamin Prep class
6 weeks to 12 months	Singing, listening, shaking instruments	Bouncing, swaying, reaching to sound	Story time, faces and voices	Tiny Dreamers (music and movement, story time, instruments)
12 to 24 months	Simple songs with actions	Early dance and athletic play	Copying sounds and gestures	Tiny Tappers (early music, beginning dance)
2 to 3 years	Rhythm games, call and response	First tap and ballet classes	Pretend play, short rhymes	Tip Top Toddlers (first tap and ballet)
3 to 4 years	Group singing, steady beat	Dance with simple routines	Speaking and stage performance	Shooting Stars (stage performance, speech, dance)
4 to 5 years	Learning songs for shows	Choreographed routines	Several performances a year, helping create original works	Show Kids (stage performances)

You can see every age group and what each class covers on our Children Served page.

Is music and movement good for toddlers?

Yes. Music and movement for toddlers is one of the most natural ways to build language, coordination and listening at the same time. Toddlers learn by doing, and a song with hand motions gives them something to hear, say and do all at once.

At this age, it's not about getting the steps right. It's about joining in. A 2 year old in a first tap class is learning to follow a rhythm, take turns and stay with a group, and those are the same skills they'll use at circle time.

Is dance good for preschoolers?

Dance for preschoolers builds strength, balance and focus while giving kids a structured way to burn energy. It also introduces the idea of practice: you try a step, you try again and it gets easier. That lesson carries straight into learning to read and write.

Do the performing arts replace academics?

No, and they shouldn't. Most of the time, the arts work best as a partner to academics, not a substitute. Honestly, a program that's all songs and no letters, numbers or problem solving isn't giving children the full picture they need for kindergarten.

At Benjamin Prep, the arts sit inside a full academic day. Our academic program covers reading readiness, early math, science and foreign language, and our STEAM+ approach puts the arts right next to science, technology, engineering and math, all viewed through the lens of scripture. Children learn through play too, which we cover in our post on play based preschool learning.

If you'd like to see the arts and academics side by side, schedule a visit to our Vinings classrooms.

How does Benjamin Prep teach performing arts?

Our performing arts program includes classes in tap, ballet, inspired movement, hip hop, liturgical dance, music and Bible. Every year, students take part in two original fine arts productions, one in the winter and one in the spring, each written with our current students in mind.

Extracurricular activities and sports are included in the cost of tuition, so families in Vinings, Smyrna and across Cobb County don't need to book separate weekend dance or music lessons. Curious how we compare with other kinds of arts schools? Our post on what a performing arts school is explains the different types, from conservatories to preschools.

Frequently asked questions

What are the main benefits of performing arts for young children?

The main benefits are stronger language and listening skills, better social and emotional skills, improved motor coordination and more confidence. Music also gives children early practice with patterns and counting. The AAP and NAEYC both describe music and movement as supportive of young children's development.

At what age should a child start music and movement?

Music and movement can start in infancy. Babies respond to singing, rhythm and gentle movement long before they can talk. At Benjamin Prep, our Tiny Dreamers class (6 weeks to 12 months) includes music and movement, story time and instruments.

Does music make kids smarter?

Not in the sense of raising IQ. A 2018 study published in PNAS found that piano lessons helped 4 and 5 year olds tell apart similar speech sounds, but it didn't find changes in IQ or attention. Music seems to help specific skills like listening and language processing.

Is my shy child a good fit for performing arts?

Often, yes. Performing in a group, with lots of support, gives shy children a safe way to build confidence at their own pace. No child should be forced on stage, and young kids do best when performing feels fun.

What is the difference between music and movement and dance class?

Music and movement is broad, playful and usually for babies and toddlers: singing, bouncing, clapping and moving freely. Dance class adds structure, like the specific steps in tap or ballet, and is a better fit once children can follow simple directions, often around age 2 or 3.

Is Benjamin Preparatory School the right fit for your family?

If you want your child to get the benefits of music, dance and drama every day, inside a full academic and faith based school day, Benjamin Prep was designed for that balance.

Benjamin Preparatory School is a Christian preschool and daycare in the Vinings area of Atlanta at 2445 Church Rd SE, Atlanta, GA 30339, serving children from 6 weeks old through 2nd grade. Each school day blends faith, STEAM+ academics and daily performing arts like tap, ballet, music and drama, and a whole foods menu is included. Families in Vinings, Smyrna, Cumberland, Mableton and northwest Atlanta choose Benjamin Prep so their children can grow in faith, learning and confidence in one place. Families driving in from Marietta or Kennesaw are welcome too, and a tour is the easiest way to see whether the commute and the fit work for you.

Schedule a tour of our Vinings campus, get directions, see our programs by age, or call (770) 436-5200 to talk with our team.

About the author: Dr. Verna Benjamin-Lambert

Dr. Verna R. Benjamin-Lambert, known to families as "Dr. Benji," is the founder of Benjamin Preparatory School, which she started as The Benjamin Preschool of Academic and Performing Arts in Smyrna, Georgia. She holds a doctorate in education leadership from Nova Southeastern University and is a graduate of St. Joseph's Teachers' College in Jamaica. Before founding the school, she served as an administrator in a Georgia school system, where she advocated for students who were falling behind academically.

Dr. Benji is also an author. Her book Health Intelligence: The Path to a Healthier You looks at the core issues behind childhood obesity, and her Healthy Benji children's books help young readers build healthy eating habits. One belief guides every classroom at Benjamin Prep: "Every child has a soul, and every soul has a purpose."

Meet Dr. Benji and browse her books.