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Neither science nor math: the subject that sharpens children’s minds but is often overlooked in the USA

Subject, children, USA

Little girl drawing.

Schools usually obsess over STEM, enforce reading benchmarks, and closely monitor math performance. However, research indicates that there is another discipline—often missing from the academic priorities—that has a profound power to shape young minds. We’re talking about music.

While 92% of U.S. students technically have access to music education programs, over 3.6 million children are denied this opportunity. Neuroscientific studies have confirmed that music training activates the brain in ways no other skill does, yet shrinking budgets and shifting priorities keep it sidelined. Here, we’ll explore how music learning impacts cognitive development and outline what parents can do to address the gap.

How music shapes smart thinking in children

Playing an instrument goes beyond producing melodies. Research shows that musical activities engage regions responsible for auditory processing, motor control, memory, and emotional regulation. While solving a math problem activates specific neural circuits, composing a rhythm or mastering chord progressions requires the entire brain to work in unison.

This interconnected neural dialogue strengthens brain connectivity and sharpens skills such as problem-solving, focus, and empathy. A landmark 1996 study published in Nature revealed that preschool children who received structured music lessons involving rhythm and pitch training improved their spatial-temporal reasoning skills compared to control groups.

Unlike passive listening, active music creation builds what neuroscientists call “cognitive reserve“, a buffer against age-related decline. Despite 20 years of compelling evidence from neuroscience, educational psychology, and cognitive development, many schools continue to view music as optional enrichment rather than a foundational element of learning.

Fostering the music interest in children

Parents can cultivate musical engagement at home without lessons at school. The strategy is simple: create experiences that are low-pressure, social, and relevant to the child’s environment.

While debates over school funding persist, parents have the opportunity to reclaim music as an everyday form of creative play rather than a graded subject. Even casual engagement with music creates enduring benefits, including stronger neural networks, creative confidence, and the capacity to better process emotions.

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