The Power of Music in Education

See how QuaverMusic Incorporates Math and Literacy

Have you ever considered how music education can reinforce the math and literacy lessons taught in the general classroom?

We know it takes a whole-school approach to make up for lost ground. Let your music program help be a part of the solution and improve students’ academic success.

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The Benefits of Music Education

A variety of studies link the connection between music and academic achievement. A comprehensive series of skill tests run on roughly 5,000 fifth graders found that when kids were learning to play an instrument, they received higher marks than their classmates who were not. Additionally, the more time the children had been in instrumental programs, the higher the scores (Kelstrom, 1998). 

Music education helps improve memory skills in young children. Simply listening to music focuses the brain because both attention and memory are more engaged (Baker, 2007). This is translated to other subjects such as math, science, language arts, and more (Coch and George, 2011). 

Music also introduces students to new vocabulary words in an enjoyable and fun way (Antika, 2021). Terms such as presto, crescendo, and finale provide a rudimentary Latin introduction and expand on the everyday vernacular.

There are many social benefits to music education. Stress can arise from a variety of situations, especially for young children. Research has shown that playing a musical instrument can switch off the natural stress response (Kuchinskas, 2010). Learning music can promote team building too. Many concert ensembles or bands depend on the development of cohesion to achieve synergy in the form of an excellent sound and enjoyable performance (Criss, 2010). 

When students learn and create music, they develop musical skills and improve their self-esteem. This healthy development stems from appropriate and challenging activities. Students then translate their increased confidence to other aspects of their lives (Culp, 2016). 

Plato and Aristotle long believed that people felt happier when listening to happy-sounding music and sad when listening to sad-sounding music. Research from some of the top music psychologists, David Huron and Patrik Juslin, suggest that music expresses emotions that allow students to connect with and feel empathy. 

Kelstrom, Joyce M. “The Untapped Power of Music: Its Role in the Curriculum and Its Effect on Academic Achievement.” National Association of Secondary School Principals. NASSP Bulletin; Reston 82, Iss. 597 (April 1998): 34–43. https://www.proquest.com/docview/216027433.

Baker, Mitzi. “Music Moves Brain to Pay Attention, Stanford Study Finds.” Stanford Medicine (August 2007). https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2007/07/music-moves-brain-to-pay-attention-stanford-study-finds.html.

George, Elyse M., and Coch, Donna. “Music Training and Working Memory: An ERP Study.” Neuropsychologia 49, iss. 5 (April 2011): 1083–94. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21315092.

Antika, Ria. “The Effects of English Songs in Learning Vocabulary for Young Learners.” The 10th National Online Seminar on Linguistics, Language Teaching, and Literature (2021). https://www.openjournal.unpam.ac.id/index.php/NOSLLTL/article/viewFile/9321/5895.

Kuchinskas, Susan. “How Making Music Reduces Stress.” WebMD (October 2010). https://www.webmd.com/balance/stress-management/features/how-making-music-reduces-stress.

Criss, Ellen. “Teamwork in the Music Room.” Music Educators Journal 97, no. 1 (September 2010): 30–36. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ898792.Culp, Mara E. “Improving Self-Esteem in General Music.” General Music Today 29, no. 3 (April 2016): 19–24. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1092877.

“Music education has so many benefits that extend throughout a person’s entire life. Music, whether we are playing, composing, or listening brings people together and allows them to connect and understand one another.”

Melody Jenkins
Elementary Music Teacher

“QuaverMusic really helps with the instruction and getting the kids involved in what they’re doing. They’re having fun and they don’t even realize they’re learning.”


Pamela Ramirez
Elementary Music Advisor, Brownsville ISD, TX
“Music education saved my life….I’m a former high school dropout. The only reason I went back to high school was because of my band and choir directors. My entire career has been around music education, more than anything else.”

Dr. Matt Edwards
Director of Choral, Elementary, and General Music, Dallas ISD, TX

Integrating Music Across QuaverEd

QuaverEd integrates music and songs into each of our curricula—Music, Ready, Pre-K, and Health and PE. Music is not confined to one style or setting. It improves learning and retention of key concepts in all subjects.

Music helps build the whole child in all core academic subjects. Incorporating music into students’ daily lives has tremendous benefits.

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