Benefits of Singing a Lullaby to Your Baby
Why should you sing to your baby? Unlike the passive interaction of playing background music on a stereo, singing a lullaby helps children:
- Learn to distinguish their parents’ voice, a critical step for language development
- Develop social interaction via eye contact
- Provide a child with the physical security that a parent or caregiver is near
- Nurture the child-caregiver relationship by fostering a sense of safety and trust
Put the phone down, cuddle your child, and sing.
Rocking and holding an infant during the song time also helps promote bonding between child and caregiver. Infants exhibit a natural preference for their own parent’s voice over that of other people. This sense of trust and safety cannot be instilled by passively listening to music.
Research studies have shown the children must be in physical proximity to promote language development. The shape of your mouth forming words and sounds, the emotionality of your tone, and the intonation of your specific voice, are all crucial to an infant’s ability to learn language. These crucial language skills cannot be obtained by passively listening to music over the stereo, or watching videos.
Passively listening to digital music does not promote language development, social interaction, or bonding. You must sing!
Music therapists classify lullabies as “lullaments” which support psychological security, soothe the soul, and instill resilience during times of vulnerability. Even into adulthood, many people fondly reminisce about their mother’s or grandmother’s voice, singing a favorite lullaby.
Dads can certainly join in the nurturing and bonding, too! Check our our list of lullaby lyrics for Dads to sing.
How We Chose Our Favorite Lullabies
Our collection includes lullabies drawn from poems, folk songs, nursery rhymes, including classic melodies throughout the world. From Wolfgang Mozart to Rudyard Kipling, to Mother Goose and even The Beatles, there is lullaby on our list for every parent and child to love.
Bedtime is one of the sweetest joys children and parents share. It’s a chance to cuddle together, unwind, and be grateful for the day. Many of these bedtime songs mimic a soothing rocking motion, while others create reassuring repetitive lilts with murmuring tones to encourage slumber.
Lullabies are often the first words most children will hear, even before they can understand what words mean. Providing infants and toddlers with a diversity of melodies, from many unique cultures, provides them with a variety of different sounds and intonations to help promote early language development. Repetitive lullaby lyrics help reinforce memory and learning.
For parents and caregivers, lullabies paint images reflecting tenderness, imagination, and affection. Moonlit dreamscapes, protective angels, and tranquil scenes of nature can soothe even the most weary grown-up into tranquility and peace. We have included lullabies from famous poets and classical music composers to entertain even the most savvy parents.
Whether instilling a sense of calm and wonder to weary little eyes, or protecting children from harm with a melodic blessing, these lullaby lyrics bring a charm-like delight of rhyme, rhythm, and song to any bedtime routine. Happy Slumber!
