Top 7 Best Musical Books For Babies in First Year

When Should You Introduce Musical Books To Your Baby?

It is never too early to introduce music to your baby. Singing to a baby is an age-old practice that has survived generations due to its positive outcome. You can read books about music or musical books to your baby from day 1. You can also opt for books with words in a rhyming format, to help babies pick the sounds and words more easily.

Benefits Of Music Books For Babies

Here are some of the benefits of music books for babies.

1. Creativity

Music stimulates creativity. When it is combined with new words or sentences, babies can sing, speak or even come up with their own lyrics for their own songs as they grow.

2. Improved Memory

It is always easier to remember or recollect information when there is a tune to it. Nursery rhymes follow this concept and are an important part of any child’s developmental years. Your baby is more likely to remember and even re-narrate a story that was sung to them rather than the one read or told to them.

3. Language Development

Music books can teach babies new words and help develop both their language and communication skills. When you sing to your baby, you will break the words, and sentences and make them shorter for them to understand. Learning to break down words based on sound can help in their spelling and writing too, as they grow up.

4. Emotional Intelligence

Music helps bring out and control emotions. Music can help your baby understand emotions and also express themselves better. Emotional intelligence is as important as any other form of intelligence.

5. Engages Full Brain

Music books help engage your baby’s brain completely. The bright illustrations capture their visual interest, the story, words, and sentences in the book help improve communication and language skills, and the music captures and develops their auditory skills.

Top 10 Musical Books For Babies

If you are not sure where to start or which music books to introduce to your babies, here are the top 8 books we would recommend:

1. Hush Little Baby

Author: Brian Pinkney

About The Book

A reinvention of the famous lullaby in a story format makes this an interesting read for a baby. The story is about a baby who refuses to calm down and how the exhausted family tries their best to calm the baby down. The story is narrated as a folk song and your baby will find this very entertaining. Babies will learn the sounds and the words with ease.

A common phenomenon in most households is a young baby crying inconsolably and an over-exhausted family trying to calm the baby down. This story in its musical format is sure to resonate with anyone reading the book to the baby. As the baby grows up, they will understand the words and recollect the details due to the musical way it is narrated in.

2. Music, Music For Everyone

Author: Vera B. Williams

About The Book

This is a very beautiful and touching story about a little girl and her sick grandmother. The story reminds adults how children can be innovative and thoughtful in their own ways. The little girl, along with her friends, plays various instruments for her sick grandmother.

The author uses bright and interesting illustrations that are sure to grab the interest of little children. She also goes on to show us how music can have a great impact on our emotional and mental health when everything else fails to make an impact. It also shows how a common love for music or anything else for that matter can bring people together and create a lasting bond. This is a good book to introduce not just music but even the concept of friendship to your baby.

3. Animal Orchestra

Author: Llo Orleans

About The Book

Animal orchestra is a great book to introduce both animals and musical instruments to your baby. In this book, the orchestra conductor is a hippo and the other animals play different instruments. Since this is an all-animal orchestra, your baby can learn the names of many animals and also the names of various instruments.

The rhyming manner in which the entire story is narrated makes it easy for a baby to learn the sounds and pick new words easily. This is a combination of two things babies absolutely love!

3. Jazz Baby

Author: Carole Boston Weatherford

About The Book

This is a perfect combination of rhymes and graphics, which can attract even very young babies. The illustrations and the rhyming words are a wonderful way to introduce your child to Jazz. Read this book out to your baby and see how you and your baby connect with the book and the musical angle to it.

4. Sunny

Author: Robin Mitchell & Judith Steedman

About The Book

The book is about a boy named Sunny who is able to perceive and find music in almost anything and everything around him. He perceives any sound as music. This can be a great way to teach your baby about music and the sounds of various things in their environment. It can stimulate young minds to find music in everything they hear.

5. Max Found Two Sticks

Author: Brian Pinkney

About The Book

This is a story about a child who loves his drums and sticks. He is a talented child who can play some wonderful music with just his sticks on almost anything. Whenever and wherever he finds sticks, he takes them and starts drumming on any surface he can find, to express himself with his music.

The book shows both parents and babies how music can be a great way to express oneself even where words fail. Many babies take time to talk and shy away from talking in front of strangers. This book reminds parents that every baby is different and they can express themselves in unique ways too.

6.  Hop Dog

Author: Chis Raschka

About The Book

This is an inspiring book about a dog who is sad, and lonely, and finds solace in music. The book tells babies how music can help everyone in different ways. If your child is interested in percussion music, hip-hop, or rap, this book can be very interesting for them and a valuable addition to their collection. The book can encourage your baby’s interest in music and make them explore more into the same, to help express themselves.

7. Ben’s Trumpet

Author: Rachel Isadora

About The Book

The story revolves around a boy who loves jazz music. He listens to jazz from a club near his house. He is so fascinated with the trumpet that he starts playing an imaginary one by himself. One day the trumpet player from the club sees this and teaches him to play the instrument. From being a laughingstock among his friends, he grows into learning to play his favorite instrument with confidence and skill.

Music is a very powerful mode of communication. Music books for babies can be very entertaining, educative, and useful in multiple ways. Invest in a variety of books including music books to help in the overall development of your little one.

FAQ’s

1. Are Music Books Beneficial For Babies?

Yes, they are very beneficial for babies. Musical books help in stimulating various parts of the brain that are responsible for the development of auditory, cognitive, language, and other skills in a growing baby.

2. Does Singing Stories Help a Baby?

When you sing a book or a story to your baby, they pay more attention to it and learn faster. The tune makes it easier for them to pick the sounds and words, thus helping them improve their language and communication skills.

3. Are Music Books Better Than Musical Videos For Babies?

Music books and music videos can help a baby learn about music and develop a love for the same. You can use a combination of both for older kids but for younger ones, books will be a safer choice.