… regardless of your talent or experience!

It seems that kids are natural born singers, aren’t they?  I have vivid memories of my oldest son as a toddler, dressed in every piece of warrior costume he owned, plus cowboy boots, standing on our bilco basement doors and singing at the TOP of his lungs for the whole neighborhood to hear!

Babysitters would always comment in amazement at the fact that my kids sang or hummed almost perpetually throughout the day!

Whether they were playing with legos, video games, cars, or Barbies, there was- and is- almost always, background music!

Yet so often we, adults, disclaim our singing abilities, even to ourselves, and aren’t sure how to really help our kids sing better!

First, let me diffuse the pressure by telling you the very best way help your child is to let them sing!

You don’t have to know all the answers, you don’t have to be able to carry a tune or sing well yourself.

Singing is the first language of expression.  Before fine motor skills develop into artistic fingers and even before understandable speech emerges, children are designed to sing!

Vocal exploration is natural and every note doesn’t need to sound “talented” in order for a child to grow up into a good singer.

If you’ve got a budding singer at home and wonder how you can cultivate their gifts, here are 10 ways to help kids sing better, regardless of your talent or experience.

1. Guide them toward good singers not just “cool” music.

Sometimes we listen to music because it has a great beat or a catchy tune.  Not all performers and recording artists have gotten where they are because they are amazing singers.  It’s not wrong to listen to those singers, but remember that what you put in will come out!  I would always encourage you to find great singers for your child to emulate, rather than just entertainers.

2. Use imitation to learn but don’t “copy”

Imitation is an important part of the learning process.  As children are discovering their own voice colors, they will start to develop a tonal palate by listening and imitating others.  Most often than not, they will gravitate toward singers whose voice color is similar to theirs!   As they imitate, however, it is important that we continue to encourage them in their own uniqueness as well.  A copy is never quite as good.  Be the best “YOU”!

3. Broaden their tonal spectrum

Listen to opera and musical theater and country and jazz and more!  It’s totally fine to have preferences but the more choices are present in a child’s tonal palate, the richer and more true his/her color will be! I fell into this category as a young child.  I fell in love with one singer and always sang her songs.  Because of that, I think I missed out on developing some of the other shades in my voice that I didn’t discover until I was much older.

4. Encourage Good Posture

Posture is the framework for the vocal instrument and it seems to be a lost “art” in today’s culture.  Building good posture into the daily routine enables a singer to think about other more important things- like expressing the music!  Watch for “tech neck”, as my pediatrician calls it!

5. Chill Out!

A variety of factors, including poor posture as well as forced imitation, can lead singers of all ages to compensate with muscular tension.  It you notice your child jutting the jaw or raising the chin or stiffening the neck, gently encourage him/her to relax and sing freely.

6. Stay Positive

Speak in positives not negatives.  I have encountered so many adult singers that have deep wounds from teachers or relatives that made a negative comment about their singing as children.  Poor singing isn’t necessarily something of which to be ashamed.   Just like most other skills, singing is something that can be learned by just about anyone!  Some are gifted naturally with beautiful voices and others have to wait longer or work harder, but shame will never pay off by building a better singer.

7. Listen with intention

As you “Stay Positive”, you can encourage your child to sing better by helping them to listen better!  Yes, most of us hear sounds, but we often don’t take the time to understand and decipher what we’re hearing.  Singing starts in the brain and is often initiated by hearing a sound.  When a child learns to hear and listen with intention, the singing will often improve immediately!  There are many ways to train ears to sing better.

8. Choose Appropriate Music

It’s ok for kids to sing along to “grown-up” music, but just remember that most children’s voices are not yet matured.  Their ranges, volume and power abilities, and agility is different from that of an adult.  If you are searching for an audition song or a song for your child to perform, seriously consider range.  Most children cannot sing as low as adults!  While we might tend to focus on not giving them something too high, it’s really the low range in contemporary music that seems to present more issues for young singers.

9. The Voice is More than Singing

You’ll hear me say this line and mean a variety of things!  In this case, remember that the voice speaks, laughs, coughs, sings, hiccups, yells, grunts, and more!  The spectrum of capable sound is so much broader than singing and when young singers are given the freedom to make “weird” sounds, they can more easily break through the boundaries that say, “only make a sound if it’s pretty”!

10. Sing with and for your child!

GULP!  You are your child’s first introduction to singing and the way you view your voice will translate to him/her!  Even if you don’t consider yourself a singer, let your child experience the joy of singing with you.  I’ll bet that to your little songbird, you have the most comforting voice of all!