How music can help your child develop impulse control

Research suggests young children who engage with music—particularly those who play instruments—may develop impulse control faster than children who don’t. Here’s how to use the Lovevery Music Set to help your 2-year-old build this key executive function skill:

Teach “stop” and “go”

Hold one of the Loud & Quiet Stackable Shakers and offer your child the other. Say, “GO!” and start moving the shakers as fast as you can, encouraging your child to imitate you. Then say, “STOP!” and let the shakers go quiet.

Experiment with “quiet” and “loud”

Bang on the Lovevery Play Kit box loud like a drum, then tap, tap, tap on the box with quiet hands. Invite your child to copy your movements and volume.

Work on turn-taking

Demonstrate how to pull and push the Simple Concertina to play a note. Say, “Now it’s your turn!” and hand the instrument to your toddler. You can go back and forth, saying “my turn” and “your turn” while playing the concertina in different ways: up over your head, down by your feet, to the side, or even behind you. Invite your child to copy you each time.

Play long and short notes

Model how to hold a note for a few seconds on the Colour Tab Pan Flute, then encourage your child to try. Next, play a note a few times quickly and ask your 2-year-old to do the same. If they’re still learning to blow into the flute, you can have them sing into the holes instead.

Focus on following directions

Show your toddler how to follow multi-step instructions with the Pentatonic Pat Bells. For example, you might say, “First pat the red bell, then pat the yellow bell.” For a challenge, try adding a third step.