Music Behavior

I've read about the influence of music on children's behavior. I have seen it first hand when one of my sons was walking down the hallway of the house listening to something I can't imagine would be called music. With drumsticks in hand (he's a drummer) he was "drumming" the walls somewhat violently as he walked with head violently bobbing as if he was mad at the world. I put a stop to that. But nothing ever came of it and I'm quite proud how he turned out. When people talk about music influences, I assume they mean teenager, etc.

A couple of weeks ago we were entertaining my little nephews at my in-laws. They were starting to get bored with my lame entertaining and started to get a bit fussy. So I had this great idea to take out my new cell phone that I had just loaded a bunch of tunes onto. I tried my best to get the 2 year old's attention. "Look, look what I have!" I exclaimed and I proceeded to turn on the phone. The music started playing a fast song. He jumped up and ran at me with a smile, bobbing his head. The song was "Mess Around" by Ray Charles. He proceeded to dance and jump and suddenly, with one swoop motion, he wiped the coffee table clean of a full cup of coffe and a full can of coke. The music abruptly stopped and a race was on for the paper towels. The little one was taken away to a safer area.

I'd say even little 2 year olds can be influenced by music and lyrics. How fitting the song was "Mess Around".