Music, whether singing or instrumental, has the power to connect and inspire young children across language and culture. Music sparks brain development in all crucial areas: intellectual, social and emotional, motor, language and literacy, memory and attention. Music naturally attracts young children with patterns and rhythms they later recognize in spoken and written language and builds vocabulary. PPL dedicates significant resources to providing parents/caregivers with tools to support the growth of these early literacy skills.

What makes this series so popular has been featuring a diverse mix of local well-known artists – playing everything from blues, roots and jazz, to featuring violins, drums, guitar and marimbas. These are talented local musicians tailoring their professional performances to a new family audience. Because the music selections aren’t limited to appeal to only children, parents look forward to attending the concerts as much as the children do, and we’ve seen attendance sky-rocket.

The concerts provide parents/caregivers with an opportunity to connect with each other and the larger community via the early literacy skills inherent in musical performance, and supply take-home strategies for using music to support children’s early literacy skills and cognitive and emotional development. PPL impacts a wide family audience by providing authoritative tools for promoting early literacy at home. We also noted a substantial increase in new card applications on concert days.