There are many factors that can stimulate children’s development, from pretend play to learning to play an instrument. The process of learning to play a new instrument is found to activate the brain and help improve concentration, focus and information processing abilities. Kids that play any kind of instrument tend to experience an improvement in their grades and overall better performance at school. Playing an instrument and creating music helps build creativity, confidence and makes for a happier and more content child.
Is your little one begging you to get them their very own guitar? Don’t worry whether they’re too young. Encouraging your kid to play an instrument from an early age is a smart step if you want to stimulate positive behaviour and skills. With the help of the right guitar, they can easily master the art of creating music and reap all the benefits it has to offer. Here are the main types of guitars you can buy for your child.
Kids’ Acoustic Guitars
An acoustic guitar is usually the easiest way to master the chords. You have standard size instruments but you can also buy a children’s acoustic guitar specifically designed for little ones. The best type of guitar for a kid that’s a beginner and has no previous experience is the kid’s acoustic guitar. It’s light enough so that a kid can carry it anywhere.
The main difference between standard guitars and children’s acoustic guitars is the size. Children’s acoustic guitars are smaller so that a younger person can play them easily. Comfort is really important when playing the guitar, especially for little kids. The guitar has to be made in accordance with their height, body weight, arms’ reach etc. For kids aged 5 – 12 years, the ideal guitar size is ¾. For kids aged 12-15, a small body guitar is recommended, and for kids aged 15 or more, you can feel free to get a full-size guitar.
You can also find innovative children’s acoustic guitar designs like Loog, which are designed specifically to help toddlers and younger kids get started with playing. They only have three strings that are tuned the same as a normal guitar. This means that kids can play simplified chords with ease while still getting a good grounding for learning a full six-string model. In addition to the comfortable and ergonomic design, these guitars have fun designs that appeal to children. They come in different colours and can feature patterns or fun touches like patches, making kids fall in love at first sight.
Kids’ Electric Guitars
If you want to step the game up a notch, or simply your child is a fan of rock music, buy an electric guitar instead of an acoustic one. Where’s the difference? An electric guitar requires electrical voltage in order to play with full capacity. It’s connected to loudspeakers and the sound produced can be further altered with the help of electronic devices.
The electric guitar defers a lot from the acoustic one since it has tuners to enhance or lower the pitch of individual sounds. It also has an output jack that transfers the signal from the pickups to the amplifier. The thing that makes an electrical guitar recognisable are the pickups. The pickups are electronic components that register the movement of the string and then convert it into an electrical signal that goes all the way to the amplifier through the cord. Pickups can easily be changed that way changing the way the guitar sounds.
You should take into considerations that electric guitars, even when smaller in size, can be quite heavy. So, they aren’t quite suitable for toddlers and very young children. But on the plus side, it has never been easier to get your kid interested in the guitar. Electric guitars for kids come fully assembled with a fully functioning amp onboard so you only need to open the box, tune up the guitar and off you go playing. But don’t worry, you can still plug into an amp for added volume.
Some electric guitars for kids come with a free instructional app that has a tuner, a monkey drummer and video lessons designed to get your child playing actual songs – not just scales or exercises- on day one. There are also backing tracking and instructions on how to play songs by artists such as Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, the Beatles and many more.
Pre School Guitars
Pre-school guitars are made in a way that suits kids that are of pre-school age. You can buy one from the store or order online and receive it at your home address. You can either get an acoustic or an electric one. Both are made having comfort in mind. Why are they called pre-school guitars anyways? Mainly because they are made for kids that are at that age. Guitars have to be suitable for kids in order for them to love and play them. Nothing too big or too heavy. It’s up to you to decide what your kid will be interested in more and make the right choice.
No matter what you end up choosing, know that you are doing the right thing by encouraging your kid to play an instrument at a young age since the experience will be of great use for later development.