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1. 1996 — Children in Rhode Island elementary schools who were given enriched, skill-building music classes showed marked improvement in reading and math skills. Students in the program who had started out at lower reading and math skill levels than those of children in the control group caught up to statistical equality in reading and pulled ahead in math.

2. 1997 — Researchers found that children given piano lessons improved much more dramatically in their spatial-temporal IQ scores (important for some types of mathematical reasoning) than children who received computer lessons or no lessons.

3. 1997 — A research team exploring the link between music and intelligence reported that music training is far superior to computer instruction in dramatically enhancing children's abstract reasoning skills, the skills necessary for learning math and science.

4. 1998 — A McGill University study found that pattern recognition and mental representation scores improved significantly for students given music instruction for a three-year period.

5. They also found that self-esteem improved while they were taking music lessons.

6. 1999 — Students with experience in music performance and music appreciation scored higher on the SAT than students with no music education:

7. 53 points higher on the verbal.

8. 39 points higher on the math for music performance;

9. 61 points higher on the verbal and:

10. 42 points higher on the math for music appreciation.

11. Rhymes, repetition and experimenting with different sounds also can be used for speech and reading development.

12. Music training jump starts certain inherent patterns in parts of the brain responsible for spatial-temporal reasoning.

13. Computer lessons, on the other hand, do not force children to think ahead or visualize, as they must when playing a piece of music.

14. When three and four-year-old children were given simple piano lessons over a six-month period, they performed 34% better than other children in IQ tests, some of whom had had computer lessons instead.

15. Practicing musical instruments improves hand-eye coordination. Children develop important motor skills when playing music just as they do when playing different sports.