What Is The Easiest Musical Instrument For Children To Learn?

Parents want their kids to have the most advantages they can in life, so providing access to activities that will help them grow, develop, and thrive seems like a no-brainer. Team sport, foreign languages, and art classes are all common, but there’s more out there to explore that can be beneficial to children. One activity that’s a favorite of both kids and parents is learning a musical instrument.

So should every child learn to play a musical instrument? And what is a good first instrument to learn? Read on to find out all you need to know about musical instruments and your child, including what is the easiest musical instrument for children to learn.

Factors to consider
Before you can jump right into answering the question of what musical instrument should a child start with, you first have to consider a few factors about your child. You should think about:

• Their age – An instrument should be appropriate for a child’s cognitive level. A simpler instrument is going to be better for a younger child, while a more complex instrument may be better for an older child.
• Goals – What are your child’s goals around learning a musical instrument? Do they have dreams of being a music superstar, or do they simply want to learn because they enjoy it and think it’s cool? Make sure to help your child identify their goals before placing an instrument in their hands – that way a good teacher can help them on the right path.
• Abilities – Some children are more predisposed to learning musical instruments – they simply have an aptitude for it. It’s no different than children who may learn to read early or happen to be very good at dance. On the flip side, however, music lessons can help some children who may struggle in this area.
• Cost – Most parents are concerned with cost, and some instruments may be more costly to acquire than others. Take into account what your family can afford for instrument purchase, upkeep, and lessons.

What is the simplest instrument to learn to play?
There is no one right answer to this question. There are pros and cons to each type of instrument that are important to consider.

Woodwinds and brass
Many kids are drawn to woodwind and brass instruments because they are familiar, but they do present some challenges. Some of these things can be considered cons, which include:

• Breath control – You have to have good control of your breath to effectively play a brass or woodwind instrument. For smaller kids and beginners, this can feel daunting.
• Developmental challenges – Some kids who haven’t fully developed their jaw and mouth muscles may find it difficult to play one of these instruments.
• Complicated – Learning to finger these instruments is complicated. Some students may begin to associate the different notes with finger positions, and that can make learning other instruments later much more challenging.
• Upkeep – Many instruments in this category can be difficult and/or expensive to maintain, because reeds are usually needed, which have to constantly be replaced.

There are, of course, some pros to brass and woodwinds, such as their popularity. If a child truly excels in one of these instruments, then there may be places for them in college orchestras that could lead to scholarship opportunities.

Percussion
There are a few drawbacks to percussion instruments (aside from how loud they are when your child wants to practice at home!). They include:

• Not learning to read music – Percussion instruments don’t have notes like other musical instruments do, so children won’t have to learn to read notes on a staff, which can make things more difficult later if they ever want to transition to a different instrument.
• Coordination – You need a lot of coordination to play percussion instruments. Some children simply haven’t developed this yet or aren’t interested in putting in the practice to get better at it.  

There are pros to learning percussion instruments, such as:

• Rhythm – The focus of these instruments is rhythm, of course! There’s no focus on learning to read notes or understand how harmony works. Keeping time is a major advantage for these instruments, which will come in handy later.
• Variety – There are a lot of percussion instruments to choose from, so they are a great way to introduce children to music.

Strings
Guitars and ukuleles can be great beginner instruments for kids, but there are some things to be aware of, including:

• Tuning the instrument – Strings require tuning, which can be a challenge for those new to music. Tuning is more difficult for instruments like the cello, violin, and viola and they will require more supervision.
• Finger placement – Finger placement is crucial to string instruments, which makes them more difficult for small hands. Also, fingertips take time to adjust and metal strings can cause pain at the start.

These are very popular instruments for kids to learn for good reasons, however, some of which include:

• Their cost – Stringed instruments such as guitars and ukuleles tend to be more affordable, making them a great choice for a first musical instrument without a ton of investment.
• Good for late bloomers – If you have an older child who wants to learn an instrument, guitars are a great option.
• Small size – Ukuleles are small and fit smaller children very well. Plus, having only four strings makes it easier to learn chords and rhythm.

If your child isn’t sure what instrument they want to learn, that’s OK. Encourage them to think about the type of music they like and the instruments they enjoy the sounds of. This can help them to figure it out and be on their way to musical success!

Featured image by Clark Young on Unsplash