During the first six years of life, children have a very different way of learning than adults. At this age, their sponge-like brains are able to soak up vast amounts of information from their environment. This is due to what Maria Montessori calls the absorbent mind.
The Absorbent Mind Period is broken into two stages:
Unconscious Absorbent Mind Stage (0-3 yrs)
Children naturally soak up everything around them and will mimic what they see.
Conscious Absorbent Mind Stage (3-6 yrs)
Children in this phase start to sort through and make sense of the information they have unconsciously gathered. They will expand their new abilities, make choices for themselves, and do things independently. This is also known as the “help me do it myself” phase.
“Children develop 85% of their core brain structure by the time they are five years old. “
-Rauch Foundation data
Suzuki lessons take advantage of the absorbent mind period and expose children to music during the time when it is easiest to learn something new. Often school band and orchestra programs don’t start until 4th or 5th grade, which misses this crucial window of learning.