Music and art teach kids more than how to play, sing, draw, or paint. They give children a place to explore ideas, work through challenges, express themselves, collaborate with others, and discover what they are capable of. At Thrive, that is why the arts matter so much. They are not just the end goal. They are the vehicle for growth.
Yes, we want kids to become better musicians and artists. But we also hope they leave knowing: I am capable. My ideas matter. I can try something hard. Mistakes help me grow. I have a place here. I can help other people succeed. I can create something meaningful. Those lessons can stay with a child long after the class is over.
Simply signing a child up for music or art does not automatically create all of these outcomes. The experience matters. Children grow best when they feel:
That is why we are so intentional about the culture surrounding the learning. Before kids can confidently take creative risks, they need to know they belong.
Promising evidence. Thoughtful expectations.
What children practice in music and art can be valuable beyond a song, a drawing or a performance. Here are six areas researchers have explored.
01
Listening, movement, memory and coordination come together when a child learns music.
A study following children through 15 months of instrumental training found structural brain changes linked to improvements in musical motor and listening skills. [1]
Everyday practice
Recognizing a rhythm, noticing a pattern and coordinating hands with sound.
02
Music offers repeated practice in listening carefully, remembering what comes next and waiting for the right moment to play.
A 2024 research review found improvements in inhibitory control—the ability to pause and manage impulses—across the music-training studies analyzed. [2]
Everyday practice
Waiting for a cue, following a sequence and trying again after a mistake.
03
Making music and art gives children ways to express a feeling, become absorbed in an activity and enjoy the process of creating.
In one study of preschool children, cortisol, a stress-related hormone, was lower during arts classes than during regular homeroom activities. This measured a stress response, not a mental-health treatment effect. [3]
Everyday practice
Putting a feeling into a drawing or finding an enjoyable creative outlet.
04
Creating together gives children opportunities to listen, take turns, share ideas and contribute to something bigger than themselves.
A study of group music instruction found gains in sympathy and prosocial behavior among children who began with lower social skills. The same gains were not found for every child. [4]
Everyday practice
Encouraging a classmate and hearing how each person’s part fits into a group.
05
An open-ended creative task invites children to experiment, make choices and discover more than one way forward.
A controlled study of a guided doodle-book program for children ages 4–6 found gains in creative imagination, idea fluency and originality on drawing-based tests. [5]
Everyday practice
Inventing a melody, trying an unexpected color or finding a new way to tell a story.
06
A small step forward can help a child see their own progress: something that felt difficult starts to feel possible.
A pilot trial with children from low-income families reported self-esteem and resilience gains after a program combining group instrumental lessons with resilience-building activities. [6]
Everyday practice
Sharing an original idea, working through a challenge and taking pride in progress.
The everyday examples illustrate learning opportunities. They are not outcomes measured in every study or promises about an individual child.
Creativity is bigger than making art. It is the ability to imagine possibilities, solve problems, explore ideas, and create something new. Kids build creativity when they:
Those habits matter in music and art. They also matter far beyond them.
Children are still figuring themselves out. What do I enjoy? What am I good at? What matters to me? What do I want to say? Creative experiences give kids space to explore those questions. They make choices. They try ideas. They notice what excites them. They discover strengths they may not have seen before. And over time, they begin to understand themselves better.
Confidence is not something kids either have or do not have. It grows through experience. Learning a new rhythm. Sharing a drawing. Singing in front of someone. Trying again after a mistake. Playing a song that once felt impossible. Every small success helps a child build evidence: “I can learn.” “I can try.” “I can do hard things.” That is how confidence grows.
Creative work does not always go as planned. A note is missed. A rhythm falls apart. A drawing changes. A project does not turn out the way a child imagined. That can be frustrating. It can also be incredibly valuable. Kids learn that a mistake does not have to be the end. They can pause. Adjust. Ask for help. Try something different. And keep going. We believe growth matters more than getting everything right the first time.
Creative experiences can bring kids together around something they care about. They play music together. Make art beside one another. Share ideas. Solve problems. Celebrate each other’s wins. Encourage someone who is struggling. Over time, those shared experiences can become real relationships. That is why community is not an extra at Thrive. It is part of the learning.
Children have ideas worth hearing. Music and art give them different ways to express those ideas. A song can communicate something a child struggles to say out loud. A drawing can show how they see the world. A rhythm can become a way to connect with other people. Creative work tells a child: “Your ideas matter.” That belief can shape far more than what they create.
When kids create together, they learn that their choices affect other people. They learn to listen. Make room. Contribute. Compromise. Lead. Follow. Give feedback. Receive feedback. And work toward something that belongs to the whole group. A band only works when everyone listens. A collaborative project only works when everyone contributes. Kids begin to understand that success is not always something we achieve alone.
Creating can feel vulnerable. A child may wonder: What if I get it wrong? What if people do not like my idea? What if I mess up? What if I am not as good as someone else? The answer is not to remove every uncomfortable moment. It is to create an environment where kids feel safe enough to move through them. Each small act of courage makes the next one a little easier.
The deeper benefits of arts education do not mean technique is unimportant. It matters. Children need tools. Musicians need technique to play what they hear in their heads. Artists need skills to bring their ideas to life. At Thrive, technical instruction serves a larger purpose. Skills give kids more ways to create. As their ability grows, so do their possibilities.
The Thrive approach
These principles guide the experience we want children to have.
Explore
Room to experiment, make mistakes and discover a creative voice. There is more than one way to make something meaningful.
Create together
Opportunities to listen, contribute and build something together. Every child’s ideas can be part of the process.
Celebrate progress
Progress worth noticing, whether it is a new skill, a brave first try or an original idea. Growth matters beyond the finished result.
For curious parents
Explore the studies behind the six areas above, including the context and limits of each finding.
Musical training shapes structural brain development. Journal of Neuroscience.
The study followed children through 15 months of instrumental training. Structural brain differences were associated with gains in musically relevant motor and auditory skills. It does not establish that music lessons increase general intelligence.
Does music training improve inhibition control in children? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Cognition.
The review combined 22 longitudinal controlled studies, including eight randomized trials. It found improvements in inhibitory control. The studies used different programs; this result should not be read as a guarantee about every aspect of attention or memory, or every child’s experience.
Can the arts get under the skin? Arts and cortisol for economically disadvantaged children. Child Development.
Researchers compared cortisol during music, dance and visual-art classes with homeroom activities in preschool children attending Head Start. Lower cortisol was found during arts classes at the middle and end of sessions. This specific physiological measure does not demonstrate that arts classes treat anxiety or other mental-health conditions.
Group music training and children’s prosocial skills. PLOS ONE.
The study compared children receiving group music instruction with a matched comparison group over ten months. Improvements in sympathy and prosocial behavior were limited to children with lower social skills at the start. The groups were not randomly assigned.
Developing 4- to 6-year-old children’s figural creativity using a doodle-book program. Thinking Skills and Creativity.
The guided drawing program was associated with improvements in imagination, fluency and originality on figural creativity tests. The findings concern that particular program and age group, rather than proving that any art activity improves general adaptability.
Group-based instrumental musical training to enhance resilience among school-aged children from low-income families: A pilot randomised waitlist controlled trial. Nursing Open.
This pilot trial involved 64 children ages 8–12 from low-income families in Hong Kong. Weekly group instrumental lessons included resilience-building activities. Improvements in self-esteem and resilience relate to the combined program; the study cannot isolate music lessons as the sole cause.
Effectiveness of music education for the improvement of reading skills and academic achievement in young poor readers: A pragmatic cluster-randomized, controlled clinical trial. PLOS ONE.
The brochure also cites this five-month trial with Brazilian children experiencing reading difficulties. Reading results were limited in the primary intention-to-treat analysis, while some academic outcomes improved; stronger reading results came from a compliance-based analysis. These findings do not support a promise of better grades or improved reading for every child.
At Thrive, music and art are powerful tools. Through them, kids can discover who they are, build confidence in who they can become, and learn how their creativity can make a difference. That is the bigger purpose behind every class.
