In the first few months after birth, children sleep for almost 24 hours. The numbers of sleep hours gradually go down as the baby becomes familiar with the environment. At the age of around 2 years, a baby can sleep at anytime. More often than not, they will be awake when you want them to sleep and asleep when they need to be awake. There are many top sleep lullabies that been written to help your baby to sleep.
Top Sleep Lullabies: Characteristics
Top sleep lullabies have been written since time immemorial. This have traversed different cultures but still they are able to retain certain characteristics. In fact, it does not matter what language this lullabies are written in, they still exhibit the following characteristics:
- The baby is promised something that they treasure- In one of the top sleep lullabies “Hush little baby”, the baby is promised a mocking bird, diamond ring among other things. In the Swahili lullaby “Lala Mtoto Lala” (sleep baby sleep); the baby is promised candy and cakes.
- Top sleep lullabies are usually short – the lullaby “Rock-A-Bye Baby” is only 4 sentences long.
- They are repetitive – to make up for the length, lullabies are usually repetitive.
- They always rhyme- the rhymes help to keep the baby engaged to the song.
- Easy to remember- this is aided by rhymes and short length.
- Sweet melody.
- The tone and tune of most sleep lullabies is usually female.
Benefits of Singing Top Sleep Lullabies
Help baby to sleep
The main benefit and reason for singing top sleep lullabies is to sooth the baby to sleep. Music affects the pattern and type of waves produced by the brain. Rock music is known to induce the emission of beta waves which make the brain more alert. Sleep lullabies are much softer than rock music and therefore help the brain emit alpha waves which are relaxing.
The Mozart Effect
This theory suggests that people who were sang for lullabies as children have better intellectual capacity as adults. The Mozart Effect is even more pronounced in children who were listened to soothing music while in the womb. Lullabies are thought to induce more neural connections to different part of the brain.
Aid in Language Development
The main characteristics of top sleep lullabies as discussed above include repetition, assonance and rhymes. A baby is more likely to learn word that rhyme and are easy to repeat. Top sleep lullabies work like nursery school rhymes in helping the baby learn.
Promotes Listening Skills
There are two equally important sides of communication: talking and listening. Talking is easy to learn because all you have to do is talk. Top sleep lullabies train babies from an early age to listen more and only talk/cry when really necessary.
Promotes Bonding
Top sleep lullabies cannot be sang as you sit far away; you have to hold the baby closely and even rock them. In addition, lullabies cannot be sung in a high tone. All these factors create the ideal condition between the bay and the mother.
Top Sleep Lullabies: Classics
- Kumbaya
- The Mocking Bird.
- Rock-A-Bye Baby.
- Peace Like a River.
- Twinkle Twinkle Little Stars.
- See See My Little Playmate.
- Baa Baa Black Sheep.
- Toora loora loora (Irish).
- Brahm’s Lullaby.
- Baby face.