Neural Plasticity of the Prepubescent Brain
A normal 5 year old child has little difficulty learning and fluently speaking a foreign language. Learning new physical skills such as riding a bike or skiing can be achieved with relative ease during early childhood. After puberty , acquiring new skills will probably not be as easy because the areas of the brain associated with these types of skills becomes more rigid, not as plastic.
The “post pubescent” brain, undergoes a rewiring of its circuitry that makes it possible to perform more abstract thinking skills and an ability to consider alternative viewpoints. This rewiring of the brain is not complete until the mid to late 20’s. A young child’s brain is better able to learn some types of skills than an older brain while the older brain is better able to perform more complex adult type thinking. There is no better time to begin music lessons than before puberty. It only gets harder once the brain has developed past those early years.