Start: 2025-12-19

End: 2028-12-18

Can Training in Musical Rhythm Improve Children's Reading and Writing Skills?

There is mounting evidence that musical rhythm abilities are associated with reading and writing skills. Because this association has been documented primarily for early stages of reading and writing acquisition, little is known about how it evolves, if it is modulated by reading and writing proficiency, and the mechanisms that underlie it. It also remains undetermined if rhythm-based music training improves reading and writing. Although effects of music training on reading have been investigated, results are mixed and methodological shortcomings of existing studies raise interpretative issues. For writing, music training effects remain untapped. Rhythm4RAW combines behavioral and brain methods in cross-sectional and longitudinal studies to examine (1) associations between musical rhythm and reading and writing skills in children of different ages, and whether these associations are influenced by (2) predispositions and/or training, proficiency in reading and writing, and (3) sociodemographic factors. Three main studies are planned.

Study 1. We will adapt and validate a questionnaire to assess children's musicality, The Musical Child Questionnaire, MCQ [a]. We will examine associations with task-based music ability, general cognition, parental musicality, and sociodemographic factors. The Portuguese MCQ will be the first tool that quantifies children's musicality using a multifaceted measure. It will be useful for comprehensive assessments of musicality in childhood because task-based measurements are typically limited to perceptual skills. We will use MCQ as part of the music predisposition assessment in Study 3 (longitudinal study).

Study 2. We will conduct a cross-sectional study to determine if children with rhythm-based music training have better reading skills than their musically untrained peers, and establish the scope of the effect: is it limited to reading subskills, such as phonological decoding, or does it extend to more ecologically valid reading measures, such as reading fluency? Is it limited to formally trained children, or does it extend to untrained children with good rhythm skills that may result from genetic predispositions and/or informal music experience? We will test if temporal encoding underlies the rhythm-reading association. The influence of proficiency (typical vs. impaired reading), age (and associated with learning stage), and socioeconomic status will be inspected. A similar but more exploratory approach will be followed for writing. Although there are no studies on music training effects on writing, we anticipate potential benefits on writing fluency because music improves fine motor skills. We will use Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to identify the brain correlates of associations between music training and reading/writing. Brain areas of interest include auditory and sensorimotor areas, particularly those involved in phonological decoding (for reading) and motor control (for writing). Behaviorally, we anticipate that better rhythm perception and synchronization may be associated with improved reading and writing, putatively via phonological and motor skills, respectively. We also expect that rhythm-trained children present improved perception of rhythm and are more able to synchronize with rhythm than their untrained peers, which may lead to improved reading, as well as better motor control and writing fluency as a result.

Study 3. We will conduct a longitudinal study to determine if rhythm-based music training fosters children's reading and writing skills, and whether predispositions (i.e., rhythm skills before training) modulate the magnitude of training effects. Rhythm training effects will be compared to those of a comprehensive music training (active control) and to a passive control group. Establishing a causal link between the rhythm training and reading/writing improvements is critical to attest to its usefulness as an improving/remediation tool. This study will be conducted in a naturalistic school setting, linking laboratory-based research and real-world impact.

We propose dissemination and promotion actions to enhance knowledge sharing and utilization, in line with the European research agenda's emphasis on transfer and valuation of knowledge.

Communication. Resources devised under the project will be made available on the project website and in the OER Commons, a public digital library of open educational resources. We will conduct opening/closing sessions for the project, write press releases and lay-summaries to the media, and implement sessions to (and with) the community. In addition to the project website, we will create a project logo (annex 1), a layout, and a hashtag. The website targets researchers and general audiences.

Dissemination. We will submit five papers reporting the project findings to top-tier peer-reviewed international journals. Visual abstracts will be used to enhance impact. To raise the reproducibility, transparency, and impact of the conducted research, we will follow open science practices including pre-registration, preprints, open access papers and data. The project findings will be presented in national and international scientific meetings with a multidisciplinary emphasis, including meetings promoted by Rhythm4RAW, and disseminated via website.

Knowledge Transfer. Leveraging on the team's experience in knowledge transfer to education (M Martins and RA Alves promoted several transfer actions before, e.g., a course that reached ~500k teachers) we will design a course for teachers on the neuroscience of reading and writing. We will also capitalize on our proven know-how on children's brain MRI scanning and conduct a three-step action aiming at reducing the use of sedation in pediatric MRI — 25 to 76% of children worldwide receive sedation to complete MRI, which adds financial/labor burden and potential health risks [b]. Specifically, we will (1) devise a protocol with hands-on guidelines to better conduct sedation-free brain MRI; (2) make a child-friendly storyline video detailing the MRI procedure; and (3) carry out a webinar for health professionals working in pediatric MRI. The protocol and video will be open access, and the course will be held online to reach a wider audience. A study will be conducted to test the action effects. Advanced training for researchers and PhD/MSc students will be provided.

Altogether, Rhythm4RAW capitalizes on an innovative multimethod approach, well placed to advance knowledge on musical rhythm and literacy skills, and to offer grounded evidence for education. An ambitious dissemination and promotion plan will also contribute to a knowledge-based society. The team's contributions to science and society, which cover all the components of the proposal, and the wide network of scientific and societal collaborations ensure the quality and feasibility of Rhythm4RA.

Start: 2025-05-01

End: 2028-04-30

Evaluating Musical Rhythm Predisposition and Training in Shaping Children's Reading and Writing Skills

Musical rhythm processing has been increasingly associated with children's reading and writing skills. However, most existing studies rely on cross-sectional designs, focus on pre-reading stages, and leave critical questions unanswered. It remains unclear how the rhythm–reading/writing link develops over time, which mechanisms sustain it, and whether rhythm-based training can causally enhance reading and writing acquisition. This project will address these gaps through a randomized controlled trial that combines behavioral and neuroimaging methods. Portuguese children aged 6–8 will be recruited from public school and randomly assigned to rhythm-based music training, Orff-based comprehensive training (active control), or no systematic training (passive control). Training will last ~9 months—one school year—and will be delivered in the regular school context. Children will undergo pre- and post-training assessments of rhythm, reading, writing and fine motor skills, alongside measures of cognition, motivation, and sociodemographics. Structural and functional MRI will examine the neural substrates of rhythm–reading/writing relationships. We hypothesize that rhythm predisposition predicts reading and writing outcomes, mediated by phonological processes (for basic reading and writing skills) and motor processes (for writing fluency), and that rhythm training will produce specific improvements in rhythm perception and synchronization, leading to gains in reading (and writing-related skills), and enhance motor skills, and writing fluency as a result. Orff-based training is expected to improve fine motor skills and, consequently, writing fluency. Brain correlates and plasticity are anticipated to reflect behavioral outcomes, particularly in auditory and motor regions. By clarifying causal links between rhythm and reading/writing skills, this study will advance theoretical models and inform evidence-based educational and clinical practices.