Research Updates
Here at Bigger Better Brains we believe that through educating yourself, you can then educate and affect positive change in your community.
With all of the research in the field of neuromusical science, our BBB Research section serves as a content hub for you. We regularly share findings and break down the latest research to educate and inspire discussion. We hope you enjoy this page on our website and share BBB news with your colleagues, parents and students.
Unlocking the Connection Between Music, Memory, and Learning
Recent research from the Georgia Institute of Technology has unveiled compelling insights into how music affects learning, memory, and emotions.
How Music Fuels Memory
A recent study from Aarhus University reveals that while older adults can remember familiar music as well as younger individuals, their brains engage differently during the process.
Advocacy in Action Quiz
Take our free, 60 second quiz and maximize your advocacy impact by discovering your advocacy style and knowledge gaps.
Holiday Cheer, BBB Style: Share the Joy and the Knowledge!
Thank you for a wonderful 2024! Here’s a little gift from BBBB to you.
Depressed? Classical music could be the unexpected remedy!
Music has always been a go-to for lifting our spirits, but did you know classical music might take it a step further by actually helping treat depression?
Top 7 questions asked by students
Founder of Bigger Better Brains, Dr Anita Collins, receives hundreds of emails from students around the world asking questions about neuromusical research. So she decided to record a short video about the most asked questions she has received.
The surprising link between music and cognitive health in older adults
Can music play a role in healthy aging? According to new research, the answer might be yes.
Can Music Sync Our Heartbeats? This Study Says Yes!
Imagine sitting in a concert hall, completely immersed in the music, when something incredible happens—you and the people around you begin to breathe and feel the same rhythm.
Singing is not just singing, it is social glue
A new research project will investigate if singing together could be more than just a pleasant pastime; it might be a powerful tool for enhancing cooperation across various aspects of society, from classrooms to boardrooms.
‘If you’re aiming for this…’ Free Digital Download
Introducing our exciting new ‘If You’re Aiming for This…’ campaign, created to help you engage with your community like never before!
Pitch Perfect: Singing Earworms Reveals Surprising Trait
Many of us have experienced those catchy tunes that get stuck in our heads, but did you know that nearly 45% of people can sing these earworms in perfect pitch?
Make the skills your students build through music visible
A simple, low-stakes app and teacher toolkit that helps students notice, record and celebrate six learning habits that grow through music, from focus to self-management.
Music builds far more than musicians. Every time students practise, they develop focus, persistence, adaptability, collaboration, confidence and self-management, skills that serve them well beyond the music room. The Music Learning Passport helps students notice, record and celebrate that growth, and gives you a simple way to capture it. Students work through six passport stamps in the app, reflect on the habits they are building, and email their finished learner profile to you and their parents.
WHAT YOU GET
Access to the Music Learning Passport app: a link and password to share with your students, who track their progress on any device
A teacher how-to guide with everything you need to set it up and run it with your class
Six printable habit pages, one for each habit, each with a clear explanation, how music develops it, what it looks like in practice, and a reflection prompt
A shareable learner profile: once students collect all six stamps, they choose their strongest skills and email a finished profile to you and their parents
Six Habits of Music Learning posters to display in your classroom, reinforcing each learning habit throughout the year
WHAT IT HELPS YOU DO
Make the skills students build through music visible to them, to you and to parents
Support reflection, goal-setting and student-teacher check-ins
Provide a light-touch piece of evidence for assessment
Help students who are struggling to see their own progress
Strengthen the case for music by showing the wider skills it develops
HOW TO USE IT
Share the app link and password with your students, then use the passport as a quick end-of-term reflection, a goal-setting activity for a new term, a student-teacher check-in, or a support tool for students who need it. Students can complete it independently, in class or through guided discussion, and email their finished profile to you when they are done. Use the printable habit pages to introduce each stamp or spark class discussion.
WHY IT WORKS
When students can see the habits they are building, music learning becomes about more than performance. It becomes visible proof of the focus, persistence and self-management they are developing, skills they carry into every part of their lives. As one student profile puts it, music is not only about what you can perform, it is shaping the learner you are becoming.
"This app was a lifesaver on a day I couldn’t be in class and I didn’t want to set just another worksheet to complete. This experience was deeply beneficial for the students and has sparked many many conversations.” Holly, Middle School Music Teacher
COMMON QUESTIONS
What is the passport? A student app plus a teacher toolkit for tracking six learning habits that grow through music.
How do students access it? You share a link and password. Students can complete it on any device.
Will their progress save? Yes, progress saves on the device they use, so students should return to the same device and browser each time.
Do I need to mark anything? No. Students reflect and email their finished profile to you. It is designed to be low stakes and low effort.
How can I use it? End-of-term reflection, goal-setting, check-ins, assessment evidence or support for students who need it.
Add to cart NOW. Help your students see how far their music learning has taken them.
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