The more you explore music learning across various ages, the more you will find the consistency in the process of music learning, whatever the age. The thinking mind grows with age. The musical mind grows with rich rhythm and tonal experience through Sound, Syllables, and Symbols, whatever the age. The thinking mind of the four year old, the twelve year old and the twenty year old are very different, but the musical mind of each learns much the same.

Every age can teach us about the process of music learning. New insights from one offer new perspectives with another. Working with various ages allows us to discover the consistency in the process of music learning across ages, the interference of the thinking mind that increases with age, and how to better outsmart the thinking mind of any age to reach the musical mind. Young children offer the truest picture of the musical mind, as the thinking mind has not yet dominated their lives. Musically developed four year olds invite a unique view of the musical mind through Rhythm and Tonal Discrimination and the move forward to music reading, as they bring a background in sound and syllables, without the interference of the thinking mind that tries to command Rhythm and Tonal Discrimination and music reading with older students; and they move into the process of music reading and writing as naturally as they do with language. In comparison, older students, whether seven or seventeen, can lead us to better understand the interference of the thinking mind, and perhaps the ultimate collaboration between the musical mind and the thinking mind in music reading and writing.

A rule of thumb for all ages might be that students who are ready for rhythm and tonal syllables spend at least 10 weeks with syllables, including Discrimination Activities. Music reading can be introduced the last couple of weeks with all ages. Beyond 10 weeks, the time with rhythm and tonal syllables can be expanded and music experience broadened with younger students, while moving more directly into music reading with older students. Whatever the age, students should demonstrate competence with rhythm syllables in Rhythm Dialogue in Duple and Triple meters, competence with tonal syllables in Resting Tone Activities and some in Tonal Dialogue in all tonalities, and greater awareness of the difference between meters, tonalities, macro and micro beats, and resting tone and working tone before moving to music reading and writing.