Classical Music and Cognitive Tasks
Areas of Science |
Music |
Difficulty | |
Time Required | Long (2-4 weeks) |
*Note:
For this science project you will need to develop your own experimental procedure. Use the information in the summary tab as a starting place. If you would like to discuss your ideas or need help troubleshooting, use the Ask An Expert forum. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions and offer guidance if you come to them with specific questions.
If you want a Project Idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk (*) at the end of the title.
If you want a Project Idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk (*) at the end of the title.
Abstract
Does listening to classical music help or hinder concentration and performance on cognitive tasks? You'll need help from a teacher to design two short, age-appropriate worksheet tests for this experiment. The tests should be of equal difficulty. You'll also need the cooperation of several additional classroom teachers in order to test enough students (at least 50-100, see the Science Buddies resource: How Many Participants Do I Need?). Half the students will take test A while listening to classical music and test B with no background music. The other half of the students will take test B while listening to classical music and test A with no background music. Analyze the scores to see if there are differences in performance between the music and non-music conditions. You should also be able to show that the two tests are equally difficult under the same conditions (or use the averaged results to correct for any difference in difficulty between the two tests). (Ritblatt, 2004)Bibliography
Ritblatt, N.S., 2004. "How Does Classical Music Affect Cognitive Tasks in Kâ1st Grade Children?" California State Science Fair Abstract [accessed August 23, 2006] http://cssf.usc.edu/History/2004/Projects/J1716.pdfShare your story with Science Buddies!

Cite This Page
General citation information is provided here. Be sure to check the formatting, including capitalization, for the method you are using and update your citation, as needed.MLA Style
Science Buddies Staff.
"Classical Music and Cognitive Tasks." Science Buddies,
28 July 2017,
https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Music_p003/music/classical-music-improve-cognitive-tasks.
Accessed 20 Apr. 2021.
APA Style
Science Buddies Staff.
(2017, July 28).
Classical Music and Cognitive Tasks.
Retrieved from
https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Music_p003/music/classical-music-improve-cognitive-tasks
Last edit date: 2017-07-28
Experimental Procedure
For this science project you will need to develop your own experimental procedure. Use the information in the summary tab as a starting place. If you would like to discuss your ideas or need help troubleshooting, use the Ask An Expert forum. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions and offer guidance if you come to them with specific questions.If you want a Project Idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk (*) at the end of the title.
Share your story with Science Buddies!

Ask an Expert
The Ask an Expert Forum is intended to be a place where students can go to find answers to science questions that they have been unable to find using other resources. If you have specific questions about your science fair project or science fair, our team of volunteer scientists can help. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions, offer guidance, and help you troubleshoot.Ask an Expert
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