Meet 9 Inspiring Female Musicians Who Can Help Teach Kids About Music and Feelings

One afternoon, my preschooler was dancing around the house when she started strumming on a make-believe air guitar. As we pretended to rock out and make up simple songs, we listened for patterns in the rhythms of contemporary and legendary guitarists and talked about how certain melodies made us feel.

We can nurture our children's interest in music and use it as a tool for learning by listening to music from different cultures. It's also easy to further the learning by making our own instruments, like tissue box guitars, to practice math skills like patterns, ordinal numbers and spatial sense while never skipping a beat!

Plus, diverse musicians can serve as role models that help us build an understanding of ourselves and others. After you make your tissue box guitar, get to know some trailblazing women of the music industry by reading about them and watching some of their performances. It's also a perfect opportunity to celebrate Women's History Month (which occurs in March), an annual celebration of women's contributions to our shared, collective history.

Sister Rosetta Tharp

As the "Godmother of Rock and Roll," Sister Rosetta Tharp pioneered the electric guitar in the 1930s and 1940s. Encourage your new tissue box guitarist to mimic her style in "PBS American Masters: Sister Rosetta Tharpe."

Elizabeth Cotten

Innovative left-handed player Elizabeth Cotten learned to play music by turning her right-handed brother's banjo upside down and went on to be an acclaimed folk and blues musician. Ask your child to think of a time they had to try something in a new way.

Carla Morrison

Mexican indie-pop singer and composer Carla Morrison has won two Latin Grammys for her album, "Déjenme Llorar," which has also been certified Gold in Mexico. Watch her lead the band as she performs "Mi Secreto" in this video from NPR's World Cafe. Ask your children what they think leading a band is like and how they would feel. Talk together about the traits of a bandleader.

Ximena Sariñana

Inspired by American pop and traditional Latin American music, Ximena Sariñana received critical acclaim and a Grammy nomination for her debut album, Mediocre. Watch her perform her song "Lo Bailado" and talk about what inspires you when you create art together.

Melissa Ethridge

Musical icon and LGBTQIA+ activist Melissa Ethridge has been awarded Grammy and Academy Awards for her work. Watch her play live at L.A.'s historic Orpheum Theatre in the PBS concert special "Melissa Etheridge: This is M.E. Live in LA" and talk about her career with Gwen Ifill.

Meg White

Self-identifying as "shy," Meg White, from The White Stripes, uses music to connect with the world and others as she rocks on the drums. After you watch White play the drums, ask your children how music might help them express themselves.

Express Emotions and Practice Early Math By Composing Your Own Songs

Female composers also paved the way for many women artists with their groundbreaking contributions. María Grever was the first female Mexican composer to achieve international acclaim with her song "What A Difference A Day Makes."

Composer, educator and activist Zitkála-Šá, also known as Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, was a Yankton Sioux woman who wrote the lyrics for the first Native American opera and co-founded the National Council of American Indians to advocate for civil rights of Indigenous people.

Write music together with your child to understand feelings and practice self-expression. Talk about the lyrics (or words) and the song's tune. Ask questions like:

• "What should our song be about?"
• "How do you want your song to make you feel?"
• "Should our song be slow or fast, and why?"

After you make your tissue box guitar, you might even add more instruments to your band with this Be Your Own Band printable from "Sesame Street." Add math by talking about patterns found in the beats of music. Try creating a rhythm and having your child repeat the pattern.

And remember, as PBS Parenting Minutesreminds us, you can write, sing or read music in whatever language you are most comfortable. Fluent in Spanish and English, five-time Latin Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter Julieta Venegaschooses to write her songs in Spanish because, as she explained, her emotional life always occurred in Spanish. Watch her play several instruments in Washington D.C. on her "Los Momentos" Tour in this clip from PBS ArtBeat.

Celebrate Your Heritage Through Music

Music is an essential part of culture. Use music as a way to celebrate your family's heritage by playing traditional or contemporary music from across the community, nation or world. Check out theMusic Around the World collection on PBS LearningMedia for more inspiration. Have fun dancing to their different rhymes and beats, or listen closely to the lyrics and talk about how they might reflect traditions.