IntroductionSelf-regulation (the ability to regulate emotion, attention, cognition and behaviour) is an integral part of early learning competence in the years prior to school. Self-regulation skills are critical to ongoing learning behaviours, achievement and well-being. Emerging neurological evidence suggests coordinated music and movement participation could support self-regulation development for all children. A pilot study in 2016 introduced a coordinated music and movement programme designed to boost self-regulation skills in children in disadvantaged communities, delivered by visiting specialists, with promising findings. The intervention is based on the neuroscience of beat synchronisation, rhythmic entrainment and the cognitive benefits of music therapy and music education—and is called Rhythm and Movement for Self-Regulation (RAMSR). This study builds on the pilot by training regular teachers to deliver RAMSR in their classrooms (rather than visiting specialists). The study aims to establish the effectiveness of RAMSR, which is designed to translate the cognitive benefits that accrue from rhythm participation to address self-regulation for children who do not typically access high-quality music programmes.Methods and analysisWe will recruit 237 children from up to eight kindergartens in low socioeconomic areas. Intervention: teachers will be trained to deliver the RAMSR intervention during group time in kindergartens, daily for 8 weeks. Control: usual practice kindergarten programme. Follow-up: end of intervention using child assessments and teacher report; 12 months postbaseline using school teacher reports following school transition. Primary outcomes: executive function and self-regulation. Secondary outcomes: school readiness; visual-motor integration; teacher-reported behaviour problems, school transition and academic competency; teacher knowledge, confidence, practice and attitudes related to self-regulation, rhythm and movement; fidelity of intervention implementation.Ethics and disseminationQueensland University of Technology Human Research Ethics Committee, approval 1900000566. Findings dissemination: in-field workshops to service providers, conference presentations, journal and professional publications.Trial registration numberACTRN12619001342101; Pre-results (30 September 2019).

Self-regulation skills are an important predictor of school readiness and early school achievement. Research identifies that experiences of early stress in disadvantaged households can affect young children’s brain architecture, often manifested in poor self-regulatory functioning. While there are documented benefits of coordinated movement activities and music education to improve self-regulation, few interventions have focused exclusively on rhythmic movement activities within a universal preschool setting. This study investigated the effectiveness of a preschool intervention, delivered across eight weeks by generalist preschool teachers, which focused on coordinated rhythmic movement with music to improve self-regulation and executive function. The program is known as RAMSR (Rhythm and Movement for Self-Regulation). The study involved 213 children across eight preschools in disadvantaged communities. The intervention group received 16 to 20 sessions of a rhythm and movement program over eight weeks, while the control group undertook the usual preschool program. Primary outcome measures were executive function and self-regulation with secondary outcomes being school readiness and visual motor integration. Children across the study had baseline measures demonstrating substantial self-regulation and executive function challenges when compared to norms on these measures. Post intervention, significant intervention effects were found for self-regulation and importantly, fidelity and teacher report measures show that it is feasible for educators without any music background to deliver the program. These findings are important given that children from low socioeconomic backgrounds are both more likely to need support for self-regulation to support school transition and have inequitable access to quality music and movement programs. This study confirms that universal access to this beneficial approach can be created through building capacity in early childhood educators. This trial was registered pre-recruitment with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12619001342101.

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The benefits of active music participation and training for cognitive development have been evidenced in multiple studies, with this link leveraged in music therapy approaches with clinical populations. Although music, rhythm, and movement activities are widely integrated into children's play and early education, few studies have systematically translated music therapy‐based approaches to a nonclinical population to support early cognitive development. This study reports the follow‐up effects of the Rhythm and Movement for Self Regulation (RAMSR) program delivered by generalist preschool teachers in low socioeconomic communities. This randomized control trial (RCT) involved 213 children across eight preschools in disadvantaged communities in Queensland, Australia. The intervention group received 16–20 sessions of RAMSR over 8 weeks, while the control group undertook usual preschool programs. Primary outcome measures included executive function (child assessment of shifting, working memory, and inhibition) and self‐regulation (teacher report), with secondary outcomes of school readiness and visual‐motor integration. Data were collected pre‐ and post‐intervention, and again 6 months later once children had transitioned into school. Results demonstrated significant intervention effects across the three time points for school readiness (p = 0.038, ηp2 = 0.09), self‐regulation (p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.08), and inhibition (p = 0.002 ηp2 = 0.23). Additionally, the feasibility of building capacity in teachers without any music background to successfully deliver the program was evidenced. These findings are important given that children from low socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to need support for cognitive development yet have inequitable access to quality music and movement programs.Research Highlights Initial effects of self‐regulation from a rhythm and movement program were sustained following transition into school for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Delayed effects of inhibition and school readiness from a rhythm and movement program appeared 6 months post‐intervention as children entered school. Generalist teachers can successfully implement a rhythm and movement program, which boosts critical developmental cognitive skills.