Do you want to get smarter and stay sharp？Scientists have discovered that when playing a musical instrument，the human brain can （21）___ the structure as well as the（22）___ of how it works．

For a long time scientists believed that the human brain was （23）___ developed by age 5and we were stuck with our gray cells for the rest of our lives．But our brain is a/an （24）___ organ．

Research finds that the brain can change（25）___ and even create new connections all through our lives as we learn new skills!（26）___，connections and areas of the brain that are less used （27）___．The strength of the connections in the brain increases with the amount of practice．

Every time you play a musical instrument，as your fingers glide over the instrument，your brain establishes important electrical （28）___．As you try to figure out the right notes，you are exercising parts of the brain which are （29）___ for language learning．When you（30）___ your music，you are working yet other （31）___ of the brain that help prevent memory loss．

The （32）___ activities required for learning and playing music help to build connections in the brain between otherwise （33）___ parts．

Why is this important？（34）___ taking a new，unfamiliar route to school．It will take a few attempts （35）___ you figure out the best shortcut to your destination．The brain works in the same way．Creating new connections can help us （36）___ our brain to focus on （37）___ ways of learning and storing information that is important for us．

So the next time your mother （38）___ you to practice your music，you are not doing her a （39）___---you are （40）___ strengthening and re-writing your brain for the future!